It should come as no surprise, considering their green track record, that Kia is making a strong push to reduce its carbon footprint in New Zealand, with a strategy to become completely carbon neutral in the land of kiwis.

For years now Kia has been making enormous progress toward improving both the power and efficiency of their entire lineup through innovative engineering and design. This company-wide effort is best reflected in the 2013 Kia Rio and the 2013 Kia Forte Eco, which both tout some impressive fuel economy numbers with up to 37 mpg highway.

Still, what a lot of us don’t always consider when we’re thinking about the fuel efficiency of our vehicles is the amount of carbon emissions that go into the making of the cars and then in their eventual transport to the lot where we buy them. Kia is leading the way in the responsible production of quality cars with an initiative in New Zealand that has brought them to a certified standard of “carboNZeroCertTM.” This qualification comes from carboNZero Holdings Limited, a certifying agency for businesses and organizations that are looking to help the environment by adapting sustainable, environmentally friendly practices.

Based on an auditing report of Kia’s 2011 New Zealand operations by carboNZero Holdings Limited, 87% of the company’s carbon output in the country can be attributed to the shipping of vehicles from the plants where they are produced to the dealerships where they will be sold. Another 8% comes from Kia employees’ domestic and international travel.

Rather than simply buying carbon credits to compensate for business practices that do harm to the environment, the folks at Kia have aimed at lowering their carbon footprint in a very real way. In addition to a targeted effort at educating Kia employees and suppliers in different ways to save fuel, the automaker will be taking concrete steps toward reducing the amount at which it sends its new vehicles to dealers by freight throughout New Zealand, limiting the amount of travel by Kia employees, and generally dropping the amount of fuel used by company cars.

While we can’t say for sure at this point whether these practices will be moved to Kia operations in other countries, it seems clear from their actions in New Zealand that Kia is dedicated to being a responsible neighbor on both a local and international level.

You can find all of their new models at Fisher Kia, located at 6025 Arapahoe Road, in Boulder, CO. Stop by and test drive a fuel-efficient vehicle today!

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While they may not be available in our new car showroom at Fisher Kia, these superhero themed DC Comics collaboration cars that Kia has made are definitely cool. They went way beyond fancy custom decals to develop cars that match the personas of the comic book characters. DC Comics and Kia collaborated comic book artist Jim Lee, West Coast Customs, and Ride and Super Street magazines to produce four unique vehicles that correspond to each member of The Justice League.

Cyborg Forte Hatchback – The Cyborg inspired Forte has widened fenders and is metallic silver all over. A big vented hood scoop looks ready to swallow any villains in the way and red LEDs are a striking touch. The inside is adorned with the cyborg logo and red and black trim.

Flash Forte Koup – This special version of the Forte Koup sports a custom paint job with a lightning bolt on a red and yellow background. The striking paint makes the vehicle look as if it’s going very fast even when it’s sitting still. Designers even took the handles off the doors to emphasize the sleekness of the show car. The car is topped off with a hood cutout making the engine visible, big 20 inch rims, and custom leather interior.

Aquaman Rio Hatchback – This special 2013 Kia Rio features an impressive scale inspired green and black paint job that shimmers in the sun. A green leather interior might not be for everyone but the undeniably cool rear window includes etched scenes from the comics themselves.

Green Lantern Soul – As an homage to the Green Lantern, this Soul is done up in gleaming green chrome windows, finished in contrasting green and black. For an eerie lantern effect, green head lights shine behind a black cover. It may not be the most practical for night driving, but it looks good as a concept. Other maybe impractical features are the welded shut rear doors, 18 inch wheels, and dropped ride height.

Kia is also working on Superman and Wonder Woman cars and earlier this year put out a Batman inspired Optima. These cars are built for the We Can Be Heroes charity that raises money for the people of Horn of Africa affected by the current hunger crisis.

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