Kia Syros top trim vs Seltos mid trim: Which offers better value?

The Seltos is one of the newest entrants in the midsize SUV, priced from Rs 10.99 lakh to Rs 19.99 lakh (ex-showroom). If you have a budget of around Rs 15 lakh-16 lakh, you can get the mid-level HTK (O) trim. But at a similar price, the Seltos’s stablemate, the Syros compact SUV, can be had in top-spec HTX+(O) trim. We help you decide which of the two offers more bang for the buck.

Kia Syros top trim vs Seltos mid trim: Dimensions

Seltos is bigger in some aspects, but Syros gets a bigger boot

The Seltos, being in a segment above, is 465mm longer, 25mm wider, rides 10mm higher and gets a 140mm longer wheelbase. But it’s the Syros that has a bigger boot – by 18 litres – and is 45mm taller. 

Kia Syros top trim vs Seltos mid trim: Specifications

Syros gets a turbo-petrol, but Seltos also offers a naturally aspirated option

In the said trims, both the Syros and Seltos get turbo-petrol and diesel engine options, but the Seltos is also available with a 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine, mated to a 6-speed MT or a CVT gearbox. 

The Syros' 1.0-litre turbo-petrol engine puts out 120hp and 172Nm, and only comes paired with a 7-speed DCT. The Seltos, meanwhile, has a bigger turbo-petrol with significantly higher outputs, and is available with both 6iMT and 7DCT options. Their 1.5-litre diesel mills pack the same amount of power and grunt.

Kia Syros top trim vs Seltos mid trim: Exterior

While both feature flush door handles, the Seltos gets powered ones

Both the Syros and the Seltos are decently equipped with exterior features such as LED headlamps, daytime running lamps (DRLs), LED tail-lights, a spoiler, roof rails and 17-inch alloy wheels. However, the Seltos takes it up a notch with powered flush door handles and LED fog lamps. 

Kia Syros top trim vs Seltos mid trim: Interior and features

Syros is packed to the brim with features compared to Seltos

The Seltos comes fairly equipped in its mid-spec guise, with a 10.25-inch infotainment display, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, ventilated front seats, a powered driver’s seat, 6 speakers, a panoramic sunroof, and more. But the Syros pulls ahead massively with higher-res 12.3-inch infotainment and instrument cluster displays, a 5-inch display for HVAC control, rear-seat ventilation (seat base only), sliding and reclining rear seats, dual dashcams, a premium Harman Kardon 8-speaker sound system and connected car tech. While the Syros also features a powered driver’s seat, it offers less adjustability (4-way vs 8-way) in comparison to the Seltos. 

Kia Syros top trim vs Seltos mid trim: Driving Tech

Drive modes and traction modes on both; Syros gets adaptive cruise control too

The Seltos and Syros offer identical drive modes and traction control modes in their respective trims. But when it comes to cruise control, the Syros features adaptive cruise control, while the Seltos’ mid trim gets a standard version of it.

Kia Syros top trim vs Seltos mid trim: Safety

Syros has an edge with Level 2 ADAS and a 360-degree camera

When it comes to safety, both SUVs get the basics covered with 6 airbags, ABS, EBD, hill start assist, hill descent control, a tyre-pressure monitoring system (TPMS) and front and rear parking sensors. But the Syros gets more tech, such as ADAS, an auto-dimming interior rearview mirror (IRVM), a 360-degree camera and a blind-spot monitor. The Syros has also achieved a 5-star BNCAP rating, while the Seltos is yet to be tested.

Kia Syros top trim vs Seltos mid trim: Prices

Syros top trim has a Rs 20,000 lower price tag

The Syros HTX+(O) is available only with automatic transmissions with a turbo-petrol or diesel engine. Meanwhile, the Seltos HTK (O) is available with petrol, turbo-petrol, and diesel engines with manual and automatic transmission options. This makes the Seltos HTK (O) trim more affordable, while also being the most expensive, but the Syros turbo-petrol DCT variant is priced quite near to the Seltos petrol-CVT variant.   

Kia Syros top trim vs Seltos mid trim: Which one should you buy?

The larger and more spacious Seltos is our pick

Both the SUVs come well-equipped with features and safety tech, but the Seltos is the one we’d recommend. For an additional Rs 20,000, the Seltos offers more space and a more refined petrol-CVT powertrain that drives more smoothly than the Syros’s turbo-petrol-DCT unit. It also has a much wider powertrain lineup,  whereas the top HTX+(O) trim of the Syros comes in petrol and diesel engines paired with automatic gearboxes only. So while it may not have as many convenience features as the Syros’s top trim, the Seltos HTK (O) gets most of the basics and safety kit right without missing out on much.