2021 Kia K5 (Optima) Reportedly Not Coming To Europe “Thanks” To SUVs

The all-new 2021 Kia K5, known as the Optima in North America and Europe, will be sold in fewer markets compared to its predecessor.

While nothing is official yet, The Korean Car Blog reports that European customers will miss out on the midsize sedan. In an interview he gave to the website, Kia Motors Europe COO Emilio Herrera said the Korean carmaker won’t bring the all-new Optima to Europe.

“At this time we have currently no plans to launch the new Optima/K5 in Europe,” Herrera told the website, without elaborating. This comes not long after Kia quietly pulled the Optima out of the UK market without saying anything about a successor.

It’s not hard to guess why Kia would make such a decision in a market where SUV sales see massive increases every year and the market share of big sedans is only a fraction of what it was ten years ago.

According to data from JATO Dynamics, midsize passenger cars only made up 6.2 percent of total European Union registrations in the first 10 months of this year. In comparison, SUVs topped EU registrations during the same period with a share of 40.1 percent.

Also, let’s not forget that the Kia Optima is a relative newcomer in the European midsize sedan market, which is dominated by models like the VW Passat, Skoda Superb, Opel/Vauxhall Insignia and Ford Mondeo.

For those European consumers who are still buying midsize sedans and wagons, missing out on the all-new 2021 Kia K5/Optima is obviously bad news. That’s because the fifth-generation Optima promises to be a massive improvement in all areas, including design-wise.

Note: Korean-spec 2021 Kia K5 pictured