Kia Opirus

The Opirus' styling — described variously as conservative,[9] neo-classic,[4] restrained, unoriginal and derivative[9] — drew cues from disparate sources, notably the Mercedes-Benz E-class, Lincoln Town Car, Jaguar S-Type, Lexus GS, Chrysler 300C, and Lancia Thesis.[2][10]

In the Korean Domestic Market, interior features included available heated and reclining rear seats,[3] high-intensity-discharge headlights, navigation system, electro-luminescent gauges, ignition immobilizer, reverse parking sensors and electronically adjustable suspension settings.[11]

In North America, the sedan was marketed to value-sensitive 40-to-60-year-old professionals[4][3] with standard equipment at introduction including manually tilting leather-wrapped, four-spoke steering wheel[3] with faux woodgrain inserts and remote audio and cruise controls; faux wood grain dash, console and door accents (lighter prior to the 2007 facelift, darker thereafter); power locks and windows; CD player with six speakers; electronic driver- and passenger-adjustable climate control; front, curtain and side airbags;[3] dual zone automatic climate control; keyless entry;[11] herring bone cloth interior; glove-box only key; elongated LED turn-signals; rain-sensing windshield wipers; analog clock; foot-operated parking brake (releasable by a dash-mounted pull-handle); power moonroof; 16" alloy wheels; full-size spare on an alloy wheel;[12] and an eight-way powered driver's bucket seat and four-way passenger bucket seat[13] with door-mounted adjustment controls using a "mock-seat" ergonomic design.[11] The interior received heavy acoustic insulation,[14][9] and later models included heated rear seats, and electro-luminescent instrument lighting.[14] European models include two ISOFIX anchorage points.[4]

Options included leather interior, 270-watt Infinity stereo with subwoofer and six-disc changer,[13] dashboard LCD screen, trip computer with 4" LCD screen, heated seats, Adjustable pedals, auto-dimming rearview mirror, and pearl coat paint.[3] Safety equipment included eight airbags, and obstruction-sensing, anti-pinch power windows.[12]

The Opirus offered a passenger volume of 105.6 cubic feet[12] and a 15.5 cubic foot cargo volume[3] — the trunk equipped with a gas strut-assisted lid and luggage restraining net.[12]

In North America, J.D. Power and Associates recognized the Amanti as the "Most Appealing Premium Midsize Car" in its 2005 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout Study.

The Opirus was marketed globally with the 3.5L Sigma and the 3.8L Lambda engines. The North American Amanti featured the 3.5 liter engine producing 200 bhp at 5500 rpm and 220 lb.-ft. of torque at 3500 rpm.[11] Shifting was by a 5-speed automatic transmission, shifting either in fully automatic or manual sequential modes — the latter controlled via an "H"-shaped shift gate.[10] Steering was an electronically power assisted rack and pinion system[12] with an overall ratio of 15.24:1 and a turning radius of 5.7 meters.[4]

Suspension featured coil springs, anti-roll bars (26 mm front, 16 mm rear),[4] gas-pressurized shocks,[12] a front independent, double A-arm (wishbone) design[11] with unequal-length control arms and rear multi-link rear geometry.[10] Suspension included an ECS (electronically controlled suspension) system with automatic and sport mode, selectable via a switch adjacent to the transmission shift gate and the sport mode providing stiffer shock absorber settings.[4]

Brakes included 11.9/11.2-inch front/rear discs[15] with four channel, four sensors ABS (anti-lock brakes), BAS (emergency brake assist), EBD (electronic brake force distribution), TCS (traction control system), and ESP (electronic stability program).[4]

The Opirus is the first[4] Kia to integrate an Electronic Stability Program (ESP), developed with Continental Teves of Germany.[4]

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  2003 Kia Opirus
• 
  2007 Kia Amanti
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  2008 Kia Opirus GL
• 
  2009 Kia Opirus GL

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kia Opirus.

• Kia Opirus official site
• Cars.com review
• ConsumerGuide review
• Kia Amanti Research Guide