KIA Seltos

The interior of the Kia Seltos welcomes one with a nicely laid-out cabin, the highlight of which is the wide cockpit in front of the driver’s seat. This cockpit consists of a housing for the instrument console, which has a 7-inch TFT MID in between the analogue gauges, and a wide 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system placed next to it.

The infotainment screen gets physical buttons for the audio system below it, with AC vents and controls for automatic climate control placed in the lower part of the centre console. The lower part of the console around the transmission lever is finished in a theme of gloss black and gets an array of buttons on either side of the lever. The cabin of the Kia Seltos is stuffed with features like a head-up display, wireless charger, ventilated front seats, sunroof, and premium BOSE audio system.

This version of the Kia Seltos currently on sale is the pre-facelifted version of the first-generation model, which made its global debut in 2019. While the facelifted version has already come out in some global markets, this pre-facelift model still looks relevant with its urban and stylish design.

The front profile of the Kia Seltos looks smart and sophisticated with its busy design, which doesn’t look out of place at all. The aggressive fascia of the Kia Seltos comprises a bold-looking trapezoidal grille, which has chrome surrounds and gets stretched T-shaped wide all-LED headlamps on the sides. The headlamps are partitioned into two parts, with claw-shaped LED turn indicators integrated into the lower housing. The front bumper also looks comprehensive with a wide central air dam with a silver skid plate below it and large blacked-out housings for the LED projector fog lamps.

The taut lines of the bonnet of the Kia Seltos flow seamlessly on the side profile, which makes it look very urban in its appeal. The Seltos gets a high shoulder line that flows upwards toward the C-pillar, with the SUV getting prominent wheel arches with black mouldings over them. The top-spec versions come with 17-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels and chrome door handles.

The rear profile of the Kia Seltos also looks muscular with wide haunches over the widely-stretched LED tail lamps, which are joined by a sleek chrome garnish between them. In addition to the combination tail lamps, the Seltos also gets wide housings for the reflectors neatly integrated within the rear fenders. The Seltos also has a butch-looking rear bumper covered in heavy black cladding and chrome surrounds for the dual exhaust pipes.

The Kia Seltos comes with a suspension combination of Macpherson struts at the front and a torsion beam at the rear, which has been tuned for a fine balance of sporty and comfortable ride quality. The SUV also gets three drive modes and three traction modes, all of which can be controlled via the drive controller knob placed beside the transmission lever.

The Kia Seltos is available in the UAE with two engine options. Firstly, there is a 1.6-litre four-cylinder naturally-aspirated petrol engine, which claims a maximum power output of 123 PS of maximum power and 154 Nm of maximum torque. The other engine option is a 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine, which produces 140 PS of maximum power and 242 Nm of maximum torque. Both the engine options come standard with a 6-speed manual gearbox, with the optional transmission options of a 6-speed automatic for the 1.6-litre engine and a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic for the 1.4-litre petrol.

The Kia Seltos is well-loaded with all the safety features one expects from an SUV of this price. It gets front, side and curtain airbags, front and rear parking sensors, 360-degree parking camera, head-up display, all-wheel disc brakes, electronic stability control, vehicle stability management, hill start assist, hill descent control, tyre pressure monitoring system and ISOFIX mounts for child seats.

For an urban SUV which is good and easy to drive, decently powerful and efficient and comfortable to be in, the Kia Seltos ticks many right boxes with ease.