Kia Trail’ster : Turbocharged, AWD Soul-based hybrid concept teased again

The latest image (featured above) shows the bottom half of the Trail’ster concept tackling a dirt track. It comes a week after Kia released the initial teaser of the car’s front end ploughing its way through a snowfield.

Already confirmed to feature an “advanced and capable electric all-wheel-drive” system, the South Korean car maker today expanded that the Trail’ster concept’s “smartly integrated” electric system will drive the rear wheels, while a turbocharged engine will power the front.

The Trail’ster concept, which Kia describes as a “uniquely compelling vehicle for the city-dweller-turned-outdoor-adventurer”, also gets a fully retractable canvas roof, contrasting with the rough-and-tumble plastic body kit and metal scuff plates that line its lower edges.

Kia is keeping all other details of the Trail’ster concept close to its chest at this stage, though more information is expected to be revealed in the lead up to its official unveiling in Chicago on February 12.

The Trail’ster name reminds of another Soul-based concept, the Track’ster, which debuted at the same show three years earlier with a sporty three-door body and a 186kW 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine.