Kia has also updated the features list on the higher variants of the Seltos.

Kia has launched new mid-spec automatic variants of the Seltos. The SUV is now available in HTK+ Petrol CVT and HTK+ Diesel AT trims priced at Rs 15.40 lakh and Rs 16.90 lakh (ex-showroom), respectively.

Until recently, if you wanted an affordable Seltos Petrol CVT or Diesel AT, the HTX variants were your only option. The newly introduced HTK+ trims have made the automatic variants more affordable than before.

The HTK+ variant of the Seltos is decently equipped as well. It comes with a panoramic sunroof, LED tail lamps with an LED light bar, a leatherette steering wheel with paddle shifters, drive and traction modes, and LED reading lamps and front map lights.

Kia has also updated the features list on the higher variants of the Seltos. The HTX, HTX+, GT Line and X Line trims now get an auto up/down function for all four windows, The HTK variants get LED connected taillights, LED DRLs, keyless entry, and an engine start/stop button.

In terms of colours, the new HTK+ trims get Aurora Black Pearl exterior paint options. The base HTE trim is now available in five additional colours: Aurora Black Pearl, Gravity Grey, Intense Red, Pewter Olive and Imperial Blue.

I test drove the Kia and it felt like a more premium package than the Hyundai.

BHPian ShaanS recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Enter Kia into the mix...

I casually mentioned to my wife, after having almost finalized the Creta, that the only brand we haven’t looked at yet has been Kia, and with it being a sister to Hyundai the mechanicals and electronics should be the same, and we landed up at the nearest Kia showroom, almost at closing time. But to the credit of the sales advisor, he spent time with us, and set up a test drive for the next morning.

Seltos Turbo Petrol 1.5 DCT GTX

A little less polished in terms of the engine and transmission response times as compared to the VW / Skoda twins (especially when shifting from D2 to D3), which wasn’t as pronounced in the Sport mode. All the ADAS bells and whistles made it so that there’s a lot to look at and do while driving. In the ~7 odd Km TD track (a mix of longish flat stretches, inclines, potholed roads, sharp turns etc. that I chalked out with my home as the start and end point,) the 360 camera / blind view monitors made their presence known. Overall, it felt that it was a lot more bang for the buck when compared to the VW / Skoda twins, as well as the Creta. But the price was a bit too high for our wallet coming in at 24+ Lakhs on road, and the SA categorically said, no year-end discounts either.

Sonet

A close friend has the pre-facelift turbo with IMT, and he vouched for the car being great. We didn’t test drive, but since the facelift had already launched, we didn’t want to wait for the deliveries to start, especially given that my car’s exchange value would depreciate further with the turn of the year. Further, with the Sonet being a cousin to the Venue, and the rear also being more suitable for 4 rather than 5 (based on what we saw in the showroom), it didn’t really spark a lot of interest for us.

The Seltos GTX did seem a well-rounded package (especially with claims of reinforced chassis points in the facelift), and I kept toggling between the variants page on the Kia website, my bank accounts and my monthly expenses spreadsheet in trying to figure out what’s really different, and whether I could afford the additional 4 lakhs, from the initial budget that I’d set. I realized that the HTX IVT was essentially the same as the pre-facelift Creta SX (O) minus the Bose speakers, and the e-parking brake. Just for the heck of it, I spoke to another dealer (JSP KIA Hosur Road Bangalore) who said they could arrange for a TD of the facelifted HTX IVT.

I test drove the car, and inside, it felt like a more premium package than the Creta. Plus, the lighter interiors as compared to the GTX really opened up the cabin. I didn’t feel that the lack of Bose speakers or the e-parking brake were deal breakers. Icing on the cake was that the other dealer had a Pewter Olive (which was the colour that my wife picked) HTX IVT in stock, which had been delivered to them a couple of days back, and were willing to provide ~60K in discounts via a mix of insurance, accessories, corporate, year-end etc. discounts, leading to almost a 1 Lakh difference in what was quoted for the Creta vs the Seltos.

With that, we paid the booking amount and scheduled the PDI for the next day itself.

Later that night, I spent a lot of time tossing and turning, comparing in my mind the differences between the 2 GTXs (S and +) and the HTX IVT, and it kept boiling down to which variant would we as a family want to live with over a long duration (8 - 10 years horizon, that’s the time it’ll take for EV tech to really mature in my opinion, and for range anxiety to be a thing of the past.)

I visited the dealer again in the morning and had a very long chat with them. What I liked about that experience was that they never tried to push me against (or towards) one variant or another, and happily bounced off ideas, and compared the pros and cons of each of the variants with me.

This is what finally swayed the decision for me:

First, ADAS as a tech is great, and it’s at a degree of maturity as well, but in my opinion, our driving conditions aren’t suited for it yet.

Second, the Turbo engine is a great performer, but I honestly don’t need that much power on tap, especially in the city, and my highway drives are also going to be mostly sedate. The 1.5 NA should serve all my needs. I'm happy to report that this has been true in all of the driving I've done so far.

Third, the elephant in the room, the DCT. While Hyundai / KIA DCT failures don’t pop as much as VW / Skoda do, the tech is still the same, and the dealer did end up mentioning, that they do deal with issues on DCTs quite often, so it’s not unheard of. This gets further compounded as the majority of my drive is in bumper-to-bumper slow-moving traffic, which is what brings out the worst in DCTs/DSGs. I simply didn’t want to live with that anxiety hanging over my head.

With that, the dust finally settled, and the head won over the heart!

We got the financials rolling. There was a hiccup in between where the bank official generated a sanction letter with the incorrect type of rate of interest, which I caught before it was too late, so we lost a day in between and then 3 more due to the long Christmas weekend.

In between all of this, we were also looking to get in a quick year-end trip, and the initial plan was to take delivery on the 26th and proceed with our trip on the 27th, but with the delays, we ended up doing the trip in the Celerio itself.

We finally took delivery on the 31st of December and bid farewell to the Celerio alongside.

Attaching some pics of the delivery below.

Almost ready for delivery

Next to its X-Line sibling

Next to a grey GT-Line

The mandatory poses with the car!

The car cost me a total 20.72 Lakhs on road (as against 21.30 Lakhs initially quoted). In terms of accessories, I went for the standard accessory package, which included a fair bit of chrome, which I didn't initially like, but after seeing the overall outcome, I don't mind it anymore.

I didn't take the My Convenience package, but I do have the option of buying it now, but I'm seriously wondering if it's actually worth it. Anyone who's got it, please share your experience, and the value associated with it. I did, however, take the Extended Warranty for the 4th and 5th year with a maximum of 120,000 kms covered.

Post delivery, I got in touch with Ojas from Esperto Car Care (thanks to reviews elsewhere on the forum), and scheduled a ceramic coating. I went for their 3-year package, and Ojas also added PPF along the ORVMs, door edges, and a few other spots for added protection. He took ~2 days to return the car back to me, and shared regular updates during the process.

As mentioned earlier, I've gotten the 1st service done as well, and it was a fairly straightforward experience. JSP Hosur road took ~2 hours to run through their checklist and also do a 3M underbody coat (which was complimentary, as negotiated during the sale.)

In terms of accessories, I don't think I need anything major at this point, other than a screen guard for the console & mid, a steering cover, and maybe side steps (after having lived with the car for about a month, I think our parents will need the added convenience when they visit.)

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The Seltos is now available in HTK+ Petrol CVT and HTK+ Diesel AT trims.

Kia has launched two new automatic variants of the Seltos. The SUV is now available in HTK+ Petrol CVT and HTK+ Diesel AT trims priced at Rs 15.40 lakh and Rs 16.90 lakh (ex-showroom), respectively.

The new HTK+ automatic variants have been positioned below the HTX trims, offering a cheaper alternative to those looking to buy a petrol CVT or diesel automatic Seltos. The new petrol CVT trim costs Rs 1.20 lakh less than the HTX CVT, while the HTK+ diesel AT is Rs 1.30 lakh cheaper than the HTX trim.

The HTK+ variants miss out on a few features such as a panoramic sunroof, LED headlamps, LED fog lamps and LED tail lights. Instead of 17-inch diamond-cut alloys, these variants get 16-inch wheels, while the 10.25-inch touchscreen has been replaced with an 8-inch unit.

Both petrol and diesel HTK+ automatic variants do get electrically folding ORVMs, a rear wiper, washer and defogger, a smart key with engine start/stop button, steering-mounted controls, automatic climate control and cruise control.

It is the first price hike announced by Kia India this year.

 Kia India has announced that it plans to increase the prices of its cars by up to 3% from April 1, 2024. It is the first price adjustment by the brand this year and will affect models like the Seltos, Sonet and Carens. 

Commenting on the latest price hike, Hardeep Singh Brar, National Head - Sales and Marketing of Kia India, said, “Due to the continuous increase in commodity prices, adverse exchange rate and rising input cost, we are compelled to implement a partial price hike. The company is absorbing a significant portion of the increase, allowing customers to continue driving their favourite Kia cars without a major dent in their pockets".

Kia has sold almost 1.16 million units in India and overseas markets combined to date. Seltos sales have surpassed 6,13,000 units, followed by Sonet with over 3,95,000 units and Carens with 1,59,000 units.

I actually like that the ride is stiff, as there is lesser body roll as compared to the pre-facelift Creta.

BHPian ShaanS recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello fellow BHPians!

It's been around 6 weeks since our purchase of the 2023 Seltos HTX IVT and I've finally been able to find the time to post about the buying experience. My intent is to also pen it down as a review of the HTX IVT variant, as I didn't find too many detailed reviews of the engine/gearbox combo. I also want to keep this active as a long-term ownership review, but time will tell how successful I am.

Before I go into details, a quick summary of my personal likes, nitpicks, and dislikes.

I've now covered just over 1000 Kms over ~7 weeks of ownership (~170 Kms Highway (short trip to Mandaragiri off Tumkur Road, via NICE road) and the rest in the city) and have had the 1st service done as well. Sharing my initial impressions of the car.

What I liked:

• The convenience of the automatic especially in Bangalore traffic. The car creeps at a maximum of 7 kmph without any a-pedal input, and only gradually picks up speed till that point.
• The height-adjustable seat and tilt + telescopic adjustable steering combination allowed me to find a good driving position with ease.
• The steering feels connected to the road and is quite responsive. It also weighs up nicely at speed. The steering feels nimble in the city and planted on the highway.
• I haven't really pushed the car, and driven mostly in eco and normal modes, and will be doing so till the end of the run-in period, but even then I was able to hit triple-digit speeds on the highway quite easily. In the normal mode, when revved, the transmission shifts up to around 3800 rpm. I get the feeling that while this is mechanically a CVT, there are some pre-defined ratios (especially in eco and sport modes) for specific speeds and revs that kick in, making it behave almost as a TC, in the mid-range. Acceleration on the highway (including kick-down) is a breeze, and overtaking isn't as much of a hassle as one would be led to believe via the reviews (especially when coming from a significantly less powerful car, as in my case.)
• I actually like that the ride is stiff, as there is a lesser body roll as compared to the pre-facelift Creta. It makes navigating potholed roads and bad surfaces a little challenging but still doesn't make it uncomfortable in the cabin (perhaps because of the 17" wheels on the HTX)
• The sun-roof adds another dimension to early morning and late evening drives
• The stock music system with its 6 speaker setup packs more than enough of a punch for me, especially after the software update from January.
• The car is a head-turner and I can't help but turn back and admire it once while I exit
• The creature comforts for passengers (dual zone AC, rear vents, side blinds, rear reclining seats, hand rest, ambient lighting) make the Seltos feel like a significant upgrade from our perspective
• The front and rear parking sensors and the ability to switch them on in traffic (low speeds) are a godsend! I see more "premium" (expensive) cars missing front sensors and with only 3 / 2 sensors on the back, so this is something that sets the Seltos HTX apart
• The ability to connect one phone via Android Auto and another via Bluetooth is a welcome surprise
• NVH levels are really good, and barely any engine noise creeps into the cabin till around 2000 rpm. And even beyond that, it's not very loud, or distracting from music, conversation, or traffic sounds. I love the fact that Kia hasn't skimped on insulation under the hood for what is essentially a mid-variant. There is a bit of road noise from the stock Goodyears, but something that I can live with.
• The AC is quite effective and has easily been able to cool the cabin in the 32-degree bright sunlit days that we've been having in Bangalore recently in a few minutes. Even with the roof blind open (sun-roof closed) and letting in a huge amount of light and heat.

The nitpicks:

• The customizable ambient lighting is a good touch (and makes the car feel a bit more premium), but once you get used to the novelty of it, and discover your likes, it's not something that you're going to play around with every day.
• The printed user manuals only covered the basics, and you have to use either the web version, the PDF, or the manual app to really go in depth. Even the digital versions are clunky (with the pdf version missing images, and having visible borders/guidelines showing that it may be a pre-final digital copy of the print version). At least for the app or the web versions, they could have made it easier for owners to generate the relevant manuals for people based on variants, and wouldn't be too much of an effort to build so. It's disappointing to go through the manual and try to find settings on the mid, which don't exist for your variant.
• Turn by Turn navigation on the mid isn't integrated with Android Auto, which I think is a software gap, and not limited by the hardware, so would have been a good touch.
• Auto engine cut-off is a little intrusive in traffic but quite easy to disable.
• Auto headlamps switch on too early, even with a slight cloud cover, or going below any of the many under-construction metro stations in Bangalore.
• The glovebox is smaller than our Celerio, but space in the cabin is decent, with all 4 doors having good space for water bottles and knick-knacks. The space under the front handrest / air purifier is quite usable too. What's strange to me is that the front cup holders are of different sizes.
• Piano black finishes on the interior surfaces, especially on high-touch areas (e.g the phone cubby) will not age well.
• Wired Android auto!
• There is a bit of the rubber-band effect, especially with lower revs, but it's manageable with throttle input and is turning me into a more sedate driver.
• I hate that Kia deleted the one-touch window up-down function on all windows (for a couple of months) and I only have it for the driver. It's only a nitpick because I was aware of this deletion when making the purchase decision.
• The pewter olive shade is a looker, but a dust magnet!

The dislikes:

• It may be my driving position, and I'm yet to experiment, but the windshield is super reflective, during most of the day.
• The headlamps throw is a little narrow to my liking, and I've remedied this for now by adjusting the beam height a little bit (to the 2 positions on the adjuster dial) and switching on the fog lamps once in a while, especially dark stretches. I'm not in favour of any changes to the stock setup, but if it gets really bad, I will consider getting the headlamps replaced with something that is better.
• The dead pedal is just carpeted and doesn't have a footrest, and no official accessories are available yet either. I'm looking for aftermarket ones but haven't come across anything yet.

With that out of the way, let's first start with the buying journey.

As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, my previous car was the Celerio which lasted us 8 years, and 53,000 Kms. I’ve never had a major issue in the car (touchwood), but Bangalore traffic did give us a fair share of minor scrapes, dents, and scratches, which for me are part of ownership. Mind you the first few did hurt, and I rushed to the ASC to get them buffed out, cleaned, repainted, etc., but after a point of time, I learned to let go. For nearly 2 of those years (on and off 6-9 month stretches), it was merely a garage car, waiting for us to come back and drive it again, because of COVID. I’d kept it maintained, to the best of my knowledge and capabilities, with regular servicing, a clutch replacement (courtesy Bangalore traffic), a battery replacement (5+ year mark, and sitting idle for most of 2020), tyre replacements (42K Kms mark), being the only major changes from how I bought it stock.

The high points for me were that it was nimble, extremely rev-happy, ate up bad roads with ease (due to its high (for a hatch) ground clearance), had responsive and sorted steering, felt planted at highway cruising speeds of 90-100 Kmph, had an airy cabin, excellent (to my years) stock speakers, and was easy on the eyes! I did 53,000 Kms with it over 8 years of ownership, and other than doing duty as our daily driver for anything and everything, we also did several road trips in and around Bangalore, covering Yercaud, Coorg, Vellore, Pondicherry, Hampi, Madurai, Trichy, Thanjavur, Kanyakumari, Rameshwaram (and Dhanushkodi), Udupi and Mahabalipuram, to name the major ones.

Sharing a few pics of the Celerio through the years.

First long drive from Bangalore to the Lakshmi temple before Vellore. Note the lack of the number plate. This was the weekend after the delivery, and the number plate hadn't arrived yet.

Outside a vineyard in Ramnagara around ~2 years into the car's life.

My favourite pic of the car, getting drenched in Coorg.

My last picture of the car, somewhere between Vellore and Krishnagiri, from the day before we handed her off, and got the Seltos.

But, and there is always a but, the Celerio did start feeling low on power, creature comforts, and space (especially in comparison to 1st the Fabia, and then the 2019 Amaze VX Petrol back home, in which we spent extensive time during COVID.)

The major reasons we needed a replacement were space (while we’re a family of 3, we have parents and family visiting us often enough, and for family trips, the Celerio started feeling cramped); the deteriorating quality of Bangalore roads, which made daily runs to school, office, etc. start to feel cumbersome; and the knee pain associated with Bangalore traffic in a manual. Plus, with our list of nearby (up to ~400 Kms in one day's of driving) destinations drying up, we started thinking of longer distance trips, but the space and comfort factor reared its head again on a 2nd front, to say that it was time for us to look at something else.

That coupled with the availability of the Turbo Petrol + DSG combinations from VW + Skoda, and Hyundai + KIA primarily; plus the imminent (~10-year) demise of ICEs and the coming EV onslaught, made me want to scratch an itch I didn’t even know I had. Cue team BHP to the rescue.

I spent a lot of time reading through the various threads and started creating a shortlist of everything in the ~20L bracket. My first TD was the Kushaq way back in Dec 2022, which my wife and I both had our hearts set on. What came after was the realization that Bangalore’s road taxes were among the highest in the country, and BH registrations wouldn’t materialize anytime soon. With that, I put my plans on hold, since finances needed to be put in order first.

In Dec '23, we decided we were finally ready to go ahead with the purchase, and started the hunt. I’m putting down our consideration set and what we did with each.

Having lived with the pain that comes with driving in Bangalore traffic I didn’t want to go with a manual, hence my choices don’t include any manuals.

Hyryder – Vetoed by the wife in terms of looks and based on her reads of the forums here (she isn’t a member, and when it comes to driving, she prefers her Activa 7 days of the week, but she’s on here almost as much as I am.)

Grand Vitara – I proposed, but the wife said no, so no test drives either

XUV 300 – My brother-in-law owns one, and it’s quite capable, ticked all our boxes too (except for the AMT, and having driven a friend Celerio AMT, I wasn't very fond of owning one, but I could still have lived with it, given that it gives so much bang for buck elsewhere.) But it has too little boot space for our use, and that made us scratch it off the list.

XUV 700 – We considered it briefly but dropped the idea when we realized that even the AX3 trim with the TC gearbox would end up costing us north of 23 Lakhs on the road, and we’d get better-equipped cars at the same price. Plus, even from the outside the car felt too large for our use. I didn’t even get a TD because of both of these reasons.

Thar – We both loved the looks initially, but had stepped into the cabin a few months back, at a pop-up stall in our society, and immediately hated it. The rear felt claustrophobic, and strictly for 2, with a laughable boot space. Add to the mix the fact that it’s a 3-door, hence not really practical for the family (especially ingress/egress for the parents). Plus the long wait. A friend of mine has been waiting for his 4X2 for over a year now. A 5 door would have been a different story but looks like M&M is in no hurry to get there. With that, we decided to strike it off our list as well.

Jimny – Great on paper, but too small in person, and honestly, it may just have been the car we saw in person, but the fit & finish seemed worse than my Celerio.

Elevate – It just didn’t feel like the car for us. Even though we spent a lot of time in a Honda over the last couple of years in our hometown, the Elevate just didn’t feel right for us. I’m probably being vain, but the looks were another negative, to my eyes the front of the car doesn’t mesh with the rest of it, and that was that.

Taigun 1.5 DSG – We loved the drive, with almost zero turbo lag, and butter smooth as well as lightning-fast gear shifts. What didn’t work in its favour, was the scoped /bucket-style rear seat that didn’t seem too accommodating even in comparison with our Celerio. The cabin too felt a little unfinished, with the obvious blanks on the console, and then the cost was also a tad on the higher side, coming to almost 23 Lakhs on-road even with year-end discounts. So even though it was a solid package, it still felt like we would be making a compromise.

Taigun 1.0 TC – Felt less refined than the 1.5, and the noise of the 3-pot motor felt very loud in the cabin. Plus had the same issue of the rear seat comfort, and feeling unfinished on the inside.

Kushaq 1.5 DSG – While the drive is almost the same as the VW, the ride is a fair bit softer than the Taigun, and the suspension has a lot of play, which I realized when the bottom scraped over a large speed hump (while the Taigun at the same spot, sailed through without any issues.) On paper, and long before we were looking at these cars, we’d already made up our minds in favour of the Kushaq. I’d read reviews of past Skoda / VW owners and their gripe with the lack of quality/refinement as compared to the past, seemed inconsequential in the real world, but I must say, they’re not wrong. The Kushaq did feel like a watered-down product in comparison to our old Fabia, and that eventually led us to place a big question mark around it, plus for 23 big ones, my head didn’t feel that it would really be worth it.

Kushaq 1.0 TC – Didn’t take a TD, but ruled out for the same reasons as the 1.5 / Taigun 1.0

Creta (pre-facelift) SX (O) 1.5 IVT – Cabin felt a little dated, though that may have been our TD car which had ~36K Kms on the Odo, but with all bells and whistles. The driving experience obviously wasn’t as grin-inducing as the VW/Skoda, but it never felt like there wasn’t enough power, for 99% of my driving (highways included.) The rear seat comfort and space were highlights and we expected ownership to be as hassle-free as had been with the Celerio. Plus we had the assurance of having my cousin running a Hyundai ASC back home. He uses a Creta as his daily driver as well and vouched for it. We had almost finalized it, but again, considering that the facelift was just around the corner, we weren’t fully sure that we would go for it. But so far, it was looking like our best bet.

Venue N-Line N8 – While the engine specs are nearly the same as the VW twins, somehow the experience wasn’t. The car felt cramped inside, even when compared to my Celerio, the engine felt too loud, and the dark interiors just didn’t do it for us.

At this point, we’d almost finalized the Creta, talked exchange value for the Celerio, gotten final quotes, and even gone to the extent of formally blocking a Denim Blue shade that they had in stock.

But not for nothing did I say before, that fate had other plans!

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

57% of Seltos buyers opted for variants that offered connected car features.

Kia India has achieved a new sales milestone. The carmaker has sold over 4,00,000 vehicles equipped with connected car features in India.

Connected car features are only available on the top variants, which account for 44% of the brand’s overall sales in India. At 65%, the Seltos makes up the majority of the sales.

According to Kia, 57% of Seltos buyers opted for variants that offered connected car features. Variants equipped with connected car tech make up 31% of the Carens sales, while 21% of Sonet buyers opted for these features.

The connected car features offered on Kia cars include Hinglish commands, Remote Window  Control, Remote Engine, AC start and Valet mode.

The exact number of vehicles affected by this recall is unknown.

Kia has issued a recall for the Seltos in India over a faulty electronic oil pump controller.

According to an email received by a customer, the voluntary recall has been announced to inspect and rectify a potential concern related to the electronic oil pump controller in certain Seltos vehicles. It is said that the component might experience irregularities that could affect the performance of the electronic oil pump.

Kia has notified customers about the recall and has requested them to get in touch with the nearest Kia dealership and get the oil pump controller replaced. The estimated time required for the job is around 3 hours.

While the exact number of vehicles affected by this recall is unknown, customers can contact Kia via email (kiacare@kiaindia.net), toll-free number (1800 108 5000) or the MyKia app for more information.

Thanks to BHPian Bibendum90949 for sharing this information with other enthusiasts!

The Seltos IVT has been recalled to fix a potential error in the electronic oil pump controller.

The Kia Seltos has been recalled in India over an electronic oil pump controller issue. As many as 4,358 units of the Seltos equipped with a CVT & manufactured between February 28 - July 13, 2023, have been affected by this recall.

According to Kia, the SUV has been recalled to fix a potential error in the electronic oil pump controller. The carmaker believes that it might affect the performance of the vehicle.

Kia will be reaching out to owners of the affected vehicles to notify them about the recall. Customers will be able to get the affected part replaced free of cost, at their nearest authorized service station.

The Seltos IVT comes with a 1.5-litre petrol engine paired with a continuously variable transmission (CVT). Besides this, the popular midsize SUV is also available with 1.5-litre turbo-petrol and 1.5-litre diesel engines.

Automatic variants account for nearly 50% of the total bookings and 40% of the buyers opted for variants equipped with ADAS.

Kia claims to have received over 1 lakh bookings for the updated Seltos since it was launched in July 2023. Over the last 6 months, around 13,500 vehicles have been booked every month.

According to Kia, automatic variants account for nearly 50% of the total bookings. 40% of the buyers opted for variants equipped with ADAS. The growing popularity of sunroofs is also evident from the fact that 80% of Seltos buyers opted for this feature.

The Seltos is powered by a 1.5-litre petrol engine paired with a 6-speed manual and a CVT, a 1.5-litre diesel that is offered with either a 6-speed iMT or a 6-speed automatic and a new 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine, which is available with the option of a 6-speed iMT or a 7-speed DCT.

Kia has also revealed that the ratio of petrol to diesel bookings was 58:42 in favour of petrol, with 80% of the buyers opting for the top variants.

Since its initial launch in August 2019, Kia has manufactured over 6 lakh units of the Seltos, with nearly 75% sold in the domestic market. In 2023, Kia sold a total of 1.04 lakh units of the Seltos.

With the introduction of the 6-speed manual, the Seltos now comes in 24 different variants.

Kia has introduced five new diesel manual variants of the Seltos. It comes in the Tech Line trim with prices starting at Rs 11,99,900 (ex-showroom).

The Kia Seltos facelift was launched in July last year. At launch, the SUV was offered with a 1.5-litre diesel engine paired with a 6-speed iMT and a 6-speed automatic. With the introduction of the 6-speed manual, the Seltos now comes in 24 different variants.

The Seltos is available with a 1.5-litre diesel engine that produces 114 BHP @ 4,000 rpm and 250 Nm @ 1,500-2,750 rpm. Customers also get a choice of 1.5-litre petrol paired with either a 6-speed manual or IVT and a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine mated to either a 6-speed iMT or a 7-speed DCT.

Inside, the updated Seltos gets dual 10.25-inch screens, dual-zone automatic climate control, a dual-pane panoramic sunroof and 17-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels. Higher variants also get 32 safety features, including Level 2 ADAS.

Kia Seltos Diesel 6MT ex-showroom prices:

• HTE - Rs 11,99,900
• HTK – Rs 13,59,900
• HTK+ - Rs 14,99,900
• HTX – Rs 16,67,900
• HTX+ - Rs 18,27,900