Kia Chooses Las Vegas, Not Detroit, for E.V. Debuts LAS VEGAS - Rather than at a traditional auto salon like the one running concurrently in Detroit, Kia Motors opted to introduce two electric vehicles at the Consumer Electronics Show here this week. The automaker explained that C.E.S. was the proper venue to introduce the cars and emphasize to the electronics industry the potential synergies of a fast-approaching electrified future for the transportation industry. Both vehicles - a purely electric version of the Ray subcompact already on sale in Korea, and the Naimo E.V. concept - are powered by lithium-ion polymer battery packs and an electric motor. The Naimo's set-up produces 107 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque, and is capable of pushing the vehicle to a top speed of 93 miles per hour and providing up to 124 miles of range on a charge, according to Kia. Introduced in December, the Ray was the first mass-produced E.V. on the Korean market. It is assembled on the same production lines as its gasoline-engine counterpart, and was designed and built with the Korean market in mind. The Ray E.V., which is slightly less powerful than the Naimo concept, would go up to 86 miles on a single charge, Kia said, and is powered by a 50-kilowatt electric motor (roughly 67 horsepower) and 16.4 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion polymer battery pack. Its top speed is 81 m.p.h. "There are no plans at the moment to import the Ray E.V. into North America," said James Hope, a Kia spokesman. But the industry is changing rapidly, so anything is possible.