Kia has launched the new logo for the brand along with the updated Seltos and Sonet in our market. Seltos and Sonet have been the sole reasons for driving Kia to become the country’s fastest brand to reach 2.50 lakh sales in our market and it was time that these SUVs received an update. They have been extremely popular in their respective segments and Kia wants to make sure that these remain fresh to entice more customers. In a bid to do that, as well as make these products more accessible, Kia has reshuffled some of the variants and added and discontinued some to keep the line up balanced and flexible. Some of the lower trims of both these products will get features from the higher trims and the top trims will get new features. Let us take a look in detail at the changes in the variants and prices.
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2021 Kia Seltos
One can’t really argue that there were too many shortcomings in the Seltos, to begin with, but still, to keep the product fresh, Kia has decided to shake up the variants list a little and introduce a new iMT transmission to the lineup with the mid-trim HTK+ of the 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine. The GTX (O) turbo trim is now available with a manual gearbox. The HTX+ Plus variant of the diesel automatic has been discontinued from the lineup. Many new features have been added to the mid-trim. The HTK trim now comes equipped with features likes Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto along with Electric Sunroof and Automatic Climate Control. The HTX trims come with features like ESC, Hill Start Assist, Traction Control and Brake Assist. The prices of the 2021 Kia Seltos range between Rs 9.95 lakh to Rs 17.65 lakh, ex-showroom.
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2021 Kia Sonet
Last month, Kia had discontinued the HTK+ diesel automatic and turbo petrol automatic trim and this time around, it has added two new variants to the list. The diesel and petrol automatics are available with the HTX trim from now on. The HTK+ trim comes with Keyless Entry, Remote Engine Start on turbo petrol and diesel variants. The variants with iMT transmission are available with an Electric Sunroof. The HTX trim has been heavily equipped with this update with features like ESC< Hill Start Assist, Stability Management, Brake Assist, 16-inch Diamond Cut Alloy Wheels. The automatic powertrains get Paddle Shifters for better control as well as drive/traction modes for various environments. The New AI-based voice assistance system is triggered by the ”Hello Kia” command in the HTX+ and the GTX+ trims. All the other engine and transmission systems are similar to the current models. All the changes are in terms of rejigging the features and variants. The prices of the Kia Sonet range between Rs 6.79 lakh and Rs 13.25 lakh, ex-showroom.
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Kia has also announced that it will bring in another product in a new segment for our market. We are expecting the arrival of either an MPV rivaling the likes of Maruti Suzuki Ertiga. This is interesting because its sibling Hyundai has not yet revealed much about the same. The products from Kia are based on platforms from Hyundai. Currently, Kia is doing well with just two SUVs also but some new products will make the market image of the brand even more accessible.
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