2023 Kia Seltos Facelift Vs Old: Should You Upgrade?

The new Seltos is not a generation change but a facelift while it is indeed a comprehensive one at that. So, if you own a current Seltos, should you upgrade to the new one?

Kia Seltos 2023

Source : Somnath Chatterjee

Kia has shown the Seltos facelift in India and while it will launch soon in our market, the company is also offering a chance for current Seltos owners to upgrade and to be given priority delivery/allocation. So, if you own a current Seltos, should you upgrade to the new one?

Looks

The new Seltos is not a generation change but a facelift while it is indeed a comprehensive one at that. The new Seltos is much sharper and more aggressive looking while not being as boxy as the current Seltos. The new Seltos features new LED headlamps, 'ice cube' fog lamps plus sequential LED turn indicators. You also get a redesigned bumper, a new skid plate plus a new pattern for the grille design. Compared to the older Seltos, the new one has a 50mm increase. On the side, nothing much has changed but there are new designs 17-inch wheels and 18-inch ones. The rear gets a new bumper plus a set of new tail lamps which are connected. Amongst the new colours, the Seltos facelift now comes in 8 Monotone, 2 dual tones and  Matte Graphite colours. The colour option includes the newly launched Pewter Olive colour.

Interiors

The interiors get a new dashboard design with two screens joined together including a new touch screen plus a new digital instrument cluster as well. This is in change with the older Seltos. The air vents are slimmer and the switches are new too. Hence, the new Seltos replaces the semi-digital instrument cluster on the previous model with an all-new Full Digital Cluster with a 26.04 cm (10.25”) Color LCD
MID display. There is a new dual-screen HD display too for the central touchscreen.

The features list now includes a dual-pane panoramic sunroof which replaces the single-pane one plus dual-zone climate control along with a 360-degree camera, illuminated switches and ADAS level 2 functions. It retains some features which the older Seltos had including a Smart 20.32 cm (8.0”) Heads Up Display, Ventilated Seats with 8-Way Power Driver’s Seat, Bose Premium Sound System with 8 Speakers, Smart Pure Air Purifier with Virus and Bacteria Protection and 360 Degree Camera with Blind View monitor in the cluster. The new Seltos gets Level 2 ADAS, aided by three radars (1 front and 2 corner rear) and one front camera plus 6 airbags that come as standard.

Engine

The new Seltos again gets turbo petrol which was not there recently on the current Seltos. The new turbo petrol is a 1.5l unit which develops 160bhp and 253 Nm. It gets an iMT and a DCT gearbox. The other two engines remain as the older Seltos with a 1.5l petrol and a diesel. There are 5 transmission options, MT, iMT, IVT, 6AT, and 7DCT.

Prices

Expect the new Seltos to carry a slight premium in terms of pricing when compared to the older one with prices being expected to start from Rs 11 lakh to Rs 20 lakh for the top-end model.