SEOUL - South Korea's second-largest automaker, Kia Corp., announced on Wednesday its plans to initiate a used car sales program, echoing a similar initiative by its larger affiliate, Hyundai Motor Co.
According to a news release by Yonhap News Agency, Kia will start selling refurbished secondhand units, including both electric vehicles (EVs) and combustion engine models, beginning next Wednesday. The company is emphasizing its refurbishment of used EV models and has introduced a five-tier grading system to measure their quality. The overall grade for each model will be determined by combining the EV's battery rating and the distance that can be covered on a single battery charge. Vehicles eligible for sale under this program are those less than five years old, with fewer than 100,000 kilometers driven, and no accident history. Kia has set up a dedicated center for testing and upgrading secondhand units in Yongin, 42 kilometers south of Seoul. The company aims to sell 3,000 secondhand units for the remainder of 2023 and 15,000 units next year.