Kia Sonet will make its world debut on August 7 digitally before going on sale in India; expected to boast many segment-first features
Kia Motors India will be launching the Sonet as its third product for the domestic customers following the success story led by Seltos. The South Korean auto major introduced the Carnival premium MPV in three variants at the 2020 Auto Expo and it has also been well received among customers. To strengthen the SUV lineup, Kia will be debuting the Sonet and it will be positioned below the Seltos.
The Sonet was previewed through its conceptual version as the Auto Expo and in the last few days, Kia has been constantly teasing us with the upcoming compact SUV. The Sonet will go up against Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Hyundai Venue, Tata Nexon, Ford EcoSport and Mahindra XUV300 in the hotly contested segment that has seen increased takers over the last three years.
The new teaser sketch shows the front and side profiles of the production-spec Sonet. The Sonet will likely be offered in dual-tone colour schemes and in this case, the red body paint is complemented by black finished overhangs and a silver roof rail that looks to be functional rather than being there for aesthetics.
The front fascia comes with the signature Tiger Nose front grille with premium garnish, contrast red inserts, sleek headlamps and integrated Daytime Running Lights. The busy bumper section boasts C-shaped fog lamp housing and wider central air intake and there will also be an underbody protecting skid plate. Expect the Sonet to feature a decent ground clearance just above 190 mm for improved practicality.
The side profile appears to be equipped with 16-inch machined wheels, sporty cuts and creases and muscular wheel arches as well as body cladding. The rear end composes of LED tail lamps on either side of the Kia badge, rear windscreen wiper and sculpted tailgate.
The five-seater sub-four-metre SUV will share underpinnings with the Hyundai Venue and the features list is expected to have many segment-first technologies on-board. It will more likely be powered by the familiar 1.2-litre naturally-aspirated petrol, 1.5-litre CRDi diesel and 1.0-litre turbocharged GDI petrol engines with manual and automatic transmission choices.