The Kia Seltos, which has been extremely well received in the Indian market with over 60,000 bookings so far, has made its North American debut at the 2019 Los Angeles Auto Show. The crossover will go on sale in the U.S. market in the first quarter of 2020 as a 2021 model.
It’ll be available in five trims: LX, EX, S 2.0L, S 1.6T, and SX. Kia says that the LX AWD will have a starting price of less than $22,000 and the S FWD too will have a similar starting price. Meaning, the Seltos will be available in America with an AWD option, which we’ll talk about in a bit.
Visually, the American Seltos might not look any different compared with the Indian Seltos. However, if you look carefully, you do notice the changes in the front bumper design and a solid-looking skid plate. The front fender has an AWD badge.
While the rear-end too looks similar with fake exhaust tips, the skid plate on this AWD Seltos appears to be of better quality. The wheel sizes measure 17- or 18-inches. Buyers have 8 single and 4 dual-tone exterior paint schemes to choose from. The example featured here is finished in Starbright Yellow with Black Cherry.
Compared to the Indian Seltos, the dashboard of this American model looks a bit different and a touch more premium. Naturally, there’s a big list of features on the inside. These include a 3.5-inch OLED display in the instrument cluster, leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, rear AC vents, rear USB charging port, and two-step reclining rear seat.
Options include a 10.25-inch touchscreen with satellite radio, UVO telematics and navigation, an 8-speaker Bose premium audio system, wireless smartphone charging, and three USB charging ports.
More options include the Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS). This includes Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist with pedestrian detection (FCA), Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS), Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS), Lane Following Assist (LFA), Blind Spot Collision Warning (BCW), Blind Spot Collision Avoidance Assist (BCA), Highway Driving Assist (HDA), Smart Cruise Control with stop & go, Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Avoidance Assist (RCCA), Rear Occupant Alert, and Safe Exist Assist (SEA).
Seems to have a better approach angle compared with the Indian Seltos
As for the business end, the Seltos in the U.S. is offered with either a 2.0-litre 4-cylinder gasoline engine with an output of 109 kW (146 bhp) and 179 Nm (132 lb-ft) of torque, paired with a CVT (LX, S and EX), or a 1.6-litre Turbo GDI engine with an output of 130 kW (175 bhp) and 264 Nm (195 lb-ft) of torque, paired with a 7-speed DCT (S and SX).
The optional on-demand all-wheel-drive system with a center locking differential splits power equally between the front and rear wheels (50:50). There are 3 driving modes: Normal, Eco, and Sport.
Expected to go on sale in the U.S. market in February 2020.
Recommended for you
Leave a Reply
Note: Comments that are unrelated to the post above get automatically filtered into the trash bin.
