Kia's Reason for Starting to Use Unusual Interior Colors in its Cars

JAKARTA - If you look at the cabin of the 2027 Kia Telluride, you will see a series of combinations of colors and interior materials that are far from ordinary. From dark sage green to eggplant purple, it turns out that Kia deliberately designed the cabin of its latest generation SUV to appear more expressive, in line with the exterior design that has garnered pro-contras.

This step, according to Kia, is a deliberate design decision to give the interior a new energy. Instead of maintaining the neutral black or gray feel that has been commonly used.

"It offers something dark and neutral, but not black or gray. It gives a little more life to the interior, without being excessive, you know? It's quite subtle," said Head Designer Tom Kearns at Kia Design Center America, as reported by The Drive, Wednesday, February 4.

Interestingly, this eggplant/cream color combination is only available on the Telluride Hybrid variant, a new model and powertrain for the second generation SUV. The surface that looks like leather is made from Syntex.

The material is a synthetic that Kia has used on other models and is designed to be easy to clean, an important aspect given the Telluride is positioned as a family vehicle.

For the gasoline version, Kia offers a combination of Deep Navy and Tuscan Umber.

The last color can be described as a reddish brick tone, presenting an alternative to conventional interiors. If in general SUVs come with caramel seats, this red upholstery option feels unique, especially when combined with navy.

In addition, the Millstone color, Kia's designation for camouflage green, can also be paired with black or Saddle Brown, which is close to cream. In total, the new Telluride has six interior color options if you include the exclusive eggplant purple of the hybrid version.

This number is quite a lot for a mass-produced SUV that in practice is often bought in black. Nevertheless, the variety of choices gives the impression of being more luxurious, although Kia still targets the same consumer demographic as the previous generation.

Because the public is used to seeing purple interiors in ultra-luxury SUVs such as the Bentley Bentayga or the Rolls-Royce Cullinan that are specially ordered. However, the presence of a similar color in Telluride is clearly a different sight.

"We make it look expensive, it doesn't mean it has to be expensive," Kearns concluded, summing up Kia's design ambitions.