It’s really commendable how fast South Koreans have skyrocketed themselves as a technological and innovative giant in such a short time, be it their electronic products like OLED Televisions from LG, advanced cellphones from Samsung or their upmarket futuristic cars from Hyundai/Kia/Genesis is truly a case study at IIMs, also what should be a case study is their ability to read the market and deliver accordingly, also particularly speaking in the context of India, Hyundai with their onslaught of affordable, good looking(back in the day), technologically advanced, premium cars caught the fancy of Indian buyers and became one of the most sought after brands of upper middle class Indians, but they weren’t done yet since in 2019 their sister concern Kia Motors entered our shores too but as a totally separate entity establishing its own state-of-the-art facilities at Anantapur and set up their own 3S(Sales,Service&Spares) network, also amazing was the fact that within a few years of entry in India Kia established itself among the Top5 automotive OEMs of India overtaking giants like Honda, Volkswagen and Renault to name a few. I won’t delve into further details of their strategy and planning since I have already penned down an exhaustive case study by myself and highly recommend you give it a thorough read.Link of the article https://volklub.com/the-interesting-case-of-kia-in-india/.
As of this post we’ll keep this post limited to impressions of their introductory and perhaps most preferred product the Seltos FL or as Kia likes to call Badass 2.0 :-).
Exteriors
The pre facelift Seltos was by no means a bad looking CSUV if anything it was the most handsome looking CSUV of its segment and one universally liked unlike its cousin the 2nd gen Creta which till date remains polarising but the facelift of Seltos looks even better and more desirable IMHO. The overall front fascia with new bumpers and larger grille look more menacing without being ungainly.
The side profile though mostly similar gets new 18″ wheels with 215 section tyres even in GTX+ model(earlier restricted to X Line) fill up the wheel arches a tad bit better and help the Seltos giving a more squatted down stable appearance, also thankfully Kia has done away with excessive red inserts found in the earlier version.
The rear sees a change too with connected tail-lights though I must add I preferred the previous wrap-around tail-lights more but since connected rear is a new fad among Indians Kia had to give it so as to keep it up with times perhaps, also the rear bumper sees a new skid plate design and if you opt for GTX+ with 1.5Turbo-Petrol DCT option you get dual exhaust but with Diesel you get a simple design only without sporty exhaust tips.
Interiors
The interiors too get slight revisions instead of complete makeover but they do help in giving them a modern appeal while fixing some crucial ergonomic glitches from the previous car.
The first thing which you would notice straight away is the sleeker centre console design without excessive bezels and borders found in the previous car which IMHO hampered field of vision of the driver, the updated console retains the same 10.25″ panel with updated software and graphics making it just a tad bit faster and sleeker to touch, also gone are the gorgeous analogue Audi-esque speedo and tacho needles and you get 10.25″ digital instrument cluster, although not as good looking the erstwhile panel its brimming with tech, you get different wallpapers including ones linking the cluster with outside weather and changing theme with different drive modes, apart from that you get all the information including ADAS operations.
The thing mostly carried forward from the erstwhile car is the sleek flat bottom steering wheel, IMHO this is THE BESTÂ steering column in the entire 30Lakh rupee range I’ve driven many cars from different brands viz MSIL, Toyota, Honda, Skoda etc but nothing comes close, the diameter of the rim, the thickness, the leather wrapping, the tactile buttons all are unmatched, also even with so many buttons festooned the horn pad is easily accessible, also when you press it you get a sweeeeet sounding premium wind tone sound which IMHO is even better than some European cars, additionally you get metallic finished paddle shifters too with automatic transmission equipped models.
Apart from that seats are quite comfy too with good lateral support and nice bolstering too with healthy range of fore, aft and height adjustment all of which are electric by the way, when compounded with rack&reach adjustment of steering it means finding the perfect driving position in the Seltos is not a Herculean task. Good job Kia in getting the ergonomics in order(learn a thing or two Italians&Indians).
I hopped in the rear seats too for a brief moment and found the space for my frame to be adequate, also since the GTX+ model comes with dark upholstery you might get a claustrophobic feeling briefly but its totally compensated by the large panoramic sunroof which lets in a healthy amount of light into even the rear section of the cabin, other amenities include illuminated rear power window switch with auto up-down function, window sunblinds, rear air-con vents with AQI display and option to control the Air-Purifiers’ operations along with two USB-C fast charging ports to juice up your power-hungry gadgets.
The boot space too is adequate with 433Litres though I must add Elevate offers even greater boot space and the latter’s boot is better shaped too so as to fit in more luggage, there are some things where you just can’t beat a Honda.
Drive Experience
Now coming to the most coveted part the drive. Being a die-hard diesel head I was just so impressed with Hyundai’s brand new 1.5CRDi mill. Its incredibly refined at idle with just a little purring in the background which can be easily muted with the terrific BOSE surround system(many people initially complained how this system has lacklustre output but once you tinker around with the Equaliser which I love to do as an audiophile and you’ll take a liking to the system).
I won’t talk about goodies too much because at this point most of you know Seltos is one of the most feature loaded SUV in its segment, which I personally think is a bit too unnecessary( one more reason I prefer cars like Elevate) but as I said Indians as of now are obsessed with gadgetry and tech in their cars and every OEM is in a race to provide every god-damn feature they possibly could at lowest possible prices which could mean compromising with safety, dynamics and quality, its a very debatable topic which I would leave for some other day but I suggest you reading another case study penned down by myself about Hyundai, focusing somewhat on the similar topic. Link to the article https://volklub.com/the-peculiar-case-of-hyundai/
Coming back to drive experience, slot the shifter to D, release the brakes, the car gently moves forward with superbly controlled NVH, I was driving down at a noisy, congested badly paved concrete road in the city and even with the stock JK Tyres there was so slight noise overall I had to be doubly conscious about the traffic especially the two wheelers whose horns were completely silenced inside the Seltos, I know Hyundais have an edge in refinement but Kia took it to an altogether different level with the Seltos.
Taking tight U Turns too was a breeze with surround view cameras and sensors warning me about the obstacles and also if any biker cuts you too closely and you can’t notice Seltos will take auto brakes with rear cross traffic avoidance system. Smart.
Once cutting through congested traffic and onto the deserted highway, immediately switched the Drive Mode to Sport and took control via those tactile paddle shifters, gave some heavy acceleration inputs, the Diesel Muscle kicks in, though nowhere close to the fab 1.6CRDi of the previous generation Creta the Seltos made some fairly rapid progress down the highway, also worth noting was the fact that even when we crossed 100Kmph the interiors remained quite and calm with minimal road and tyre noise(even with JKs notorious for making excessive tyre squeal!), the engine sounding typical Diesel roar at 2000rpms(which I love) and if you pay very close attention you can hear the turbo spooling too! Long live Diesels man! To summarise Seltos diesel felt quick and not F-A-S-T. If you want to know how a fast Diesel feels like hop into something like a Cruze VCDi(Diesel Rocket for a reason), Tucson 2.0CRDi(which I absolutely love driving :-D) or an Audi A4/A6 3.0 V6 TDi Quattro.
Shifting focus to other aspects, the Seltos felt totally home at triple digit speeds with perfectly stable dynamics and stability which didn’t even falter even as I crossed 120km/hr which is truly commendable given the fact that its fitted with JKs, just imagine how good would be the experience with richer rubber like Pirelli/Michelin. The steering too, though not as precise say a VW or Ford(especially the latter had excellent steering calibration with cars like Ikon, Fiesta S with pull&drift compensation) wasn’t anywhere as lifeless we come to expect of Korean cars. Hyundai is making rapid progress in this department all thanks to their N Division in no small measure which hired BMWs chief dynamics engineer recently).
What I could also test out was one of the ADAS feature which was the Lane Keep Assist which would automatically turn the steering to keep the car in lane, the system was done very right and only faltered when the lane markings were completely obliterated, even though helpful I switched it off after a while since I found turning the steering myself was a more satisfying driving experience, at least for me.
Conclusion
To conclude I would like to say I’m pretty much impressed with what Kia is offering with the Seltos, if you look at it this CSUV offers a perfect mix of style, features, powertrains and practicality at an affordable price point. Kia made a grand entry with the Seltos back in 2019 and continues to offer a very strong option even in 2024 with the Seltos FL or Badass 2.0. 
