[nikhilthegunner]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

We attended the event and drove the Seltos. All manufacturers do this preferential treatment and looks like Kia did a bit more than usual.

Each media agency/OEM has their own criteria on whom to call and whom not to. With the amount of online media coming up these days, it's bound to happen that some will get preferential treatment.

Level playing field is good but guys like Autocar, NDTV etc have a lot more invested as well in terms of ad revenues and they do print, online as well as TV.

What treatment did you guys receive? Was it on par with what Autocar, NDTV etc received or was it more like what happened to Motorbeam and the like? Or did Kia decide they didn't want to mess with Team-BHP?

[shamanth]

Originally Posted by rahul_goyal

but if ARAI mileage is quoted as 16 kmpl, then realistically it should give 9-11 kmpl overall. If its giving you 6 kmpl, then either there's something wrong with the car or you are driving in bumper to bumper traffic too much. (This excludes certain cars which are known to be guzzlers; read Grand i10/i20 AT)

Sorry, your interpretation is wrong. ARAI mileage for Grand i10 AT is 18.9 kmpl, so as per you Grand i10 AT should give 11-13 kmpl, but you know it gives around 6-8kmpl in city condition.

[rahul_goyal]

Originally Posted by shamanth

Sorry, your interpretation is wrong. ARAI mileage for Grand i10 AT is 18.9 kmpl, so as per you Grand i10 AT should give 11-13 kmpl, but you know it gives around 6-8kmpl in city condition.

Well, I did included the exception of Grand i10 specifically. But I for one don't think that all petrol cars give 6 kmpl. Petrol owners can confirm.

From what I have read on this forum, I believe Maruti's and Honda's have decent FE.

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by Brishti

You are the best person to answer my question. I have a Octavia 1.8TSI but I need a crossover for Shimla's day to day driving "Octavia scrapes sometimes" and although I had booked the Jeep Compass "Limited Plus" but I did not go thru with the purchase because I felt its price was too near the Octavia 1.8TSI and did not offer similar quality.

Having said that I did check out Harrier & Hector but both felt inconsistent and incomplete. I have high hopes for the Seltos because it seems similar to Compass size wise and while for Compass I wanted the 2.0 in case of Seltos its only the 1.4+DCT which I am interested in.

What do you think about this comparison Seltos vs Compass? Build quality, seating, boot space, cabin space, engine, everything wise a full comparision would be much appreciated.

Yes, I can certainly share my own experiences with the Laura (2012), which is comparable to your Octavia and also the Compass in comparison to the Seltos.

One of the biggest challenges you will face when moving to a car like Seltos from an Octavia - the boot space is almost half! Practically you will not be able to fit any airport trip luggage comfortably which the Octavia can swallow and still have plenty of room to spare.
The Compass and the Seltos are nowhere as spacious. In fact in our Octavia, we used to take our Dog (a full grown Labrador) and a full week's Luggage when going on vacation and it would fit easily. In the Compass, not even my dog alone would fit, forget the luggage. The Notchback design of the Laura and Octavia is really useful and even with the parcel shelf in place you have tons of space and shaped well to swallow all sizes of bags.
In the Compass, as the Height of the space is too less, you cannot fit any large baggage in without removing the parcel shelf. Even then the bag will not fit longitudinally and you will have to place laterally, which will allow fitting in max 2 large bags and a small one. The Laura on the other hand can fit 4 large bags + 6 small strolleys!

Coming to the interior fit and finish, the Seltos has a lot of bling and high tech stuff but the plastics and build quality is very light and probably will not stand rough use. On the Laura and the Compass, the build quality of the interiors is very tough and is meant to stand the test of time. The Compass however does not score high on tech wizardry and the focus is on driver engagement (excellent suspension and driving dynamics) and if you want a fun to drive car which can go anywhere, it is the right car for you.
Instead of the highest variant though, you can opt for the middle variants or the Black pack version - these are also very good.

I have not test driven the Seltos yet, but have test driven the Harrier as well as the Hector and both of these cars have a big car feel and the amount of space inside is far higher than the Seltos , both in terms of interior space as well as boot space. The Harrier's boot space is actually very good, and even though they state 400L , the full 400L is available, below the parcel shelf and is usable. In the Seltos, the usable space is not more than 320L. The engine in both is the FCA engine, which is a proven engine in the Compass.

It all boils down to now how the Seltos is priced. If Kia prices it in the range of 10-15L Ex showroom, it should do well, but if Kia makes is 12-17 exshowroom, you would be better off with a Compass , Hector , Harrier (in that order)
Unfortunately no car is perfect and all these choices come with their own shortcomings and limitations! You can read my Compass ownership thread for more details on the Compass if you are interested.

After seeing the Seltos, I actually went back to see the Hector a second time and took a second test drive and I found the Hector to be a great overall package, with a great engine (same as compass) and excellent interior space and good road presence. At the price at which it was launched, the Hector makes a killer value proposition, which shows in just how many bookings it has gathered (over 30,000 till last count) and the delivery period is likely to be close to a year now and bookings are closed.

I am also in the same boat as you and am looking for a worthy replacement for my Laura, but not finding any! The Laura / Octavia is a great car and apart from a high ground clearance and service network, it excels in everything (my experience). Mine is 2.0 TDI Manual and it is around 7.5 years old now (still have another 2.5 years to go before the 10 year NCR rule).

I will probably wait till Jan 2020, when all cars will be BS6 variants and hopefully there will be few more options like the Skoda Kamiq also available by then.

[ani_meher]

Originally Posted by rahul_goyal

Well, I did included the exception of Grand i10 specifically. But I for one don't think that all petrol cars give 6 kmpl. Petrol owners can confirm.

From what I have read on this forum, I believe Maruti's and Honda's have decent FE.

After looking at many experiences here at team-bhp, somehow I don't have any good impression of Hyundai petrol engines. Their diesel lineup is good, but I haven't heard such pathetic mileage from any other manufacturer, be it Tata or Ford, forget Maruti and Honda. Right from 1.2L to 1.6L petrol engines, no Hyundai engine is known for its efficiency. In fact, paired with a supposedly inferior AT, they manage to give worse fuel efficiency. I don't know about 1.1L that does the job in new Santro, hopefully it is better.

Someone reported a 6.5KMPL for Venue 1.0 DCT, and so the video capture of Seltos 1.4L DCT showing 6.xxkmpl is not unbelievable. I wonder how people can simply ignore the running cost.

For me, if I were to buy a Hyundai, it would be ONLY a diesel irrespective of my running. Somehow, single digit mileage, that too around 6-7 for a small hatchback, is completely unacceptable for me.

/rant about Hyundai's inefficient petrol engines.

[shamanth]

Originally Posted by rahul_goyal

From what I have read on this forum, I believe Maruti's and Honda's have decent FE.

Well, I have few AT cars i am owning let me give the mileages in Bangalore city.

- Honda City TC (8-10 kmpl)
- Old Santro AT (6-8 kmpl)
- Tata Nexon Diesel AMT (12 - 15 kmpl)

Only worry is Seltos engine is more closer to Hyundai's than Maruti's or Honda's.

[ani_meher]

Originally Posted by rahul_goyal

Let's do a quick analysis to find out the difference in cost. Please correct me if I get anything wrong. I am taking Creta as example for this as its the car from same segment.

Cheers.!

Did you consider resale value in your calculation? See the difference between resale of petrol & diesel creta. No way they will be same. In fact, who knows that because of BS 8 or 10, there would no longer be any diesel engines, thus appreciating the diesel vehicle resale value.

[harry10]

Originally Posted by rahul_goyal

Deviation from ARAI figures is expected in the real world, but if ARAI mileage is quoted as 16 kmpl, then realistically it should give 9-11 kmpl overall. If its giving you 6 kmpl, then either there's something wrong with the car or you are driving in bumper to bumper traffic too much. (This excludes certain cars which are known to be guzzlers; read Grand i10/i20 AT)

I think your calculation is a little off. Let me give an example from my own cars -

ARAI mileage for Tiago Diesel is 27.28 kmpl. In reality in NCR traffic conditions it gives 15-16kmpl and on highways 19-20kmpl. With AC ofcourse.

ARAI mileage for Honda City diesel is 25.6 kmpl. In NCR it gives 16-17 kmpl and highways 21-22 kmpl with AC. Of course mileage can vary as per driving behaviour.

Still, in general whatever ARAI quotes the car is returning around 9-10 kmpl less in reality. So, if Seltos ARAI is 16 kmpl then I don't expect it to give more than 7-8 kmpl. Even the display diesel car showed 180 kms driven and 10 kmpl average if I remember correctly.

[rahul_goyal]

Originally Posted by ani_meher

Did you consider resale value in your calculation? See the difference between resale of petrol & diesel creta. No way they will be same. In fact, who knows that because of BS 8 or 10, there would no longer be any diesel engines, thus appreciating the diesel vehicle resale value.

Considering the fact that diesel vehicles older than 10 years are banned in Delhi NCR, I do not expect the resale value to appreciate. Infact, I know some people who have Fortuner with 65k kms on odo and 2 years left to enjoy the ride. Now, when you look to replace these cars in market, the resale value has actually dipped owing to the ban, because of the hassle involved in transferring the car to another state.


As fas as BS8/10 are concerned, emission norms are not revised annually. For example: BS IV became mandatory in April 2010, the next regulatory change we are witnessing is after 10 year (life of diesel car as per regulations today). So, I fail to understand how implementation of higher BS standard in future can have an impact on appreciating the value of BS6 diesel car. May be I am wrong but IMHO any one who plans to use the car for 6-7 years would not benefit much from resale value on diesel.

[simeonovitch]

Originally Posted by harry10

I think your calculation is a little off. Let me give an example from my own cars -

We're talking automatics here.
In a manual, driving style, RPM you maintain, what RPM you up shift and down shift at, how much clutch you use etc all matter, and produce drastically varying results.

In automatics, the results are largely homogeneous, and capable of generalisation to a far greater degree.

[rahul_goyal]

Originally Posted by harry10

So, if Seltos ARAI is 16 kmpl then I don't expect it to give more than 7-8 kmpl. Even the display diesel car showed 180 kms driven and 10 kmpl average if I remember correctly.

Sir, a lot of it depends on traffic conditions and the way the car is driven. FE can be very different for a sedate driver and an enthusiast with heavy right foot.

For the display demo vehicles, it was also written in forum that this may not be a reflection of true FE figures as demo cars are driven roughly on short tracks and are subjected to a lot of idling for long hours (during demo of interiors and infotainment unit).

[harry10]

Originally Posted by simeonovitch

We're talking automatics here.
In a manual, driving style, RPM you maintain, what RPM you up shift and down shift at, how much clutch you use etc all matter, and produce drastically varying results.

In automatics, the results are largely homogeneous, and capable of generalisation to a far greater degree.

I agree.
Still, Let me make a wild guess based on ARAI figures-

Seltos 1.5-litre SmartStream petrol
Manual -16.8 kmpl
CVT -16.5 kmpl.

In both I don't expect more than 7-8 kmpl within city.

Seltos 1.5-litre diesel VGT
Manual- 20 kmpl
Automatic- 18 kmpl.

In city manual might give 11-12kmpl and automatic 9-10 kmpl.

Seltos 1.4-litre SmartStream GDi turbo-petrol
Manual - 16.1kmpl
DCT - 16.5 kmpl

Again a realistic city figure might be 7-8 kmpl.

Anything above and beyond these figures and I will be pleasantly surprised.

On a side note anyone knows when Automatic TD vehicles will come? My SA has no clue about it as they still haven't got even the manual one.

[ramansh]

Originally Posted by harry10

I agree.

Still, Let me make a wild guess based on ARAI figures

My Creta 1.6 petrol (manual) gives 9-9.5 kmpl in city. I believe Seltos 1.5 petrol will return a little higher mileage figure than the Creta due to BS 6 engine and slightly lower bhp figure.

[arindambasu13]

Originally Posted by ashenoy

All else with the car being top notch, I did find the ride quality very much like I recollect the first generation Ecosport being. I could feel every rut and ripple of the concrete road I was driving on.

Thats pretty disappointing. If there is one thing you want with a compact SUV, it is to have a great ride quality to iron out the bumps and potholes, to conquer which you are buying the SUV in the first place. This is one of the main reasons why I pulled out of my Ecosport booking at the last minute, since ride quality was nothing great. I would have expected Kia to have a good ride quality setup for Indian conditions.

Originally Posted by quickdraw

I don't know why people are treating KIA as some godsent company, even before the launch they've made quite a few gaffes regarding the product planning and looks like the managed to upset some part of the media too. All the while giving hi-fives to themselves.

Completely agree. Looking at this thread, I am really surprised that people are going completely gaga over Kia who has not even proved its worth in terms of product quality and competence. In fact, other than a polarising design aesthetic and a bucketful of random features thrown across variants (which they had goofed up anyways), there is precious little to prove the brand's dependability, longevity or any other USP in the Indian market. There is a long long way to go before the car can really be a recommended pick in its segment, which unfortunately has very few quality competitors at this time.

[ani_meher]

Originally Posted by ashenoy

All else with the car being top notch, I did find the ride quality very much like I recollect the first generation Ecosport being. I could feel every rut and ripple of the concrete road I was driving on.

Oh no I hated the first gen Ecosport's hard suspension under the name of 'driving pleasure'. I agree with the above poster, a hard suspension SUV is no fun for any occupant. A supple suspension is the order of the day, especially in a potholes-galore states such as mine. If your observation holds true, there goes the Seltos out of consideration.