No Comments

Kia at SEMA: Behold, the Kia Beermobile Has Arrived [PHOTOS]

Last month, we shared with you a short teaser video from Kia that showed a 2015 Kia Sedona being modified with the addition of foldable wood panels to the vehicle’s rear. The clip was released with the promise, “Kia Motors America and Ballast Point Brewery are serving up something special for the 2014 SEMA Show,” which naturally led us to speculate that maybe, just maybe, Kia was making a beermobile. Well, now that photos of Kia at SEMA are starting to come in, we can officially confirm that yes, Kia made a beermobile, and it is glorious.

The 2014 SEMA Show Ballast Point Sedona SX Limited was hand-built and painted by the team at LGE-CTS Motorsports, who gave the heavily modified minivan a nautical look that’s in keeping with the maritime theme that the San Diego-based Ballast Point Brewery is known for. The flip-top roof and fold-down bar are both made from solid mahogany wood, and one of the vehicle’s power-sliding side doors was left operational so that a bartender could get in and out of the custom Sedona. The back passenger seats which would normally be used to haul kids to soccer practice have been ripped out and replaced with two functioning Micro Matic taps, an insulated container with 120-feet of copper beer-cooling coils, and four half-barrel kegs of Ballast Point craft beer.

The beermobile, as well as Kia’s (almost) equally-drool-inducing Smitten Ice Cream Soul EV, both play into the Korean automaker’s “A Day at the Races” theme for this year’s SEMA Show. To commemorate its 2014 Pirelli world Challenge Manufacturers Championship, Kia brought four brand new motorsports-themed vehicles to SEMA: the aforementioned beermobile and Kia Soul ice cream truck, a High-Performance K900, and the Ultimate Karting Sedona, which has a custom-built kart rack and trailer for hauling karts to the track. You can check them all out in the photo gallery below.

Captivating Advertisements: Join Christopher Walken in celebrating the Kia brand

The High-Performance K900 features a custom body kit with carbon fiber inserts, blended gray paint, blacked-out chrome trim, and 21-inch black HRE RS100 wheels inside Pirelli tires. The interior boasts some sharp-looking tan leather seating with black suede accents, and planted into the back of the driver and front passenger seats are 11-inch monitors that show footage from iRacing.com Motorsport Simulations. You can also store your driving suit and helmet in the custom compartments found in the trunk, which even features a ProDryer that removes perspiration.

A unique Garrett 2871R twin-turbo application (which can be seen through a window in the trunk) boosts the K900’s five-liter V8 engine from 420 to almost 650 horsepower. A lowered Eibach suspension keeps this rocket from flying off, while Ksport 8-piston brakes paired with 15-inch cross-drilled rotors provide enhanced control.

A Health Conscious Vehicle: Check your vital signs in the Kia Telluride Concept Car

“Competing – and winning – in the Pirelli World Challenge series allows Kia to provide tangible proof of the quality, durability, reliability and performance of the vehicles we build,” said Michael Sprague, executive vice president of Kia sales & marketing. “This year’s SEMA show gives us the opportunity to celebrate our hard-fought championships while also embracing the fun and excitement of the fan experience in a way that only Kia could do.”



Kia at SEMA: Photo Gallery