Kia Seltos: Full Australian details - [ Car Sales ]

It may be unfashionably late to the small SUV party, but all the important homework appears to have been done for the all-new Kia Seltos small SUV.

When it arrives in Australia from around October — priced from about $25,990 drive-away — there will be four model grades, all fitted with a high level of standard equipment and offering class-leading cabin and boot space.

Standard kit includes autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane-keep assist, six airbags, alloy wheels, automatic headlights, reversing sensors and an 8.0-inch touch-screen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Boasting a confident new design, an upmarket interior configuration with all the mod-cons and more boot space than any of its rivals, the Korean brand’s first compact SUV is tipped to become one of Kia Australia's most popular models.

Pitched at younger buyers, the Kia Seltos will rival vehicles like the Hyundai Kona, Subaru XV, Mitsubishi ASX, Mazda CX-3 and Honda HR-V.

There will be two engine options for the Aussie market, opening with an entry-level 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine (110kW/180Nm) driving the front wheels through an automatic continuously variable transmission (CVT).

Spend a bit more and you'll get a 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol powerplant (130kW/265Nm) driving all four wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

All models except the base-grade $26K Seltos S get a class-leading 10.2-inch touch-screen infotainment display with satellite-navigation as standard.

Two devices can be connected to the Seltos' infotainment system via Bluetooth at the same time, allowing music streaming (eg: Spotify) from, say, one smartphone while at the same time using Google Maps on another device. The 10.2-inch screen is wide enough to split up the information displayed accordingly.

The Kia Seltos has a few cheeky tricks too, including the availability of a segment-first eight-speaker Bose stereo that pairs with multi-coloured ambient LED mood lighting that pulsates when music is playing.

Mid-spec Kia Seltos Sport variants are tipped to be priced from around $30,000 drive-away and could be the top-selling variant in Oz. They will be fitted with 17-inch alloy wheels, front fog lights, climate control, the whopping 10.2-inch touch-screen and a full-sized spare wheel.

Scroll down for the full Kia Seltos equipment list by model grade.

The trendy new small SUV is backed by Kia’s seven-year warranty with roadside assistance and, Kia Australia chief operating officer Damien Meredith said target pricing is $25,990 to $40,000 drive-away.

"Our guide, our target pricing … we’re looking at that $25,000 to $26,000 drive-away for the entry model."

He said the new SUV has the potential to be one of Kia’s best-selling models – a mantle currently occupied by the Kia Cerato small car – but cautioned that supply will be limited in the first year as global demand peaks.

"It's definitely got that sort of potential [to be the brand’s top-seller] but we've been told pretty clearly that stock limitations will drive the first 12 months. So we've just got to be realistic in regards to the volumes we can expect to get," said the Kia Australia boss.

Four model grades will be offered in Oz: the Kia Seltos S, Sport, Sport+ and GT Line, the latter top-spec variant expected to be priced at $39,990 drive-away.

The Kia Seltos GT Line gets 18-inch alloy wheels, wireless phone charger, adaptive cruise control, faux leather heated and cooled power adjustable seats, the pulsating mood lighting, a class-leading 8.0-inch head-up display and a sunroof.

There are eight colour options in total, plus three contrasting roof colours – gold, white and black. But if you get the latter, the sunroof is deleted.

Like all Kia vehicles sold here, the Seltos will get a localised suspension calibration tuned in Australia for local conditions.

Named after the son of Hercules (Celtos), the new Kia Seltos is claimed to have the biggest cabin and boot in its class, the latter rated at 498 litres when fitted with a space-saver spare wheel. However, all models except the entry-level Seltos S get a full-size spare wheel, which may reduce boot space somewhat.

The trunk compares favourably with the boot sizes of the top three-selling small SUVs in Australia, the Mitsubishi ASX (393L), Mazda CX-3 (264L) and Honda HR-V (437L). The Kia Seltos boot also features a height-adjustable/concealed boot floor.

The Seltos measures 4370mm long, which is 5mm longer than the top-selling Mitsubishi ASX (4365mm) and almost 100mm longer than the Mazda CX-3 (4275mm), and promises to deliver loads of rear seat room.

As well as its brash exterior design – featuring almost full-length front LED driving lights embedded above the front grille, along with LED main beams and LED 'ice cube' fog lights – Kia says it has paid significant attention to the back seats.

Increased shoulder and leg room is promised, while standard fit air-vents, door bottle-holders and a USB port will be welcome for owners who regularly carry multiple passengers.

Overseas Kia Seltos models get UVO CONNECT, which uses a SIM card and subscription service to ensure the car is always 'online'. This will not be offered in Australia.

The Kia Seltos is a global vehicle and will be manufactured at two plants: Andhra Pradesh in India (which will produce a slightly different vehicle with greater ride height, etc) and Gwangju in Korea, from where Australian vehicles will be sourced.

In the first half of 2019, the Mitsubishi ASX continued to dominate the small SUV class, commanding 17.1 per cent (10,435 units) of the segment's sales. The Mazda CX-3 is second with a 12.7 per cent market share (7756 sales), while the Honda HR-V is third with 10.9 per cent (6670 sales).

Until now, Kia has not offered a global mainstream small SUV and, according to the brand's most senior executive, the segment will grow by around 20 per cent in the next three years and is just too big to ignore any more.

"Global sales of compact SUVs are forecast to expand from 6.5 million vehicles in 2018 to more than 8.2 million by the end of 2022," said Han-Woo Park, President and CEO of Kia Motors Corporation.

"The Seltos brings Kia strengths in design, quality and technology to this popular segment," he stated.

How much does the 2019 Kia Seltos cost?
S -- $25,990 (FWD, 2.0, auto)
Sport -- $29,990 (FWD, 2.0, auto)
Sport+ -- $34,900 (FWD/AWD, 2.0/1.6T, auto)
GT Line -- $39,990 (AWD, 1.6T, auto)
* Estimated drive-away pricing

2019 Kia Seltos key standard equipment:
Kia Seltos S
16-inch alloy wheels
Auto headlights
Halogen DRLs
Reversing camera with rear parking sensors
AEB (Car/Pedestrian/Cyclist) with Forward collision warning system (FCWS)
Lane Keeping Assist
Cruise control
8.0-inch touch-screen infotainment
Android Auto/Apple CarPlay

Optional Safety Pack ($TBC):
AEB Fusion II (Car/Pedestrian/Cyclist)
Advanced Smart Cruise Control
Electronic park brake

Kia Seltos Sport :
17-inch alloy wheels
Front fog lights
Premium steering wheel and shifter
10.2-inch infotainment and navigation system
Single-zone climate-control
Auto defog
Full-size spare wheel

Optional Safety Pack ($TBC):
AEB Fusion II (Car/Pedestrian/Cyclist)
Advanced Smart Cruise Control
Electronic park brake

Kia Seltos Sport+:
AEB Fusion II (Car/Pedestrian/Cyclist)
Electronic Park Brake
Electric folding and heated side mirrors
Cloth and artificial leather seats
Heated front seats
Heated steering wheel
Self-dimming rear-view mirror
Advanced Smart Cruise Control
Blind Spot Detection
Front parking sensors
Privacy glass
Smart key and push-button start

Kia Seltos GT Line:
18-inch alloy wheels
LED headlights, DRLs
LED front fog light
Artificial leather seats
Mood lighting
Wireless smartphone charger
7.0-inch supervision cluster with 8.0-inch HUD
Power driver and front passenger seats
Rain-sensing wipers
Ventilated and heated front seats
LED interior lights
Aero blade wiper
Sunroof

Source - [ Car Sales ]