NUMERO UNO

What makes the Kia Seltos such an unstoppable hit in India?

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Kia cars on Indian roads weren’t exactly a thing, except for maybe a solitary appearance of a test mule before the Seltos came along. The compact SUV marked the arrival of a brand that in just a few months has become one of the most popular new names in the Indian automotive context. It was showcased as the SP Concept at the 2018 Auto Expo exactly two years ago. And from then on began the vehicle’s journey towards disrupting a segment that’s generally not too kind to newcomers. The Kia Seltos seems to have all the right cards in this, the automotive equivalent of the card game Uno.

And it’s not just the domestic sales, where Kia has enjoyed a great start — with November being its most successful month as more than 14,000 units of the Seltos were dispatched — its exports game has been strong, too. The company started exporting the Seltos in October and soon found itself to be among the top five automobile exporters. And the success story doesn’t end there. The Seltos has received praise globally as well, not just from critics and customers, but also safety agencies. In the Australian New Car Assessment Programme, the Seltos achieved a full-fat five-star rating, exhibiting how well made it is. Its crashworthiness is backed by a solid structure (made with high-strength steel) and the myriad of market-dependent safety features. Draw four, rivals.