(Fri 02 Apr 10)

The new Kia Magentis has been formally unveiled at the New York International Auto Show - but nobody there is calling it that.

What they are actually calling it is the Optima, which is what the Magentis has always been known as in most markets (other than its home one of Korea, where it answers to K5). It will be known as the Optima here too when it goes on sale next year.

Visibly more modern than its predecessor, the Optima looks kinda funky, which is not something that could reasonably be said of the current Magentis. It's also longer, wider and lower, and built on a completely new platform. In western European markets it will be sold with a choice of two-litre petrol and 1.7 turbo diesel engines, both of them mated to six-speed manual or automatic transmissions, while a hybrid version is referred to in Kia's press release next to the words "coming soon . . ."

UK pricing and specification details won't be confirmed for some time yet, but almost regardless of what they are it seems certain that the Optima will greatly improve on the recent sales figures of the Magentis, which have been described within Kia as "pitiful".

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