Kia reveals its HabaNiro SUV. What exactly is hot and spicy about it?

Dalvin Brown
Updated
Imagined and created at Kia’s California design studio, the company calls it "The Everything Car."
Imagined and created at Kia’s California design studio, the company calls it "The Everything Car."

What do you get when you mix a hot chili pepper with Kia's 2019 Niro crossover?

A HabaNiro. Get it?

While Hyundai debuted its new subcompact SUV, the Venue, on Wednesday at the New York Auto Show, the South Korean carmaker's sister brand, Kia, rolled out the "spicy" HabaNiro concept car.

The all-electric, four-seater SUV has butterfly wing doors and all-wheel drive, Kia says, with a range of more than 300 miles.

“We wanted this concept to be comfortable navigating city streets, carving turns on a coastal road and off-roading with confidence to remote wilderness adventures,” said Tom Kearns, vice president of design for Kia.

The HabaNiro has a three-tone color scheme, including dark grey on the lower front end, silver on the mid-body and a firey rear end that the company calls "lava red."

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The front foregoes Kia's tiger nose-inspired grille in favor of a mouth that looks more like by a shark's snout, with a slit-like gap full of what the company calls "black aluminum teeth."

The car has a red interior that's home to a front windshield display controlled by a touchpad rather than traditional knobs and buttons. The outside lacks side mirrors.

“We couldn’t be more proud of our design center,” says Michael Cole, KMA chief operating officer and executive vice president.

“Not only does its beautiful design incorporate the needs of future mobility, but its engineering and technology anticipate the way people will want to move in the near future.”

For those of you who want to take the HabaNiro for a spin, you may one day be able to.

In the past 18 months, Kia released two vehicles that were inspired by concepts, the Stinger and the Telluride.

Kia unveiled a special edition Stinger GTS at the New York Auto Show on Wednesday. Only 800 units of the redesigned sport sedan are being made.

The new Stinger is orange colored with the signature tiger-nose grille.

Since its debut nearly two years ago, the Kia Stinger quickly become a crowd favorite, according to the company. Limited to just 800 units, the special edition Stinger GTS has an all-wheel-drive system.
Since its debut nearly two years ago, the Kia Stinger quickly become a crowd favorite, according to the company. Limited to just 800 units, the special edition Stinger GTS has an all-wheel-drive system.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kia reveals its HabaNiro SUV. What exactly is hot and spicy about it?