Upcoming Kia Seltos: 5 Things You Didn't know

It’s safe to say that the Seltos carries a lot of weight on its shoulders being the first-ever product from Kia for the Indian market. Slated to launch on August 22, Kia revealed the Seltos’ dimensions and engine specifications yesterday. We drove the production version of the Seltos recently, and thanks to an embargo, all we can recommend for now is to hold before you buy a new car. Nevertheless, there are some lesser known yet notable facts about the Seltos, including...

1. Powertrain, Efficiency And Drive Modes

The Seltos will be offered with a choice of three engines and four transmissions. Here’s a quick look at their specifications and efficiency figures:

The 1.4-litre T-GDI makes the most power here and also offers reasonable efficiency figures for an SUV of this size. The 1.5-litre petrol and diesel, on the other hand, offer sufficient performance. Our detailed drive report will address all your queries, giving you a clear idea of how these engines perform out on the open road. The Seltos also comes with three drive modes: Normal, Eco and Sport. There are three traction modes - Mud, Snow/Wet, and Sand - as well for those rare off-road adventures. Sadly, the India-spec Seltos doesn’t get the all-wheel drive system that is offered in the global version. 

2. Connected Features And Partners

Kia is not the first SUV to offer connected car tech in India, but it offers all the bells and whistles you expect from an SUV of its size. Kia’s UVO Connect comes with 37 features and free subscription for the first three years. The 37 features are split up into five categories - Navigation, Safety and Security, Vehicle Management, Remote Control, and Convenience. It comes with a host of features that can be toggled remotely along with other safety and convenience features. The whole UVO Connect and its accompanying features are so long that explaining it requires a separate report altogether. And, that’s exactly what we did.  Kia has partnered with a couple of brands for the UVO Connect system. While Kia has chosen Vodafone as its network provider, the head unit is supplied by LG and the cloud server is taken care of by Amazon Web Services. The connected car service provider and app developer is none other than Kia’s sister brand Hyundai while MapMyIndia provides the map data. 

3. Bose Premium Sound System

The Kia Seltos absolutely nails the feature list. It offers equipment previously unseen in its segment or even above. The premium Bose sound system is the most striking one out of these. Bose is one of the leading audio equipment manufacturers and audiophiles will be well versed with the American giant and its Indian roots. The Seltos offers an 8-speaker 400W system along with dynamic speed compensation (adjusts the audio levels with respect to vehicle speed). There is a central speaker mounted in the dashboard, followed by two tweeters, two door-mounted front and rear speakers along with an 8.0-inch subwoofer.

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4. Gearbox Durability

The Seltos made headlines for offering four transmission options, a first for any car in the country. We are sure that prospective customers will be spoilt for choice with the 6-speed manual, 6-speed automatic, 7-speed dual-clutch transmission (DCT) and the continuously variable transmission (CVT). Kia is yet to announce the official warranty term for the Seltos along with the extended warranty and service plans, if any. But what we know is that the Korean carmaker has upped the game by claiming an impressive 3-lakh kilometre durability for all four transmission options. What this means is that the Seltos not only offers a plethora of gearbox options but also backs it up with durability. Dual-clutch gearboxes, although the best in the business, are notorious for throwing tantrums in the long run. Kia’s durability assurance is a welcome addition, especially for those who opt for the DCT. It also shows the brand’s commitment to the Indian market and longevity over the course of time. 

5. India Specific Developments:         

The Seltos, as you might know, is a global product which will be manufactured in India and South Korea. The SUV will be made available in various other countries in the coming days, with India being one of the first in the long line. Kia has made some India-specific changes to the SUV to make it even more competitive in our crowded market. First and foremost, the air conditioning system has been uprated to withstand our tiring summers. Considering our penchant for horns, the Seltos also comes prepared in this regard with a dual-horn setup. And even though the Seltos lacks outright output figures (except for the 1.4 Turbo-GDI), Kia has made some tweaks to make the SUV perform well on our roads. As a result, Kia claims a 25 per cent better in-gear 20-80kmph performance than the best-selling SUV in the segment, which in our opinion is what matters than outright acceleration figures.The carmaker has also improved the brake and clutch life of the Seltos for the Indian market. It has also made revisions to reduce brake judder by 15 per cent while the clutch life has been extended to 2-lakh kilometres. The brake life has also gone up by 1.5 per cent. Rest assured, we will be putting Kia’s claims to the test in our detailed review shortly. So, stay tuned!

With the launch around the corner, we know almost everything about the latest compact SUV except for its prices, which will be revealed at the launch event. That said, we expect Kia to price the Seltos from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 16 lakh (ex-showroom India) to take on the Hyundai Creta, Tata Harrier and the MG Hector, among other SUVs.

You can also read our first drive reiview here - 2019 Kia Seltos First Drive Review