Kia Seltos Unveiled; Packed To The Brim With Premium Features

The Seltos will be available with a choice of three engine and four transmission options

Kia Motors has officially unveiled the Seltos, its first passenger vehicle for India.

Kia Motors has officially unveiled the Seltos, its first passenger vehicle for India. It is based on the SP Concept that Kia had showcased at the 2018 Auto Expo. And we have to say, the production car looks quite similar to the concept. The Seltos looks premium with LED lighting all around and Kia’s famous tiger nose grille dominating the front fascia. It will be offered in eight single-tone paint schemes and 5 dual-tone options. Kia will be offering the Seltos with two petrol engines and one diesel motor. Kia has not revealed their output yet, but what we know is that one of the petrol engines will be a 1.4-litre turbocharged unit. The other petrol and diesel engines are expected to be 1.5-litre units. All three engines will be BS6 compliant. On the transmission front, there will be three automatic (CVT, 7-speed DCT and 6-speed AT) and one manual transmissions (6-speed) on offer. The 7-speed DCT will be offered with petrol-turbo engine on the top-of-the-line GT Line variant. Kia is also offering driving modes (Normal, Eco and Sport) and terrain modes (Mud, Wet and Sand) with the Seltos. Traditionally, a mass market carmaker that makes premium vehicles, Kia has packed the Seltos with a 10.25-inch touchscreen, 360-degree camera, a Bose sound system, head-up display, power-adjustable driver’s seat, front and rear parking sensors, a sunroof, ventilated seats, automatic climate control, an air purifier and rear AC vents. Like the Venue and Hector, it also gets connected car technology (UVO Connect) that is classified into five categories - Navigation, Safety and Security, Vehicle Management, Remote Control and Convenience. All Seltos owners can use this service for free for the first three years. You can also access UVO Connect by pressing a button on the inside rearview mirror. The IRVM will also feature a roadside assistance button and SOS button to inform the respective call centre in case of an emergency. The system also informs the owner of vehicle theft and can immobilise it. On the safety front, Kia is offering six airbags, ABS with EBD, brake assist, ESC (electronic stability control), HAC (hill assist control) and VSM (vehicle stability management) on the top-spec variant of the Seltos. There is also an integrated blind view monitor and a driving rear view monitor which allows the driver to switch on the reversing camera while moving forward. Currently, Kia has 265 touchpoints in India across 160 cities. By 2020, it plans to increase that number to 300 and to 350 by 2021. The Korean carmaker will focus on tier 1, tier 2, tier 3 and even tier 4 cities. We expect the Kia Seltos to be launched in India sometime around September 2019. It’s expected to be priced from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 16 lakh. Once it is launched in India, it will rival the Hyundai Creta, Renault Duster and Captur, Nissan Kicks and Mahindra Scorpio. The prices of some of its variants are likely to overlap with even the MG Hector, Tata Harrier and Jeep Compass. https://www.cardekho.com/india-car-news/kia-unveils-seltos-in-india-packs-it-with-premium-features-23901.htm