2020 Kia Seltos Review: Everything You Should Know

1. Kia Seltos Overview: Top Models

Marking the first footstep of the South Korean company in India, the Kia Seltos has aroused an immense excitement and curiosity among the Indian car enthusiasts. To successfully penetrate into a hotly-contested automobile market like India, the new Seltos SUV needs to get everything on point from the very word go. Wrapped off its cover to the world in June 2019, the Kia Seltos seems to be loaded to the gills with a wide range of features, many of them are 1^st in the segment, with as many as 8 trim-levels for customers to choose from.The all-new Kia compact car stacks up against the likes of Renault Captur, Nissan Kicks and even the segment-leader, Hyundai Creta sibling. Even with a large number of advanced features on hand, the Seltos might become a viable alternative to the lower variants of some models such as the Jeep Compass, Tata Harrier and newly-launched MG Hector. So what makes the Kia Seltos such a promising car? Now IndianAuto has compiled everything that you should know about the brand new Korean SUV.

2. Kia Seltos Dimensions: Length, Width, Height & More

During the course of Kia Seltos’s unveiling in late June, the Kia Seltos appears in all its glory in the form of a mid-size sports utility vehicle. That is to say, the Kia Seltos's proportions should become one of its huge advantages over other competitors like Hyundai Creta.

The all-new Seltos will measure 4,315 mm long, 1,800 mm wide and 1,620 mm high along with the wheelbase of 2,610 mm. In a nutshell, the Seltos seems to stand a sweet spot in terms of size since it isn’t too big or too small. Size-wise, the Seltos is quite longer and wider as compared to its arch-rival, the Hyundai Creta but it is shorter than the Creta by 45 mm.

However, at 2,610 mm, the Kia Seltos is considerably longer than the Hyundai Creta regarding the wheelbase while the two share same ground clearance of 190 mm.

3. Kia Seltos 360 View: Exterior Review

After its official debut, the Kia Seltos starts off like a hot topic for discussion amongst the auto fans for its distinctive design. The South Korean automaker has, in fact, left no stone unturned to ensure that the Kia Seltos will be at the centre of attention. Given the responses and reactions the show-goers and enthusiasts have paid toward the brand new car, it is said that people are totally impressed by what they’ve seen from the new vehicle.

Front View

Normally, the production-spec models are somehow remote from its concept cars but things do not go as same as the Kia Seltos. In truth, the South Korean carmaker has really excelled in keeping the Seltos close to the Kia SP Signature concept, giving it a great street presence thanks to a modern-looking and masculine stance. The exterior design of the Seltos SUV is truly a head-turner. Every character lines and curves are really amazing. The front bumper is chunky and features silver inserts, increasing the sportiness of the vehicle. The front face of the Kia new car is dominated by the company’s signature bold 'Tiger Nose' grille with knurled-effect chrome finishes, giving a more premium feeling to the compact SUV. The other major highlights here include a multi-tier full-LED lighting setup. The front fascia of the Seltos has been neatly kitted out with a pair of ice cube LED fog lights and crown jewel LED projector headlights along with the presence of Kia’s iconic heartbeat-shaped daytime running lights. Particularly, a LED strip running from each headlight to the middle of the upper front grille signifies the width of the Seltos. The faux skid plates at the front also gives the car a more rugged look.

Also Read - Kia Seltos vs MG Hector: A Design Comparison

Side View

To stay in line with the sharp bold front end, the side profile of the SUV features a set of squared-off wheel arches with plastic cladding along with a strong shoulder line. The 17-inch diamond-cut alloys are very well-designed while the window line rises toward the rear end making an interesting contrast with the dropping roofline.

Rear View

Again, we spot the presence of heartbeat-effect LED tail lamps connected by a thick chrome bar at the back. The rear bumper sports a twin-exhaust garnish and is sculpted with some sharp lines adding to the dynamism of the vehicle. The model looks pretty chunkier from the rear.

>> Kindly go for Kia Seltos images gallery to have your eye for the exterior design.

4. Kia Seltos Design: Interior Review

At the time of launch, the Seltos hits the headlines for being premium to the fullest. The Seltos SUV is loaded with a long list of features, many of which are first-in-segment. Also, we've got our first-drive impression with the Seltos that also gives us some initial feelings when staying on the inside the new Kia model.

All-New Kia Seltos Completely Revealed | Design, Features, Tech & Other Details You Want To Know

Seating Capacity

The Seltos's cabin scores very well at the practicality. The SUV can accommodate three adults at the rear, quite comfortably, but it should be noted that the occupant at the middle might complain about the lack of cushioning. However, at the 433 litres in the boot lid, the Kia Seltos provides 33 litres, 8 litres more boot space than the Hyundai Creta and Tata Harrier, respectively.

Safety and Security Features

That being said, just like the recently-introduced Hyundai Venue, the Kia Seltos is very feature-rich. The UVO connectivity tech of the Seltos is quite similar to the Hyundai’s BlueLink system that the Venue gets to offer. Hence like the Venue sibling, the Seltos is also a safe drive. Notably, the UVO connected car system will be offered with AI-enabled voice assistance, stolen vehicle tracking, safety alerts, immobilization, collision auto-notification and many more. Standard safety features in the Kia Seltos include safety equipment list of the Kia Seltos encompasses 6 airbags, ABS and ESC, vehicle stability management, front and rear parking sensors, hill-start assist, traction control, brake assist and blind-spot view monitor and more. Particularly, it should be noted that the new Kia Seltos utilises high-strength steel and adhesives in its structure building that helps reduce the impact during the crashes and provide comprehensive safety for the vehicle.

Comfort Features

From a peak through the window, we can see that the cabin design of the Seltos is really fresh and unique for our market. The Seltos cabin’s quality appears to be top-class with at least two options of either beige or black interior colour scheme. The 10.25-inch HD touchscreen taking a central place on the dash is compatible with UVO connectivity suite.

This advanced connected car technology boasts of as many as 37 features classified into 5 categories including Navigation, Vehicle Management, Safety & Security, Remote Control and Convenience. The most remarkable features of the Seltos include a Smart 8.0 Head-up display, rain-sensing wipers, a Bose premium 8-speaker system 360-degree view camera, ventilated and power seats, a smart air purifier and electric sunroof. To compare the Kia Seltos with other competitors in the space, the new entrant shows no way inferior vis-à-vis its convenience and comfort bits. Check out the top features of the Kia Seltos in the table below.

5. Kia Seltos Performance: Engine and Transmission

While a 6-speed manual transmission will be available with all Seltos variants, there will be an exclusive automatic gearbox option for each engine, namely a 6-speed CVT (for the 1.5-litre diesel), a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission (for the 1.4-litre turbo-petrol) and a CVT (for the 1.5-litre petrol unit). All the mills of the new Seltos are BSVI-ready at launch but they are slightly less powerful than the Creta’s 1.6-litre petrol and diesel units.

>>> Read more at - Upcoming 7 seater cars in India

6. Kia Seltos Mileage & Acceleration: Is It Fuel Economy?

As for an SUV, fuel mileage is also one of the key factors that should be taken into serious consideration by buyers while buying a car.

The new Kia Seltos claims a range of fuel mileages across its engine-transmission choices. The 1.5-litre petrol- MT can offer a claimed fuel efficiency of 16.4 kmpl while its CVT counterpart might deliver a fuel mileage of 16.3 kmpl. With this engine, the Seltos can do the 100 kmpl acceleration from a standstill in 11.8 seconds.

The 1.5-litre diesel engine might be more fuel-efficient with the figures standing at 17.8 kmpl (for the AT variant) and 20.8 kmpl (for the MT variant). This powertrain is expected to sprint from 0-100 kmpl in 11.5 seconds. Meanwhile, the 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol T-GDI engine, which will only be available with the sportier GT Line trims, should offer a claimed fuel economy of 16.2 kmpl (for the dual-clutch option) and 16.1 kmpl (for the manual configuration). It is expected to travel up from 0-100 kmpl in 9.7 seconds merely.

Also Read - 10 Automatic Cars With Highest Mileage In India

7. Kia Seltos Price: Is It Affordable?

Finally, the Kia Seltos has been launched in India at the price starting from Rs 9.69 Lakh and going up to Rs 15.99 Lakh (all prices, ex-showroom). Apparently, Kia has been going seriously to make the Seltos competitive in the game. Given the high level of equipment on offer, the Seltos is, beyond doubts, gains a huge competitive edge over its rivals in the compact SUV segment.

A really convincing package with attractive price points, indeed! That is to say, it is certain that all other midsize SUVs in the Indian market like the best-selling Hyundai Creta, Nissan Kicks, Maruti S-Cross and Jeep Compass, etc. have been on the alert for the imminent arrival of Kia's offering.

8. Kia Seltos Verdict: Is Brand Model Worth Buying?

It seems a bit early to give any verdict to the new Kia Seltos as the SUV is just entered the market for some time.  However, considering Seltos's wide range of unique selling points along with the extremely lucrative price tags, we can say that the Kia Seltos is going to take the market by storm and dominate the top spots in the sale charts in the coming months. The Kia Seltos is designed for young and tech-savvy buyers by good-looking styling design and a huge feature package, which have, in truths, become a growing trend in the new-age SUV competition. There's no doubt that the brand new Seltos would create a new benchmark in the compact SUV cars sale, and force some established competitors in the game to revise their strategies. With some new models in the pipeline, we can't wait to know how the SUV market competition changes in the coming time.