Well, it seems the folks at Kia have been busy. Not content with just making some of the most popular cars on the road, they’ve gone and raided the trophy cabinet at one of the world’s most prestigious design competitions. Kia has snagged an impressive five honours at the ‘Red Dot Award: Design Concept 2025’, basically telling the rest of the industry to hold their collective breath. And they didn’t just win; they dominated.
The “Best of the Best” Weekend Warrior
Leading the charge and grabbing the top prize, the coveted ‘Best of the Best’ award, is the gloriously adventurous PV5 WKNDR Concept. First unveiled at the 2024 SEMA Showcase, this isn’t just a van; it’s a declaration of intent for the weekend warrior in all of us. Think of it as a Swiss Army knife on wheels, but electric. It’s what Kia calls a ‘Platform Beyond Vehicle’ (PBV), designed to glide through city streets during the week and then transform into a rugged off-road companion when Friday rolls around.
They’ve thrown everything at it: serious off-road enhancements, a modular interior you can customise to your heart’s content, and even an external storage system that cleverly converts into a mobile kitchen. But the pièce de résistance? It generates its own power. With integrated solar panels and a hydro turbine, the PV5 WKNDR is a self-sufficient adventure pod, ensuring your gadgets stay charged while you’re properly off the grid. It’s a prime example of Kia’s commitment to “practical innovation,” and frankly, it’s brilliant.
The Winning Entourage
As if taking home the top gong wasn’t enough, four other Kia concepts were also recognised as ‘Winners’ in the Cars and Motorcycles category, proving this was no fluke.
The rest of the PBV family showed up in force:
- Concept PV1: An ultra-compact, autonomous pod designed to solve the puzzle of last-mile urban deliveries. Think of it as the clever little courier bot of the future, zipping through dense city streets.
- PV5: The mid-sized workhorse that’s already available to customers. It’s a master of flexibility, ready for either logistics or hauling people, and even features a ‘Driver’s Desk’ workspace concept for when the van is your office.
- Concept PV7: The big boy of the lineup with the most cargo space, a mobile office layout, and advanced storage solutions, making it ideal for everyone from small business owners to large logistics firms.
And for those who prefer their adventures without a van-sized footprint, there’s the Concept EV2. This is a compact B-segment electric SUV that screams versatility. With a rugged look and a clever pillarless design, its interior can be reconfigured to suit pretty much any lifestyle you can throw at it.
The ‘Opposites United’ Secret Sauce
So, what’s behind this sudden explosion of design brilliance? It’s all down to Kia’s ‘Opposites United’ design philosophy. It might sound a bit like a zen koan, but the idea is to blend contrasting concepts to create something new and exciting. They’re mixing technology with nature, and practicality with raw emotion, and the result is a lineup of vehicles that are both user-focused and sustainable. It’s proof that you can have your eco-friendly cake and drive it too.
Karim Habib, Kia’s Head of Global Design, called the wins a “proud moment” and a reflection of the “thoughtful innovation and dedication” his team invests in every model. It’s hard to argue with that. By scooping up these Red Dot awards, Kia is cementing its place as a global design leader and giving us a very exciting glimpse into “the future of sustainable and accessible mobility”.
