Introduced just this morning, the Kia Ray is a plug-in hybrid that, according to company claims, can travel 50 miles in electric mode, with a total range of 746 miles. It’s actually being marketed via EcoDynamics, the Kia sub-brand designed to develop and showcase technology to cut emissions and stretch fuels. Under that label Kia as introduced more than one concept car, with power sources as diverse as fuel cell electrics, diesel engines, and hybrids.

Kia spokespeople say that the Ray demonstrates the combination of exciting design and fuel efficiency, rather than cutting corners or producing copy-cat car designs.

In a news release published by Automotive News, Peter Schreyer, chief design officer at Kia Motors Corp., said, “It is important to imagine what people will want in the future from a green perspective early in the design process. People want to reduce their carbon footprint without driving carbon copies.”

Despite the sportscar-sounding name, the Ray is a compact four-door sedan based on the Forte design platform. It’s powered by a 153-horsepower, direct-injection 1.4-liter gasoline engine mated to a continuously variably transmission, working in tandem with a 78-kilowatt The Ray is a four-door compact sedan based on the Forte vehicle platform. Power comes from a 153-hp, direct-injection, 1.4-liter gasoline engine attached to a continuously variable transmission and linked to a 78-kilowatt electric motor. It also has solar cells embedded in the glass roof panel, which can power the climate control system, or fuel extra lighting.

This concept car is the fifth such design created by Irvine, California-based Kia Design Center America, in the last year. The others are the 2010 Forte, Forte Koup, and Soul, and the 2011 Sorento.