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Is it me, or does the current Kia Optima look like a complete Maxima ripoff? To be honest, every time I see one in traffic it looks straight up similar to the new Maxima. The C-Pillar on both cars are exactly the same shape. Heck, even the headlights and taillights would look the same if they were boomerang style. Even when you look in the interior, the dash is positioned towards the driver's side the same way as the Max. What's even worse is that the Kia debuted in 2010 and this Maxima didn't start development until 2012.
So what gives my Maxima brothers? Sorry lol, I had vent as this has been on my mind ever since the concept car came out.
Last edited by dauntlessmax; Aug 4, 2015 at 12:13 PM.
I had sort of noticed this also, and wondered about it. In seeing them on TV, I could easily understand why buyers might be drawn to either car.
But when we see these two cars in person, for me, the Maxima looks bigger, heavier, stronger, more aggressive and more 'attached' to the road. In person, this Maxima has a 'presence' that I do not feel with the Optima, or even with earlier Maximas. Having said that, I can see where a person not into aggressive and 'mean looking' would prefer the less intimidating looks of the Optima.
Nissan for a while copied the Ford Taurus for to make the Maxima, not a surprise. Kia is owned By Hyundai and remember this:
The infiniti outclassed it damn near everywhere, brakes, suspension, interior, powertrain everywhere but the Hyundai was cheap and looked good. And remember this:
vs
Lexus has been reletlessly been copying Mercedes for YEARS. Whatever Mercedes does Lexus with in 2 years copies. This is nothing new. The Japanese are just getting a dose of their own medicine lol.
Nissan "borrowed" a lot of styling cues from the Kia Optima, the new '16 Optima does not look as good as the '11-'15 though. Top trims of the '11-'15 Optima look good in certain colors.
I often see a local black, slightly lowered Optima with tinted windows and it looks damn good. From the right side angle it doesn't look like an Optima and when I first saw it, I thought "wow, what the hell is that"??? The rear badge was replaced with the generic "K" so it took me a few minutes to recognize the badge or lack thereof.
