Kia Carens Beat Maruti XL6 In Its First Month By A Big Margin

Kia Carens v Maruti Suzuki XL6

Kia Carens is sold with three engine and as many transmission choices in India; comes with a packed equipment list with six airbags as standard

Kia India managed to post 18,121 unit sales in the month of February 2022 and had the Seltos as its best-seller while the Carens finished in the third position in just its first month with 5,109 units. The Carens went on sale midway through last month and its pre-bookings crossed the 19,000 mark ahead of its market launch.

The Kia  Carens did send shockwaves with its highly aggressive price bracket and more importantly, it competes against a variety of rivals such as Maruti Suzuki Ertiga, Maruti Suzuki XL6, Mahindra Marazzo, Hyundai Alcazar, lower variants of the Toyota Innova Crysta, etc. In Feb 2022, the Carens outsold the XL6 by a big margin.

The Maruti Suzuki XL6 is the more premium version of the Ertiga with exterior changes and a middle-row captain seating arrangement. Last month, the XL6 recorded a domestic tally of 3,304 units and in comparison to the Carens, its volume numbers were down by 1,805 units. The XL6 is expected to get a mild update in the coming months.

Kia recently commenced the third shift at its manufacturing unit in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh as it’s running at full capacity and we do expect the waiting period to come down due to this. The Carens’ sales volume is expected to increase further in the coming months and it will be interesting to see where it peaks out.

The Carens can be had as either a six- or a seven-seater and it costs between Rs. 8.99 lakh and Rs. 16.19 lakh (ex-showroom). It is the first Kia car sold in India based on the Opposites United styling philosophy and is available in Premium, Prestige, Prestige Plus, Luxury and Luxury Plus grades with a packed features list.

Some of the highlighting features of the Kia Carens are LED projector headlamps, 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system with UVO Connect, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, wireless charger, an all-digital instrument cluster, single-pane sunroof, roof-mounted rear AC vents, six airbags as standard, reverse parking camera, drive modes, ventilated front seats, etc.