KN Cars - New car brand or new Kia logo?

Plenty of carmakers update their badging or logos to give their range a fresh, new look. But it doesn't always go strictly to plan.

While the account executives in the glass-and-chrome boardroom know what the new look represents, the punters in the showroom at street level are often left scratching their heads.

Do you remember in the late 1980s when Toyota changed its corporate logo to the (admittedly) now familiar three ovals? The marketing department claimed the smaller of the three ovals represented the heart of the client, the second was the heart of the Toyota brand and the larger, outside oval represented the limitless possibilities of personal transport.

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But as far as car-buyers not present for that presentation were concerned, the new Toyota symbol looked more like a water buffalo stuck in a tunnel.

And now it's happened at Kia, too.

While there's no doubting the fact that the stylised new Kia logo looks fresh and modern (certainly compared with the old one) doubts do arise when it comes to actually deriving what the logo is saying.

Is it KN? If it is, then the N is backwards. Is there even a KN car brand? If so, what is its country of origin? The answer of course, is no, the logo still spells out Kia, it's just that the horizontal bar on the A is missing and there's no gap between the I and A.

Once it's been explained, there's less confusion, but right now, some online reports are suggesting that as many as 50,000 internet searches every month are trying to decipher the badge that's started to be seen on the road.

Typical searches that show the level of confusion include KN car price, KN cars, KN car brand, car with KN badge and KN new car, to name just a few.

So, if you've searched it yourself, don't feel bad, because it seems the new Kia logo is really throwing some people a curve ball.

In Australia, all Kias with a MY2022 or later build date now carry the new logo.

Throw in the fact that cars have never looked more homogenous and that Kia's cars aren't universally recognisable to everybody, and you can see where the confusion has crept in.

So why is there a KIA new logo in the first place?

Well, aside from many corporate bodies electing for a visual freshen up over time, here it is from the horse's mouth, the Kia Australia official line on the matter: "We will move beyond being a traditional car manufacturer to becoming a mobility brand. One that understands consumers' mobility needs in terms of products, but also in terms of services, providing convenient solutions that respect everyone's most valued resource, time."

So now you know...

In Australia, all Kias with a MY2022 or later build date now carry the new logo.

The other remaining question, of course, is whether you can take a 2021 or earlier Kia and update the badge to the new one. Kia says no, as the physical dimensions of the two badges don't allow for interchangeability.