Kia Seltos vs MG Hector Turbo-petrol MT: Performance Comparison

The Kia Seltos and the MG Hector tick all the right boxes for Indian car buyers. They have the much-required road presence, come loaded to the gills with features, and have a plethora of drivetrain options. However, the real-world performance of both models only comes to light once you get behind the wheel. If you haven’t driven either, this report might come in handy as we have road tested both the SUVs in their turbo-petrol manual transmission guises.

Turbo-petrol MT Powertrain:

Note: Kerb Weight figures haven’t officially been revealed by both manufacturers. That could further help explain the difference in performance we see here.

The Kia Seltos displaces power from a 1.4-litre T-GDI motor that produces 140PS of power and 242Nm of torque. On the other hand, the Hector develops similar power figures from a bigger 1.5-litre engine that comes coupled with a 48v mild-hybrid system for torque boost. Seems like the Hector has an added advantage. But does it reflect in the numbers?

Unfortunately, it doesn’t. The smaller Seltos is the faster SUV here. It does the 0-100kmph run in 9.36 seconds, which is a full 2.32 seconds faster than the Hector. And thanks to the Kia’s torque kicking in earlier, it is the faster SUV during our in-gear acceleration tests as well. The 30-80kmph run in third gear is covered in 6.55 seconds while the 40-100kmph run in fourth gear is covered in 10.33 seconds. In comparison, the Hector does the same in 8.24 seconds and 13.57 seconds respectively.

While weight figures haven’t been revealed, sizewise, the MG Hector is the bigger SUV here. This could also lead to the fact that the MG Hector is heavier than the Kia Seltos, which gives it an advantage over the latter as evident from the table below:

In terms of fuel efficiency, the Seltos again scores over the Hector by a considerable margin. City figures for the Seltos stand at 11.51kmpl — 2.15kmpl more than Hector. Meanwhile, on the highway, the Seltos returns 18.03kmpl, which is a whopping 3.5 km more than the Hector for a litre. 

Moreover, the Seltos is a BS6-compliant vehicle, while the Hector is in accordance with BS4 emission norms. 

Verdict:

Based on the numbers, it is clear that the Kia Seltos is the better mid-size SUV here in terms of performance and fuel efficiency. That said, the Hector isn’t exactly disappointing in the performance department as it does a good job for its size. However, the fuel efficiency figures of the MG are a tad dismal when compared to the Kia. But what about other factors?

You can read our detailed specification comparison of the Hector and Seltos where we analyse each nook and corner of both the mid-size SUVs.