Kia Seltos

It’s finally here and we splash around Goa with the turbo-petrol.

-  Sirish Chandran

WE’VE BEEN WAITING AGES FOR the Kia Seltos so I’ll break with the norm and go straight to the verdict — the Seltos is excellent!

If you’ve held back on buying your next car in anticipation of the Kia you’ve done A Very Smart Thing. Of course we don’t know the pricing as of going to print but Kia are unlikely to make a wrong turn especially considering the dark clouds hovering over the industry right now. And in any case it isn’t like the Seltos has no competition.

Bottom line though, after driving the Seltos in monsoon-drenched Goa, is that Kia are on the money. And it all starts with the fantastic styling. In the metal, even in dreary weather under pregnant clouds, the Seltos is stunning with the right blend of style and bling. Of course the LED lighting elements in the nose, especially the slim strips that carry on into the top of the tiger-nose grille can be a bit fussy, but overall it works very well.

The GT Line

The GTX trim is characterised by the (faux) skid plate under the bumpers, different design for the 17-inch alloys and liberal application of red striping. This is the sporty variant of the line-up and the 1.4 turbo-petrol motor can only be had in this trim line so it has the go to match the show. One step above is the GTX+ though for now Kia isn’t offering that with the DCT automatic. There’s enough of a clamour for it for Kia to launch it sooner rather than later and the reason to wait is the 8-speaker 400W Bose sound system, 360-degree camera with front parking sensors, blind-spot camera in the instrument binnacle and the sun roof.