[dark.knight]

I thought the Seltos was a bit overdone but this thing takes the cake, Venue anyday between the two, and Venue being tight on rear space isn't realistic at all, I'm 5'10 and was able to comfortably sit with good thigh support behind with the front seat adjusted for the same height, Sonet shouldn't be much different.

I'm not one who likes sporty design and aluminium finish pedals, and I have a deep hatred for the color red, this thing with the red stitching, heavily bolstered seats, massive skid plates and fangs are the stuff of nightmares. Kia seems just weird-ish to me, apart from their Carnival which seems designed as a somewhat normal car. As pointed out, chrome use seems to be excessive too.

Its packed full of features which means that Venue will get them soon as well, and the next gen i20 should break all records in terms of features. Good news for Korean car fans. I think this will top the sub 4m UV sales from debut.

Was looking for a nice small car for daily runabouts, but the Kia is simply a bit weird for our tastes, we'd rather have the simplicity (relative to KIA) and large service network of Hyundai instead, Venue or upcoming i20 would be better bets.

[Stribog]

Originally Posted by aniyo

To be honest and brutal, Indians tend to believe Indians don't deserve and not worth giving it to them. The same people will bend over backwards to accommodate even trivial requests of foreigners. This pains but this is what I have observed. Indian's money and life really does not matter.

South Korea is a very small country than India, yet they have built brands like LG, Samsung, Kia, Hyundai which are global. They have managed to move from a poor country to a middle income country in a matter of 2-3 decades, we haven't and the main reason is we don't care for fellow Indians and lack respect for our own selves. We need to get out of " Please give us" to " we deserve this and hence want this". The well traveled of us have started doing this but a majority are happy at whatever is thrown at them

This is offtopic but I definitely had to chime in on this point. This is absolutely wrong.

S Korea developed not because of whatever reasons quoted here but,

1) it recieved $35bn in aid in 25 years, including no strings attached infra spending from the US

2) it had its defence underwritten by the US, thereby saving a lot of money every year

3) it was a brutal dictatorship under Military rule from 1953-87, no freedom of press, no independent judiciary, no voting, nothing. You spoke against the party or dictator, you disappeared. Simple. So an infra project that takes 10 years in India because just acquiring land is a task would take 3 years, you vacated the land or go to jail!

4) it Institutionalised crony state driven capitalism under the Chaebol model.

Yes they have done wonderfully as a nation but ask yourself if you would be okay with a single party, heck from 1953-87 they had like 3 key rulers, with no rights to speak of while big capitalists got all sorts of sweet heart deals?

[Bibendum90949]

Few more pictures of the Sonet.

[vvivek85]

Great report, appreciate all the efforts. Coming to car, front end is bold and striking, rear isn’t to my taste and it doesn’t do justice to the car. Interiors are top notch except for the unconventional ACC.

Seltos had a pretty good design which would not offend any, I am not sure that would be case with this car.

[jasjotbains]

So let me get this straight. They have a TC in the diesel but have a head-scratching IMT in the petrol? I wish they provide the TC in the petrol, especially in the Gdi and then we're talking

[turbo]

Originally Posted by 5kmiles

Harrier and Seltos - difference between hatchback platform raised to look like an SUV vs a true SUV with the right architecture ground-up designed to function and deliver like an SUV.

But a Harrier is not a "true SUV" in any way.
A 'true SUV' should have ladder of frame chassis, and 4x4. And the Harrier doesnt even get AWD, and those modes do nothing, which has been discussed here. https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techn...-2wd-cars.html (How useful are the Terrain Modes of 2WD cars?)

They're both crossovers. Monocoque crossovers.

And when it comes to being a crossover, the Seltos is undoubtedly a better one at that.

If only Tata had given the Harrier Hexa's ladder on frame construction and 4WD from the old safari, it would have been a true SUV, and selling atleast 5 times it is now.

Originally Posted by jasjotbains

So let me get this straight. They have a TC in the diesel but have a head-scratching IMT in the petrol? I wish they provide the TC in the petrol, especially in the Gdi and then we're talking

Diesel = TC
1.2 Petrol IMT
1.0 Turbo Petrol DCT

[Brishti]

Originally Posted by vsrivatsa

Safety and Sonet:
Isn't the Sonet based on the K1 Platform which underpins the Hyundai Santro as well?...and the Crash Rating for the Santro was pathetic. So unless GNCAP tests the India spec Sonet and Venue, it is anyone's assumption what would be the crash rating for these vehicles.

Drawing a comparison to the Heartect Platform that Maruti-Suzuki plonks on a whole lot of cars - none of them have done done well in the GNCAP Tests and the max I have seen is 3 stars for cars based on this Heartect platform.

Can more Airbags enable a car based on relatively inferior platform (K1 vs K2) overcome the constraints of the platform to deliver better safety by virtue of having more airbags?

Putting the same question in context here to the Experts: Is it safer to buy the base variant of the Seltos/Creta based on the K2 Platform (Superior Platform) which may offer just 2 Airbags versus a Venue/Sonet which may have 6 Airbags but based on the K1 Platform (relatively inferior Platform)?

Thats right the Venue and this is K1 aka Santro platform where as the K2 under the Verna/Seltos/Creta is based on the old Elantra which has since moved on to the K3. The Venue I used in US was based on the Kona/Accent Hyundai-Kia GB platform which is better than the K1 platform for sure.

Now the platforms do matter I had a thread (Do car platforms really matter? PQ35 vs MQB?) on which I had voiced the same but was mocked but I was correct apparently according to industry insiders since a platform dictates design fabrication.

[swiftnfurious]

When I saw the front pic, I never thought its a sub 4m vehicle. This car looks wide & BIG! Yeah..the rear isnt the best and I think the dull shades will definitely bring this out well. Me thinks this is a blockbuster for sure. Indians are suckers for features they can flaunt & the design - Kia has got it spot on with this car. The interior design is a little over the top, but lends it quite a sophisticated & premium look; will align so well with the 25-35 age bracket (first time) buyers. I have always wondered if its so difficult to design the air vents beautifully - seems its a basic 'will' issue and nothing more.

I cant but think they so well covered almost all grounds,

Style - Yes
Features - Yes
Good engine options - Yes
Manual & proper AT options - Yes
Urban buyer base (size and AT) - Yes
Sunroof - Double YES
Top safety - Kia, you beauty!!!

I doubt they'll play the 'value' game this time - even if they go 'premium', this car can pull crowds.

If the diesel AT gathers a fair share of bookings, other players can blame themselves on a lost opportunity.

Soon this will be a Skoda-VW saga; Kia might trump Hyundai over the next few years.

[7000plusrpm]

So I was looking for a Diesel Torque converter AT with decent safety features within the 12-15L INR budget. The Seltos HTK+ has the diesel AT but barebones in terms of safety. The Ecosport Sports is a relatively safe Diesel albeit with an MT. How I wished Ford combine the TDCi with the 6-speed AT. Or any other manufacturer for that matter (Tata for example) to combine the excellent Diesel with a TC automatic.
With Sonet, I think the top of the line GT variant will cater to people like me and more. The only concern I have is that like the Venue, it is also built on the K1 platform. I'm not sure how structurally safe this would be. Do, most people care about this here? I doubt!

[ram.iyer95]

Originally Posted by turbo

Diesel = TC
1.2 Petrol IMT
1.0 Turbo Petrol DCT

A minor correction there, mate. The 1.2 petrol comes only with the 5-Speed MT. Both the iMT as well as the DCT are available only with the 1.0 TGDi, just like in the Venue.

[aniyo]

Originally Posted by Stribog

This is offtopic but I definitely had to chime in on this point. This is absolutely wrong.

S Korea developed not because of whatever reasons quoted here but,

1) it recieved $35bn in aid in 25 years, including no strings attached infra spending from the US

2) it had its defence underwritten by the US, thereby saving a lot of money every year

3) it was a brutal dictatorship under Military rule from 1953-87, no freedom of press, no independent judiciary, no voting, nothing. You spoke against the party or dictator, you disappeared. Simple. So an infra project that takes 10 years in India because just acquiring land is a task would take 3 years, you vacated the land or go to jail!

4) it Institutionalised crony state driven capitalism under the Chaebol model.

Yes they have done wonderfully as a nation but ask yourself if you would be okay with a single party, heck from 1953-87 they had like 3 key rulers, with no rights to speak of while big capitalists got all sorts of sweet heart deals?

I am not denying the help received from USA or the political situation.
We also received a lot of help from Russia during cold war. Also there are no free lunches. South Korea had to ally with USA.

Many countries have received support and have had fascist regime not all have progressed.
Sorry to say democracy in India was a farce and still is. We have very little choice to speak off.
We cannot blame our ineffencies on some other countries. We did not plan our manufacturing sector. In India since independence capitalist have received a lot of favour in the time of license Raj. Even today how many manufacturing startup we have.

Time were bad in south korea and they were bad in India as well. We failed they progressed.

[architect_santo]

With this Kia seems to be capitalising the lost opportunities of brands like Toyota, Honda, Ford and even Maruti Suzuki for the matter; either these brands don’t have a product in this segment nor they don’t offer the spectrum of engine and gear combination (as required by the buyers).
Except for its own sibling Venue and Tata’s Nexon I don’t see any other compact SUV (crossover) to compete with Sonet. As quoted by other Bhpians in the thread, this shall easily top the segment. Well played Kia.

[Stribog]

Originally Posted by aniyo

I am not denying the help received from USA or the political situation.
We also received a lot of help from Russia during cold war. Also there are no free lunches. South Korea had to ally with USA.

Many countries have received support and have had fascist regime not all have progressed.
Sorry to say democracy in India was a farce and still is. We have very little choice to speak off.
We cannot blame our ineffencies on some other countries. We did not plan our manufacturing sector. In India since independence capitalist have received a lot of favour in the time of license Raj. Even today how many manufacturing startup we have.

Time were bad in south korea and they were bad in India as well. We failed they progressed.

We didn't get no strings attached assistance of the scale S Korea did, on a per capita level it was orders of magnitude more than what we received.

And you seem to think a brutal secret service controlled dictatorship is good, so I will drop this topic here.

[aniyo]

Originally Posted by Stribog

We didn't get no strings attached assistance of the scale S Korea did, on a per capita level it was orders of magnitude more than what we received.

And you seem to think a brutal secret service controlled dictatorship is good, so I will drop this topic here.

Nope I don't think dictatorship is good. See you have valid points on the help South Korea received. I am not disputing that. I am with you on importance of democracy and the bad time Koreans went through.
Also South Korea being a small and relatively homogeneous group is easier to manage.

All this still cannot take away the fact they have global brands. Bruni, Pakistan, NK many countries of Africa are all dictatorship. India too was run by Congress family for much of the first 40 years. None of us could achieve what South Korea could.
What I am talking is vision of the leaders and the commitment of the masses to improve. Both are lacking in our side. See only aid cannot help there has to be intent as well.
Till date indian capitalist borrow money from PSU with a aim not to repay. That's an open fact. Till 90s the best car we had was the M800. There is no harm in admitting we have faulted in many ways.

One thing stands out is Japan, China and South Korea have always focused on building thier home markets and competing with global companies. That's how they have developed. It is this zeal and passion we lack, always on an inferiority complex.

The same is reflected on our brands for a long time across products. We have to change this to compete globally.

[TS Rawat]

Originally Posted by turbo

On one hand, I really appreciate Kia for giving us the option of a Torque Converter Automatic transmission with a Diesel engine, but on the other, I do think it is kind of pointless, because the pricing for this puts in a spot where one would'nt (or shouldn't, for that matter) extend a little and get the Creta/Seltos, both of which are vastly superior in every way.

For people who hate the clutch paddle, the Diesel AT will be great for driving on the hills. I wish they had not reduced the engine power. If they can also give iMT with the diesel engine, I think it'll become the most preferred vehicle in its segment.