SOURCE: Gentex

October 29, 2008 08:17 ET

Gentex Mirror-Based Backup Camera Display on 2009 Kia Soul

ZEELAND, MI--(Marketwire - October 29, 2008) - Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ: GNTX), the leading supplier of automatic-dimming rearview mirrors to the worldwide automotive industry, has announced that its rear camera display (RCD) mirror is available in the Korean market on the all new Kia Soul. The crossover utility vehicle will be released in Europe and the United States early next year.

The Gentex auto-dimming interior mirror contains a liquid crystal display (LCD) that works with a video camera mounted at the rear of the vehicle to provide a view directly behind the vehicle while backing up. When the vehicle is shifted into "reverse," a 3.5-inch diagonal LCD display appears automatically through the auto-dimming mirror's reflective surface. The display disappears when the vehicle is shifted into any other gear. The capability for the display to appear through the mirror's surface is made possible by Gentex's "transflective" coating and lighting techniques, which result in a bright, high-resolution color image. An interior auto-dimming RCD Mirror will be standard on the Soul special trim levels 2U COOL and 4U COSMO and optional equipment on the 2.0 2U and 4U trim levels on models sold in the Korean domestic market.

"This is the second vehicle from Kia that will debut with Gentex's RCD Mirror technology... the first being the 2008 Kia Mohave. It is obvious that Kia views the RCD mirror as a popular feature that it can integrate into its vehicles in a cost-effective manner," said Enoch Jen, Gentex Senior Vice President. "We continue to be encouraged by Kia's introduction of this feature on its growing fleet of vehicles."

Founded in 1974, Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ: GNTX) is an international company that provides high-quality products to the worldwide automotive industry and North American fire protection market. Based in Zeeland, Michigan, the Company develops, manufactures and markets interior and exterior automatic-dimming automotive rearview mirrors that utilize proprietary electrochromic technology to dim in proportion to the amount of headlight glare from trailing vehicle headlamps. Many of the mirrors are sold with advanced electronic features, and more than 97 percent of the Company's revenues are derived from the sale of auto-dimming mirrors to nearly every major automaker in the world.