Kia Motors India will announce prices of its first product for India – the Seltos SUV – on August 22, 2019. The company recently announced that the SUV had already gathered over 6,000 pre-bookings within a day. The first batch of Seltos SUVs has now begun reaching dealerships for display. Test drives for the Seltos are slated to begin in the coming days. The SUV will be sold via Kia Motor India’s brand new dealership network that will completely active by the time the model launches – the Korean carmaker will have a presence in 160 Indian cities with as many as 265 touchpoints.
The Seltos will be available with three BS6-compliant engine options – 115hp, 1.5-litre petrol and diesel motors, and a 140hp, 1.4-litre turbo-petrol mill. All three units will come with a 6-speed manual as standard though each also has a different type of automatic gearbox option – the 1.5 petrol has a CVT, the 1.5 diesel has a 6-speed torque convertor and the 1.4 petrol has a 7-speed dual-clutch.
While ARAI-rated mileage figures are yet to be revealed, we had reported previously that the 1.5 petrol-manual is expected to deliver 16.4kpl, the 1.5-petrol CVT is likely to be rated at 16.3kpl, the 1.5 diesel-MT is likely to be pegged at 20.8kpl and the 1.4 diesel-AT is expected to have a 17.8kpl figure. The 1.4 turbo-petrol motor is expected to have a fuel-efficiency figure of 16.1kpl and 16.2kpl, depending on whether you opt for the 6-speed manual or the 7-speed dual-clutch automatic.
The Kia Seltos is 4,315mm long, 1,800mm wide and 1,620mm tall. It is longer and wider than the Hyundai Creta, but isn’t quite as tall. However, at 2,610mm, the Seltos has a longer wheelbase than the Creta, which is expected to result in more cabin room. Kia’s Seltos will come with 16-inch wheels shod in 205/65-section tyres on the lower and mid-spec variants, while top-spec models will get 17-inch alloy wheels with 215/60 tyres. Prices for the Seltos will start at around Rs 11 lakh and go up to Rs 17 lakh (ex-showroom).
The Kia Seltos will go head-to-head with the likes of the Hyundai Creta, Renault Captur, Nissan Kicks, Tata Harrier, Mahindra XUV500, and the MG Hector.
Apart from the Seltos, Kia Motors India is also readying two more launches for our market, with the next one likely to be the Kia Carnival MPV (also known as the Sedona). A sub-four-metre compact SUV is expected to follow.
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