Kia Seltos will be sold with 1.5-litre petrol, 1.5-litre diesel and 1.4-litre turbo petrol engines alongside four transmission options
Kia Motors India is preparing to make a compelling impact with its first product in India, the Seltos. Having already revealed the mid-size SUV, The South Korean brand will launch the model on August 22 and the pre-bookings will commence this month. Kia is staring its commercial operations with 265 touchpoints in 160 cities across the country.
It is the largest for any new brand, as for reference, MG has begun its sales with 120 touchpoints and is planning to expand the reach to 250 by the end of this year. Kia has invested more than Rs. 14,000 crore in its local journey thus far along with its vendor partners. The Anantapur facility in Andhra Pradesh has installed capacity of three lakh units per annum.
We expect the prices for the entry-level petrol variant to begin at Rs. 10.35 lakh while the range-topping GT Line could go as far as Rs. 17 lakh (both prices, ex-showroom). As for the diesel, Kia is expected to price the base model of Seltos in this regard at Rs. 12.20 lakh and the top-spec automatic version may cost as much as around Rs. 16 lakh (ex-showroom).
| Kia Seltos Diesel (S-Line) Variants | Expected Price (Ex-showroom) |
| ST | Rs. 12.20 Lakh |
| STK | Rs. 13.50 Lakh |
| STK+ | Rs. 14.70 Lakh |
| Automatic Variants | Rs. 1.2 Lakh To 1.4 Lakh Over MT |
| Kia Seltos Petrol 1.5 L Tech-Line variants | Expected Price (Ex-showroom) |
| HTE | Rs. 10.35 Lakh |
| HTK | Rs. 11.20 Lakh |
| HTK+ | Rs. 12.40 Lakh |
| HTX | Rs. 13.50 Lakh |
| HTX+ | Rs. 14.50 Lakh |
| Automatic variants | Rs. 1.2 Lakh To 1.4 Lakh Over MT |
| Kia Seltos Petrol GT-Line 1.4L Variants | Expected Price (Ex-showroom) |
| GTK | Rs. 11.90 Lakh |
| GTX | Rs. 14.40 Lakh |
| GTX+ | Rs. 15.40 Lakh |
| Automatic variants | Rs. 1.5 Lakh To 1.6 Lakh Over MT |
In this way, the Kia will be perfectly positioned against a number of rivals including the segment-leading Hyundai Creta, Tata Harrier, Nissan Kicks, Renault Captur, Jeep Compass and Mahindra XUV500. It is worth noting that Kia’s expansive range of petrol and diesel engines will come in handy in garnering a wide range of customers just as the Creta.
By being a global SUV, the Seltos will be exported to several international markets from India including the Middle East and Latin America. The Seltos carries global design philosophy of Kia. As expected, it is stunning to look at as other Kia models sold overseas with a sleek front fascia comprising of the signature Tiger Nose grille, sharp LED headlamps and DRLs as well as a sporty bumper.
It is powered by 1.5-litre naturally-aspirated petrol, 1.5-litre turbo diesel and 1.4-litre turbo petrol engines. The smaller petrol will be sold in the top-spec GT Line trim and it produces 140 hp and 242 Nm while the standard petrol delivers 115 hp and 144 Nm. The 1.5-litre diesel, on the other hand, kicks out 115 hp and 250 Nm.
All the powertrains will be mated to a six-speed manual transmission as standard. As an option, the 1.5-litre petrol can be had with a CVT, 1.5-litre diesel with a torque converter AT and the 1.4-litre turbo petrol with a seven-speed DCT.
Some of the highlighting features in the Seltos are 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system, a seven-inch MID, a HUD, 360-degree camera, automatic headlights, eight-speaker Bose audio, Kia’s UVO connectivity suite, ventilated front seats, leather upholstery, etc.