Kia Motors have finally unveiled their first car for India, the Seltos. The car will be manufactured here and will be available from August 2019. The company has already set up 265 ‘Touchpoints’ across 160 cities in India for better customer engagement.
The SUV will come in petrol, turbo petrol, and diesel variants and can be mated to four possible transmission options i.e. IVT (which is basically CVT), a seven-speed DCT, a six-speed automatic and a six-speed manual. The engine variants across the board will be BS-VI compliant courtesy of what Kia calls it’s ‘Smartstream’ powertrain. The SUV will have three driving modes- Normal, Eco and Sport. Power, torque and other specifications haven’t been mentioned as of yet. There will be 1.4-litre turbo-petrol mated to the seven-speed DCT and will come under the GT line making it the first sporty SUV in its segment.
The Seltos has an aggressive stance and is designed sharply, and will be available in eight colours and five two-tone options. The car has a signature Kia ‘Tiger Nose’ grille, signature Kia LED DRLs and taillamps, LED fog lamps and dual mufflers.
The Seltos is equipped with ‘UVO Connect’ which is Kia’s proprietary connectivity system which has 37 features under five primary categories- navigation, safety and security, vehicle management, remote control and convenience. The facility will be free for its users for the first three years. The UVO connect also enables users to facilitate AI voice command, remotely start and stop the engine track, operate the air purifier and air quality monitoring, receive safety alerts and even immobilise the vehicle if stolen.
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The stylish SUV gets six airbags, ABS with EBD, ESC, HAC (Hill-start Assist Control), and VSM (Vehicle Stability Management) and front and rear parking sensors, a 360 degree camera with blind view and rear view monitor. All these feature work in cohesion with the UVO connect.
Commenting on the occasion Mr. Han Woo Park, CEO and president, Kia Motors Corporation, said, “India is a crucial market for Kia Motors’ overall growth story and will play an important role in expanding our global footprint. India is a diverse country with the distinct driving condition across the country and hence it was crucial to introduce a vehicle which is perfect in every sense. We are excited to pursue our India journey with Kia Seltos which is crafted and built keeping in mind the Indian customers and their needs. We believe that Seltos is all set to propel Kia into becoming one of India’s prominent automobile players in the years to come. Globally, the world premiere of the Seltos is an important milestone for Kia as it shows our commitment to the Indian market. This is just the beginning as we have many surprises for the 4th largest auto market in the world.”
The Kia Seltos should be placed in the mid-level SUV class and its direct competitor would be the Hyundai Creta.