The Optima has been awarded the highest possible safety rating by the United States' Insurance INstitute for Highway Safety. With a maximum 'good' rating in each of the four tests - front, rear and side impact and rollover protection - the Kia is on the top tier of safety. Electronic stability control, traction control and a host of electronic safety systems speak to the Optima's safety credentials.

Stacked full of what are often considered luxury options, the Optima comes at one standard price thousands, and in some cases, tens of thousands of dollars below competitors. Leather seats, premium sound system, full-length sunroof, refined styling and much more at a price that means you don't have to be rich to feel rich.

The Optima's 2.4-litre Gasoline Direct Injection engine is latest-generation technology in a world requiring ever-more stringent emission controls for a customer still demanding from-the-heart performance. Coupled to an in-house developed six-speed automatic gearbox the GDI engine delivers efficiency, ecological responsibility and refinement in an affordable package.

To set the Optima for Australia even further apart from its competitors Kia Motors Australia's engineers embarked on an extensive program of optimising the ride and handling characteristics of the car to the specic Australian road conditions and the tastes of the Australian driver. Over months of testing the KMAu engineers consulted with ride and handling experts from Kia's Seoul headquarters and development engineers from a leading suspension component supplier. More than 20 sets of springs and dampers were built and tested on Australian roads before an optimum combination was selected for a unique suspension setting.