It appears that Kia Motors is not completely out of the running for the Apple Car development.

Reports had suggested that talks between the two companies had broken down, but according to the Korean news site Chosun Biz, the two companies are just "experiencing difficulties." And that could be good news for the eventual arrival of the Apple Car.

According to the report, Apple, Kia Motors, and Kia's parent company, Hyundai Motor, already signed a memorandum of understanding last year. This was an agreement for the two companies to cooperate in eight different areas, one of which is electric vehicles.

One source told Chosun Biz: "EV negotiations have been difficult, but they have not completely broken down." In other words, a Kia-made Apple car is still a possibility.

Rumors that Kia might be involved in the Apple Car first surfaced around the beginning of this year. According to rumors, Kia plans to build the car at its plant in Georgia after Hyundai cedes that responsibility.

However, that talk was eventually "suspended." Rumor has it that Apple was not pleased that news of a possible partnership leaked out and chose to look elsewhere. Apparently, the company recently approached a number of automakers, but without much success. These companies were apparently concerned about becoming the "Foxconn of the automotive industry," citing Foxconn's key role in iPhone manufacturing.

Nissan has already outright denied any negotiations with Apple, and the company reportedly did not want to make a deal that would leave it a mere "hardware supplier."

However, if these reports are to be believed, Kia is once again a possibility. Moreover, the two companies could collaborate on a number of other projects; Chosun Biz mentions discussions about "last mile" mobility for the last distance from a train station or bus stop to home. There is also the possibility that the two companies will work on IoT, robotics, and, of course, autonomous driving systems.

The Apple Car envisions self-driving, which would be much easier to achieve if Apple and Kia/Hyundai pooled their knowledge and resources.

Whatever happens, it is clear that there is a long way to go before the Apple Car will be available for purchase. Optimistic estimates say it will appear as early as 2024, while others say it won't appear until 2025 or 2026 at the earliest. Apparently, that is an opinion shared by those working within Apple.

In any case, the fact that negotiations between Apple and Kia have not completely broken down is still good news. At the very least, it means that the company will no longer have to bring in other automakers.