Well, this news definitely isn’t something that is going to surprise you. Why? Well anyone who follows or visits SEMA probably knows that this is the place where Kia feels right at home. Each year they bring some crazy concept that takes everybody’s thunder from right beneath their noses. This year isn’t an exception, and this time Kia might have just surpassed itself with the Sorento Ski Gondola Concept.
The Sorento, humongous vehicle by itself, has been reworked by the good people from Lux Motorwerks which turned it into conquer all and travel everywhere snow type vehicle that is supposed to carry skiers up on slopes. The reworked vehicle received more than an original name – Sorento Ski Gondola Concept. What is magnificent here is the fact that constructors didn’t just stop at slapping it rubber tracks that can get it anywhere, which would just by itself wowed the crowd at SEMA. No. They had to go a step further and make it out-of-this-world type of vehicle. Since you know that autonomous tech is top story lately, of course, that Kia wanted to implement that into the Sorento Ski Concept. What they came up with is amazing – like a real ski gondola Sorento doesn’t have a driver because it can be operated by a tablet that is now part of the redesigned interior. What is even more incredible is that the first row of seats is turned toward the back one – just like in ski resorts.
The interior of it is astonishing with a sea of black and orange leather with custom stitching that covers almost everything you can see and touch, and just because it is a skiers vehicle the floor is rubberized to keep the water away from the parts that shouldn’t get wet. Since the seats are facing each other, the getting in and out process had to be made easier, and it was accomplished thanks to Lux Motorwerks who took down the B pillar and installed a pair of suicide doors. As you can imagine it is packed with a whole bunch of gizmos such as a wide range of LED lights, cameras instead of exterior rear view mirrors so you can get a live feed inside of what is going on in front of the car. Furthermore, it also comes equipped with a custom roof rack for skiing equipment.
As we mentioned at the beginning, Kia truly outdid itself, and this might be their crown jewel vehicle, at least for this year. What remains is to wait and see what faith will befall this concept – will it see production or not?
