[TusharK]

Kia Sonet has become the highest selling model in the compact SUV segment within just 12 days of its launch.



The carmaker sold 9,266 units of the car in September 2020 and bookings have crossed the 35,000 mark already.

The Sonet was launched on September 18. The crossover is priced from Rs. 6.71 lakh. The top-spec Petrol DCT and Diesel AT variants cost Rs. 12.89 lakh (ex-showroom, India). The car is offered in a wide range of variants classified into two trim levels - Tech Line and GT Line.

Total sales of the Kia Seltos during the month of September 2020 stood at 9,079 units. While the Sonet competes with the Hyundai Venue, Tata Nexon, Maruti Vitara Brezza and the likes, the Seltos rivals the Hyundai Creta, MG Hector and the Tata Harrier.

Overall, Kia sold 18,676 units in the month of September 2020, registering a year-on-year growth of 147%. The company hasn't disclosed the number of Carnival MPVs sold during the month.

Link to Team-BHP News

[vigsom]

Originally Posted by TusharK

Kia Sonet has become the highest selling model in the compact SUV segment within just 12 days of its launch.

The carmaker sold 9,266 units of the car in September 2020 and bookings have crossed the 35,000 mark already.

Overall, Kia sold 18,676 units in the month of September 2020, registering a year-on-year growth of 147%

For the bling on offer, combined with engine and transmission options, this was only to be expected.

Example : Someone I know in Punjab just didn't want to listen to me when I asked them to check out the Brezza, S-Cross, Urban Cruiser and XL-6 as options.

They were mesmerized by the Sonet. That is the impact it has created in the minds of the car buyer.

However, the 147% shouldn't be considered a real indicator of performance.

[vsrivatsa]

Sonet Sales off to a Good Start!

Kia Sonet was launched in India last month and the SUV is already racking up substantial sales for the brand. The South Korean carmaker noted that it sold 9,266 units of Sonet in India last month, making it the best selling sub-compact SUV in the country. This is a remarkable feat for the new sub-four metre SUV given that it became available for bookings from 20 August and was launched here on 18 September. This means that Sonet has managed to pip Hyundai Venue and Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza to become the most selling sub-compact SUV in the country last month

Kia Sonet outsold Hyundai Venue and Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza in September 2020 : Link

A Kia Sonet SUV sold every 2 minutes since launch: Link

[maddy42]

Originally Posted by vigsom

Example : Someone I know in Punjab just didn't want to listen to me when I asked them to check out the Brezza, S-Cross, Urban Cruiser and XL-6 as options.

However, the 147% shouldn't be considered a real indicator of performance.

Will force the above players to Wake up and smell the coffee. Especially Maruti!

ASS is going to have to be spot on to continue the 147% growth.

Maddy

[noopster]

Test drove the Sonet GTX+ 1.5 diesel AT while waiting for a TD of the Seltos at the showroom a couple of weekends ago. Lovely, lovely car!

It hits the sweet spot in terms of sheer features packed into a little car. Variant to variant, all this loses out to the Seltos is the 360-degree camera, HUD and rear seat split. Everything else you get in a car that is essentially a foot shorter at 5 lac cheaper.

It's a bit of an irresistible proposition when viewed like that and I do believe Kia is training its sales staff to use this in their pitch. That elevates the conversation beyond being, say an Ecosport++. It may end up being the car you drive home if you're shopping for a Seltos/Creta but are short of 20 big ones. Smart strategy!

Given that, this news comes as no surprise.

[punto_]

Wow, thats a cracker of a start! We will see the roads flooding with the Sonet! I loved the IMT gearbox in my test drive, felt planted in Banjara hills curvy roads (Hyderabad) and the car looked well put together. It has all the features one could ask for. My only issue with this car is the backseat space, I felt it's narrower than my Punto, maybe I need to check again.

I'm waiting for the time to set right for my car upgrade, my MJD is going strong with almost 1.22L KMS under its belt and is almost close to 10 years.

Sonet along with Nexon are high on my radar. I am also keeping an eye out for the new i20 and Altroz Turbo. Exciting days ahead.

[vigneshkumar31]

Kia is becoming text book example of market research and bang on pricing. Who would've thought the new kid on the block would disrupt market and how!

[airbus]

Originally Posted by TusharK

Kia Sonet has become the highest selling model in the compact SUV segment within just 12 days of its launch.


The carmaker sold 9,266 units of the car in September 2020 and bookings have crossed the 35,000 mark already.

Looks like Kia really did some good homework on what Indian car buyers want

However, after initial euphoria dies down, let's see how Kia Sonet hold the position. It will be interesting to see response of competitors to this carpet bombing, particularly during the upcoming festive season.

[Reinhard]

Originally Posted by vigneshkumar31

Kia is becoming text book example of market research and bang on pricing. Who would've thought the new kid on the block would disrupt market and how!

Add smart marketing to that list. The pricing isn't necessarily aggressive either. They have advertised the USPs of the car well. Made sure that right from the word go, people have accepted the pricing as "correct" for what the car offers, without a doubt.

And the marketing is quite smartly sustained. Even the "news" articles on media houses about the high sales numbers are very well made I must say. A news article that has images inside out of the car, inset YouTube videos of reviews and what not. Even the "news'" content wording is very well chosen. So good job KIA. This is what good corporates are supposed to do. Complete commitment to the target & a clean job at each stage. No botch ups. The key to guaranteed success.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

While this number only signifies the initial dispatches - I also don't doubt that the Sonet will eventually be on top of the segment. Kia has done their homework and how! Was very much impressed with the package I could see in the showroom.

Would really like to see the Venue+Sonet duo giving a tough run for the Brezza+Urban Cruiser. Maruti has taken the market for granted, far too long. Nexon and XUV 3OO are worthy products no doubt - but I doubt they can match up to the appeal of the Sonet.

Sonet should also see a good amount of sales in diesel. Not only does it have a fantastic 6 speed TC + diesel combination, but it is also value priced with the same pricetag as the TGDi petrol 7DCT.

[Bibendum90949]

A start on the expected lines. Sonet is literally flying off the shelf and showrooms are buzzing with action, rightly so. Diesel AT is the star of the show. First time in ten years in this segment, someone has come out all guns blazing with the wide range of power train options and in different trims, something there for everyone. Having said that, I would've loved to see a 1.2 IVT offered in the Sonet range to have a complete sweep. With the competition far away from offering a true Sonet rival, Kia is bound to rule the roost for some time. Maruti and the likes must be ruing the missed opportunity. Would be really interesting to watch out how Urban Cruiser would fare in the market with Sonet taking the market by storm.

This put additional onus on Kia to ensure the service standards are sustained, which is going very good at the moment. A recent survey underlines the same. Higher number of sales shouldn't deteriorate the service experience. They should ramp up their service network especially when Sonet is slated to bring in numbers in a heap.

[Hells Bells]

I am very glad for Kia. Shakes up the complacent players like MUL and forces Hyundai to go that extra mile (over the good work already done by Hyundai). Hell, I hope it forces Kia to even consider Stinger as a limited number import with all these volumes!

[PrasunBannerjee]

Spotted the sonet in black today and I really liked the stance. After the Ecosport, exterior wise its my second most favourite from the segment (considering the proportions and design).

When a product from a newer entrant in the market is seen on streets within a couple of weeks of launch in a tier-3 city, tells a lot about efforts the sales team and marketing team have done, as well as the product itself. I have seen more hectors on the road in my city than Harriers and Altroz combined, despite rooting for Tata products. Kia gives more confidence perhaps even to tier-3 people than Tata gives to the common masses. I've seen more Seltos on road than perhaps Hexa+Altroz+Tigor+Harrier combined (just my general observation), which shows, even somehow Ford failed in this department w.r.t. Figo and Aspire.

[abhi9044]

No doubt it has achieved those numbers. While coming to my village yesterday from Lucknow, I saw a Sonet, a 1.0 iMT HTK+ variant. What amazed me was that someone from a nearby village has bought that car and this shows how much has our customer changed since the last decade(especially the rural market). In the last decade, people would blindly go for Maruti, especially people from villages since they didn't wanted to take any risk with newer players in the market. But in today's time, if you offer the customer with the best bang for their buck, they are definitely going to buy your products.

[Reinhard]

Originally Posted by abhi9044

In the last decade, people would blindly go for Maruti, especially people from villages since they didn't wanted to take any risk with newer players in the market. But in today's time, if you offer the customer with the best bang for their buck, they are definitely going to buy your products.

One point though, in the past also, fellow nationals from outside of the metros and tier 2 cities did not mind shopping outside of Maruti. I have seen them taking the plunge to new brands easily. A big blocker to this was - only Maruti had a sales & service network reaching outside of the big cities. It was practicality of routine service visits at a nearby location that ensured people stayed with Maruti. Didn't make sense to drive hundreds of kilometers and back, just to get a car serviced.