Koni Sports Car Challenge Kia Forte Koup

Saturday, 16 July 2011

Koni Sports Car Challenge Kia Forte Koup

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Hot on the heels of unveiling its 2010 Forte Koup, Kia has announced today at the SEMA show that it will campaign the sporty two-door in the 2010 Grand-Am Koni Sports Car Challenge Series. The Forte Koup will be entered in the Street Tuner (ST) class where it will do battle against the likes of the Mini Cooper, Mazda MX-5, and Honda Civic Si.
"The Forte Koup is the latest chapter in the dramatic Kia brand transformation story, and the decision to enter into the motorsports arena was an easy one to make," said Michael Sprague, vice president of marketing for Kia North America. "The Forte Koup's performance-inspired styling and outstanding driving dynamics make it a natural fit for road racing, and competing in Grand-Am's Koni Challenge Series enables us to reach an entirely new and passionate base of automotive enthusiasts."
2010 Kia Forte Koup Race Car Rear Three Quarter
Kia will team up with the Kinetic Group to run two specially prepared Forte Koups in the series; Kinetic having been involved in race car preparation with such series as NASCAR, IRL, and ALMS. The FT class allows limited modifications to its production-based entries, enabling a strong bond between road and race car to remain. Weight and intake restrictions are also used to keep the cars as evenly configured as possible.
"We expect the Forte Koup to be a strong competitor in the Grand-Am Koni Challenge Series starting with the first race in Daytona," said Sprague.