[noopster]

Prologue:

One day during the Great Pandemic of 2020, a realisation dawned in the noopster household that we hadn't bought a new car in over 10 years.

Now that's a long time for a petrolhead. And it's not like we hadn't been shopping around since whenever . But somehow nothing felt right.

The Vento was our last purchase and is now pushing 135k, despite me being away more than a year in Middle Earth, where the only cars we drove were rental Toyotas and the occasional ride borrowed from friends. Even after returning to the homeland, all of 2019 we were kept occupied with family health issues and some role realignment at work. And then Covid-19 hit!

I mean who buys cars during a pandemic huh? But the one good thing about the scourge that ruined last year was that it put a lid on discretionary spending. As they say, money saved is money earned. So by the time the festive season was upon us, we started seriously considering an addition to the garage.

Mind you, one important factor in all this was the fact that my trusty old Swift turns 15 come April 2021. While it certainly doesn't show its age, the sheer thought of approaching the Pune RTO for a certificate of fitness for another 5 years was giving us the heebie jeebies. After some somber conversations, we decided to part with it.

Things moved quickly after that and, just as winter set in, we had our own black Kia Seltos!



As I type this, the car has completed 1900 km in just under 6 weeks, including one long trip to Goa accounting for about half of the miles crunched. The mandatory 1 month/1000 km service revealed nothing untoward. It's probably a good time to take stock of how I feel about this vehicle.

What I Like:

• 1.5 L turbo-diesel engine making 115 ps is smooth, with minimal NVH and the ability to pull at will
• 6-speed torque converter AT is pretty responsive. I thought I'd miss the DCT (available only on the 1.4 turbo petrol that makes 140 ps) but the shifts are smooth and it rarely hunts for the right gear
• The "newfangled" features that I thought I'd hate...well, turns out once you start using them, you quite get used to them! This includes the blind spot camera for turning (wonderful!), the 360 degree camera & front sensors (a boon in tight parking situations) and the HUD (utterly, totally needless but kinda fun to use, especially with the navigation projected).
• Black interiors are elegant and understated. The piano black is used discreetly and to good effect which is a better look than have it splashed across and act as a fingerprint magnet.
• TPMS is pretty nifty- am not that good at assessing tyre pressure by eye. Stock Goodyears seem more than adequate.
• Ventilated seats are an absolute boon in hot climates like ours. The Goa trip was a good test. On those sticky afternoons with the sun streaming in, nothing feels nicer than having you and your co-passenger have their bums nicely cooled .
• High seating position with a full view of the bonnet is how I prefer it.

What I Don't:

• That sunroof really is tiny
• Seat backs are rock hard thanks to the ventilated seats. Am always terrified of someone cracking a jaw in case of sudden braking.
• TPMS low pressure indicator doesn't automatically and instantly reset after topping up. Takes some time and in some cases, needs to be reset at the service centre.
• This is a softroader at best so the drive modes (snow, sand etc) feel like a complete waste. Would also have preferred a Sport mode on the gearbox rather than a separate drive mode accessed through a hard-to-manage dial on the dashboard.
• No gear indicators in D mode either. Am spoiled by the Vento showing D1, D2,...D6.
• Cruise control, which I use a lot abroad, is virtually unusable on Indian roads.
• The mandatory continuous beep-beep after 120 kph is annoying as hell. But perhaps it's supposed to be!
• GNCAP rating of 3 is just shocking! And the incidents of brake fade and engine mounts falling off on the Hyundais & Kias don't inspire confidence.

Overall verdict: No rugrats!

[noopster]

What Car?

How much to spend on a new car has always been a simple decision for me in the past. This time it was rather more complex. Having reached that stage of life where both expectations and expenses have skyrocketed, it had to be something nice yet not break the bank. That's easier said than done!

At first, we toyed with the Big 3 German brands. It seemed like a natural progression from the VW, honestly. But luxury car pricing has gone- pardon my French- apeshit in the past decade or so. We have an X1 in the family already but my own heart yearned for something like the 3GT. At the last Mumbai-Pune mega meet at Sunny da Dhaba I grilled Axe77 about his, to the point he probably thought I was going to steal it from under his nose. Came back all excited and even discussed with the_skyliner who had just traded in his 3-year old 320d with one himself. But the price was pushing 60 big ones and about 3x what I wanted to spend. So out went the Big 3.

Next came the 7-seater SUVs: Ford Endeavour or Toyota Fortuner. I've always fancied myself in a big butch beast on the road and this seemed like the perfect opportunity. But with the advent of BS6, Ford retired that lipsmacking 3.2 in favour of a 2.0. No replacement for displacement right? The used market beckoned and I even test drove an impeccable black 3.2 but the dealer was demanding 32L, which I thought a bit much for a car that was already more than a year old with 30K on the odo. And the middle-class me in me howled in silent protest at the thought of spending that much money for a used car. I offered 29L which the dealer dismissed as expected. Never looked back after that.

That left the sedans and crossovers. We had already decided to retain the Vento so I was leaning towards the latter. It helped that every crossover in India (and even some pretender subcompact hatchbacks are marketed as as "SUV", so selling it to the family was a breeze. The budget was decided at 15-25L, on-road in Pune, lower the better. It had to be an automatic. The kids wanted a sunroof, although they had been strictly warned that any head-poking in a moving vehicle would not be permitted! I was neutral on fuel choice but leaning towards turbocharged engines- a decade driving a couple of NA petrols had left me thirsty for more. Talking of which, it would be nice to see double digits on the average FE column of the MID now and then, so a diesel was probably be a nose ahead.

I was fine with Indian, Japanese, Korean and even Chinese manufacturers but then Wuhan happened and out went MG (pity- I quite like the Hector otherwise). Honestly when you think about it, there still isn't that much choice in this segment and budget.

The Contenders:

Hyundai Creta: I owned a Hyundai once, my first self-bought car and the ownership experience was extremely pleasant. Plus I like the first generation Creta for its looks, interiors and high-seating position (vis-a-vis sedans). 2020 brought the next generation which turned off a lot of people who dismissed it as ugly but truth be told I could live with its looks. The Hyundai showroom is right behind my home and we did a couple of TDs here, one on the CVT petrol and the other on the diesel AT.

Kia Seltos: This was a no-brainer. Essentially the same car as the Creta with a slightly stiffer suspension, significantly better classic looks and, on the top end, a rather ordinary-sized sunroof and some features like 360 degree camera, blind spot turning assist and HUD that I promptly dismissed as "newfangled" and purely put in there as cheap substitutes for the magnificence of the Creta's sunroof (more on this later!)

Tata Harrier AT: This was a clear 3L above the Korean siblings, which were almost neck and neck at around 21L on the road. Truth be told I would not be averse to spending the additional amount purely for the looks and presence of the Harrier. And the AT variant, launched a full year after the niggle-prone manual, was clearly the better thought-out option. That creamy 2L Fiat engine mated to the Hyundai 6-speed slushbox truly appealed to my heart. The black edition was a stunner but even the chocolate brown interiors on a white Harrier was fine with me. But compared to the other cars in contention there was little in terms of gizmos on offer, the dealer experience was lukewarm and in the end, horror stories of Tata owners are not easily forgotten. So this slipped back quietly in the rankings.

Kia Sonet: We weren't really shopping in the sub-4m category but on our first visit to the Kia showroom, the SA offered us a TD on "shorty" while waiting our turn for big brother. The variant was the 1.5L turbo diesel AT in GT line trim. Essentially the same engine as the top end diesel Seltos but in a car that's shorter and lighter. Man what a ride! I was totally hooked on the Sonet after the TD and the fact that it about 5-6L cheaper almost converted me. But in the end we decided to stick to the elder sibling. I still recommend this car (and variant) very highly to anyone interested (friend and member subodh has already booked one).

Test Drive Experiences:

Since all this was during the pandemic, we were a bit apprehensive but the test drives went off pretty smoothly. It was actually pretty shocking to see the crowds thronging the showrooms as if nothing was happening. We booked all our test drives in advance and stayed masked, at least 6 feet clear of anyone else.

First to get tested were the Korean siblings. Both Hyundai and Kia have their showrooms just off NH4, which makes taking a quick yet longish test drive quite easy. One Saturday we arrived at the Hyundai showroom to TD the new Creta. I don't really mind the looks but feel Hyundai have definitely gone overboard and messed up the vibe of the original Creta, which was simply beautiful. The display vehicle was a black diesel AT in SX(O) trim but the demo vehicle was an SX without the sunroof. It had white interiors (I noticed they were already beginning to get soiled). The head unit integration wasn't that great and I felt the top of the dashboard impeded my driving view a bit. I may have been imagining it but the engine note felt a bit rough quite some engine noise seeping into the cabin. The ride was much bumpier than expected (having being told by knowledgeable friends that the Creta is softer sprung than the Seltos) but that was easily enough explained by the fact that the dealership had inflated the tyres to 45 PSI each

We went back later (for an exclusive sunroof preview with the kids) and got to drive the NA petrol 1.5 mated to the CVT as well (Hyundai calls it the IVT). The engine and gearbox are competent but no match for the diesel AT. The dealer experience (Kundan Hyundai, Bavdhan) was strictly OK- the SA was trying his best but clearly had his limitations. To his credit he did call me back a few times till I finally told him the decision was made. New car, no discounts offered though they were quite happy for me to get the insurance done elsewhere.

Next stop was the Crystal Kia showroom at the Sus-Pashan exit and we were welcomed warmly by Shree, our designated Sales Advisor, and several cups of coffee and baby bottles of water. There was a 45-minute wait since the diesel AT was out with another customer but we made the most of our wait time by taking a TD on the almost-identical spec Sonet (it loses out the 360 degree camera, HUD and blind spot turning camera, plus the rear seats don't split and some other minor stuff). The Seltos TD followed shortly. The TD car was pretty decently maintained despite being over a year old. I liked the overall look and feel, especially the nicely integrated 10.2" head unit with the dashboard. NVH was surprisingly low and the car drove and felt a lot like the petrol cars I am used to. Of all the party tricks on offer, the ventilated seats were the ones I wanted to test the most...and they delivered! The sunroof was a disappointment as expected. It's a simple one-touch operated roof with a hand-operated fabric cover but barely covers the front seat. The Creta wins hands-down in this respect, although the buttons and switches to operate its panoramic sunroof need a manual of their own!

We were clearly leaning towards the Creta at this point and Shree sensed this. To his credit he was quite sanguine about this and didn't try to oversell.

The Tata TD experience was weird. I had booked a slot to TD the Harrier AT for Saturday 4 pm but when I called them on the day, was told that there was a lot of crowd at the showroom and I should drop in the next day at 11 am. We did that, only to be told that TD vehicles are shared and the vehicle was not available on Sundays. Disappointed, we settled for a walking tour of the display vehicles. The Black Edition was on display as well and I found it stunning, though not quite sure it deserves a premium. On-road price for the white top-end diesel was around 24 big ones. The SA took my details and promised to send the car home for a TD on a weekday. But strangely he never called! By then the decision was pretty much made so I didn't press the matter.

The final run down the straight:

As I said before, the Creta's panoramic sunroof was the one factor that set it apart. It is massive and offers a level of airiness and freedom that is unmatched. We test drove it and were hooked. Then we test drove the Seltos ...and that felt strangely better! No, no- that can't be right, we told ourselves. After all the Creta is softer sprung than the Seltos, the white interiors are so elegant and THAT SUNROOF MY GOD!!! But the fact that we were still thinking about this made us wary.

A solution was finally reached- let's take the kids along on the next test drive. As it happened our TD slot was at noon on a balmy September day. The sunroof on the IVT variant felt like a greenhouse, with us getting slow cooked inside. About 2 minutes in, one of the kids whined for it to be shut. This couldn't be happening!

The IVT we drove had its tyre pressures at a more reasonable level (around 35 psi) so the ride was nice this time around. But I preferred the stiffer ride of the Seltos for some reason. Checked with the backseat occupants and they shrugged their indifference. And the all-black interiors on the Seltos GT line had grown on me by now. We came back even more confused after that afternoon TD and immediately called up Crystal Kia to ask for another test drive of the Seltos. They brought one over the same evening. Under a moonlit sky, the size of the sunroof suddenly seemed not to matter anymore. The elder one piped up that this was her favourite. She and my wife immediately started arguing over the colour. And I was more relieved than anything that the decision was finally made!

We were buying a Kia Seltos.

[noopster]

The Booking & Delivery Experience

Colour Colour...

When we got the Vento, white was kinda sorta my choice- we had booked a Terra Beige but production of that shade was delayed and we were given a choice between this and the silver. No brainer. This time around I wanted the silver. The Kia sports a slightly darker shade (akin to VW's silver leaf which was available on the old Jetta IIRC). And there is no doubt in my mind that dings, dents and dust show least on a silver car.

But the choice was out of my hands. My daughter wanted the red. In all fairness, it's a nice colour and the first TD car we drove was the same shade. The GTX+ variant that we'd zeroed in on had red highlights that blended rather well with this shade and stood out (some argue like sore thumbs) on the other colours. But my wife vetoed the red: it was way too common, was her refrain. She wanted the black herself. And absolutely HATED the silver.

So the decision was made. Black it was. Aurora Black Pearl, said a beaming Shree.

Petrol vs diesel: Priced almost the same on the road, the final choice boiled down to a more reliable gearbox (the petrol gets the 7-speed DCT, of questionable reliability) and pure economics (better FE and the price difference per litre is still about 10 bucks). It's all BS6 anyway now!

Price:
The 1.5 diesel AT is 17.34L ex-showroom and just over 21L on the road. There were no discounts on offer at all. And Kia doesn't even offer a foot mat free, which is just not done! I did not opt for the "accessories pack" priced at 13K but did go for the 5 year unlimited miles warranty at around 22K (standard warranty is 3 years, unlimited miles). The only scope for any price reduction was getting the insurance done externally. I got a quote from Royal Sundaram from my regular insurance agent and saved around 17K.

We booked the car on Sep 25th, a day after that moonlit test drive. Shree came over with the paperwork and collected a cheque for the booking amount of 25K. He also offered to get the Swift evaluated and eventually offered a decent 85K for it, which we took up. Our booking form specified delivery in 30-45 days, the optimistic end of that assessment falling plum on Dassera day. Eventually it was exactly 60 days of waiting, the delay precipitated no doubt by the Sonet's wild success at launch.

The VIN was assigned on 17th November. A quick check on our VIN decoding thread revealed that the car was manufactured on 31st October. I had already discussed with my ICICI Bank RM about getting a 5-year car loan at 7.8% and it was already approved. Made the balance payment online and waited for the vehicle to get registered.

The car arrived at the stockyard shortly after and we went down and got our first look at our new car. Did a quick PDI since the stockyard was quite close to home. The car was mint with hardly 15 km on the odometer.








Finally D-day dawned:
The week long wait between the VIN arriving and registration seemed interminable. The dealer then sent a final quotation which I forwarded to my bank RM as well as my insurance agent. These days all this happens over Whatsapp and it was easy as pie.

On the 24th, we got word that the registration had come through. I received an SMS confirming this and was even able to download the RC on Digilocker. The physical RC card was to arrive later (it got here just two days ago as I type this). The next day, around 2 pm we landed up at the showroom:






Accessories:
Stuck to the basics since the GTX Plus is pretty well-loaded. 5D floor mats, a boot mat, a ROAV dashcam, ceramic coating and a little Ganapati idol to keep us safe Nothing from the dealership, everything we got was from the friendly neighbourhood accessories guy.

[noopster]

The Driving Experience

I have been working from home since March so the new car's daily usage remains limited. Once things return to some semblance of normal, my daily commute will account for ~40 km a day. But some things became very obvious the day I drove the Seltos home. Here they are, in no particular order:

Choice of Engine: vindicated! For a diesel, the 1.5 litre turbocharged unit in the Seltos is pretty noiseless. I noticed recently that the bonnet doesn't have any fabric cladding which surprised me. I haven't driven the 1.4 Turbo petrol mated to the 7DCT, which I am told has a much better response, but to be honest I don't miss anything here and am spared any potential dual-clutch issues.

Getting in & about:Mine has the keyless enter and go, which is really convenient. Pro hack: if you need to switch on the engine from the passenger seat and can't depress the clutch (mandatory) just long-press the engine start/stop button and the car will crank in 10 seconds. The key fob itself is quite similar to the one of my VW, though I really miss the ability to roll my windows up and down remotely. Kia allows you to switch on the engine and AC remotely, but I've yet to figure out how!

The lock-unlock action is by default linked to the horn (2 blasts for unlocking, 1 for lock). I find it annoying as hell and had got this feature disabled at my Vento's first service. Thankfully, Kia allows you to silence the lock/unlock yourself: just long-press both buttons simultaneously and it will activate in about 4 seconds. The hazard lights flash to indicate the deed is done.

In-Car Entertainment: To use Apple Car Play or Android Auto, you have to connect the phone using the USB connector. There is another handy USB charging port provided in front (plus one at the back) and a wireless charging pad as well. Wireless charging works fine on my iPhone 12 mini. It's pretty slow but useful in those dying battery situations. Bluetooth connectivity is pretty intuitive to use and we have 2-3 phones usually connected at a time (one has to be the primary at any given point, so you need to disconnect the one currently connected to switch to a new one). Track selection is easy enough on the 10.2" screen, which itself can be split to show multiple functions (I have configured navigation, media and compass on mine). Early on I experienced an intermittent issue where the phone would suddenly disconnect and attempt to reconnect mid-drive, eventually, it went away (how I have no idea!)

Bose Sound: This is on the features offered by Kia that has really caught the public's fancy: nearly everyone who sits in my car comments on it. It's not bad but nothing to write home about either. I listen mostly to 80s rock and find the overall SQ not as great as my Vento's custom setup. Bollywood staples and teen-pop that the family fancies sounds a bit better.

Driving position & controls: Am used to a low-slung sedan for nearly a decade so the transition is stark. Truth be told, I am really enjoying the high seating position which affords a much nicer view of the road. I like that the bonnet is clearly visible while driving. The windshield is huge and the A-pillars don't impede the view much. IRVM is adequate.

Everything is within easy reach and the stalk alignment is RHD, which I prefer (though it did mean some inadvertent wiper-activation in the early days of migrating from the Vento!) The central armrest is not great to be honest and the storage is shaped oddly, e.g. if I pop a spectacle case in there I have to really squash it in or the top won't close. Sunglasses holder feels premium to the touch.

Sunroof operation is one-touch and simple. The fabric cover needs to be moved manually if you want to use only the moonroof (ideal in Indian climes). This can be reached from the rear seat as well. The sunroof is small even by non-panoramic standards- barely covers the front occupants- and I fear Kia are missing a trick in this department.

Dashboard plastics are top-notch, though not everything is soft to the touch. All-black interiors look stunning: the discreet use of piano black adds to the premium-ness. Stalks are nicely designed and produce satisfying clicks. The gear lever is perfectly positioned and slots well.

City Driving:
The length (about the same as my Vento) is manageable in the city. Parking is made much easier with the FPS/camera setup enabling you to get as close to a wall as you possibly can. I have basement parking with a bunch of impeding pillars and this really helps. I shot this video of myself parking as a demo:

https://youtu.be/EzfBs4NJ2kg

This was the final parked position:


Some pics of the car:



Our recent Goa trip allowed us to take some more pictures in nicer surroundings!











The Long Drive Experience:
I was looking forward to Christmas break so that I could take the Seltos out for the long drive she craved! An almost-last minute plan to Goa made that possible. We covered nearly 1100 km achieving an FE of around 16 kmpl. I tanked up after 640 km, just when the low fuel indicator came on. We were always 5 in the car, sometimes 6 if an extra kid popped in, and nobody complained. The AC worked well, though December is not the best time to test it.

This is a car that suited to long driving and we were able to cruise effortlessly at 80+ for long hours without feeling fatigued. My wife took over on the return journey (she did Mapusa-Sawantwadi-Amboli and then I took over the rest of the way). She enjoyed the drive as well. Gear shifts are smooth and barely perceptible. In Sport mode, you can rev more and the shifts are late, but we mostly stuck to Comfort mode. Eco mode is yet to be tested!

Luggage space is more than adequate- we had our family's luggage in there plus space for half of another family's as well. The 17" Goodyear Assurance that came with the car are quite usable and I intend to stay with them for now. I inflated them to 35 psi all around for the trip which is a tad bumpy. In the city, 33 psi works well. Anything 29 and below and the TPMS kicks in.

There is an annoying bug (feature?) on the TPMS when the low-pressure indicator only vanishes after you top it up to 35 or above. In some cases, it even needs to be taken to the ASS to be reset before the error message vanishes. In the pic above you can clearly see all 4 tyres displaying 31 psi but only the rear left tyre showing the low-pressure error.

The roads were pretty good throughout except for a small patch of around 5 km on the Sawantwadi bypass where the ride truly felt bumpy, but the car otherwise absorbed whatever the road threw up with little fuss. Most of the time on the highway we were in the 70-110 k speed zone, very rarely exceeding 120 k. The continuous beep beep after 120k is truly annoying and a good deterrent, which is probably as the government intended!

Overtaking is a breeze, with the 6-speed torque convertor keeping up quite well and delivering power when it matters. The only situation it struggled a bit is when I had to suddenly slow down and then pick up speed again. Ghat driving experience is adequate, though I would rate a low-slung sedan much higher! Nobody experienced any nausea in the rear seat, which is always a good thing!


Washy Washy:

I had the car professionally cleaned after we returned at a neighbourhood car wash place (Bakare near Chandani Chowk). Quite satisfied at the result:











My car completed a month's ownership on Christmas day, the eve of when we were leaving for Goa. It had barely completed 800 km by then. The first free service was due at 1 month/1000 km, which is pretty much a check-up and washing kind of deal (there is another at 6 months/5000 km as well). I called up Kia and explained to them that I would drop the car in after my trip so the odo reading would be around 2000 then. They were cool with it.


First mandatory free servicing (1 month/ 1000 km)
My appointment was on the 2nd of January initially but I was busy there and called them to reschedule. It was a bit annoying when the service scheduler couldn't find my original appointment in the system but she did take a new one for the 5th as requested. I was told to get there at 10:30 am and that it would take 2-3 hours. It was uneventful.




Other Points:

• There are a couple of dings and scratches acquired on the Goa trip that are heartbreaking to see on a shiny new black car. My advice to any potential buyers: stick to the silver or white!
• Ingress-egress is pretty easy, even for older people, thanks to the 3-stop action and the fact that the door opens quite wide. My parents don't go out much these days but gave it a thumbs up
• I got my car in 60 days (against the promised 30-45) but have heard that those who booked in October and later are facing even longer delays. Part of this can be attributed to the success of the Sonet. But car manufacturers really need to get their act together and manage their demand better.
• Small but Annoying point: Kia has slapped a bunch of stickers on the rear window and B-pillar. What is it with Koreans and intrusive stickers (check a new Samsung phone to know what I mean!) Will get them taken off the next time I get it professionally cleaned.
• If you want exclusivity, this car is NOT for you! You can see a Seltos just about everywhere these days. A Harrier on the other hand...
• I haven't touched upon the UVO app in my review. It allows you to monitor the car's movements with scary precision. Am not really sure that's a good thing necessarily, though I suppose it's a useful feature in case of theft or an accident!

Parting shot: the updated garage:

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Reviews section. Thanks for sharing!

Congrats on the Kia Seltos, man! You got my favourite engine + gearbox combination - the tuning is just brilliant. Knowing how well you take care of your cars (I remember driving your immaculate Swift), am sure she will serve you well.

Will go to our homepage this weekend .

[ajaiD]

I have a small question, I don't mean to be disrespectful about your choice but you being you how did the 3 star crash score affect your purchase.

I have been recently downgraded forcefully from compass to seltos since buying the seltos was my idea for my younger brother. Just want to know where that safety aspect fits for new buyers.

[Axe77]

Congrats Noopster. Loved reading your ownership thread, specially since that is clear the engine / gearbox combo of choice. I am constantly in an out of Pune (Baner, and within that area incidentally just a stone’s throw from the Baner Kia showroom) - we should try and meet up the next time I am there. My own GT is now 5+ years old and I have been toying with the idea of adding a second car as well from the Creta (+/-) segment - that exact 15 - 25 lakh range. All the options you mentioned have crossed my mind.

Which part of Pune do you stay at please? I guess not far from Chandni Chowk since you did your car wash there on your return?

Wish you many happy miles with the Seltos and hope to see you sometime in Pune with your new ride.

[Vid6639]

Congrats Noops on the Kia Seltos. It is a nice upgrade from the old Swift. Now you need another car to upgrade from Vento soon.

Originally Posted by GTO

Congrats on the Kia Seltos, man! You got my favourite engine + gearbox combination - the tuning is just brilliant.

Thankfully he paid heed to my advice. He was going to go for the 1.4L 7DCT. Better sense prevailed and he was convinced to change to diesel AT. I told him Bs6 diesel complications is a lower risk than the 7DCT.

Only thing is that black is a pain to maintain and the Ceramic coating is a waste of money vs a decent PPF.

[abhi_tjet]

Congratulations noopster for the Seltos. Further for choosing the best trim selection which will please heart as well as wallet. A well laid out and crisp review.

PS - The service center seems the one which erstwhile belonged to FIAT(Pandit Auto and before that Tata).

Wishing you a lots of happy miles!

[ramnaresh_2000]

Wow your Seltos looks dashing, congratulations on your new purchase. Damn 15 years is a long time, I recently sold my 3.5 years TUV, that is the longest I had a 4 wheeler. I do have a 2002 Pulsar 150, but I have not used it from last 5 years and it's collecting dust.

Black looks hot on any SUV, even my old vehicle was black. I can relate to your pain of maintaining the black vehicle. I would suggest fully body PPF for easy maintenance or Ceramic coating, if not interested in both a detailing session every 6 months to 1 year should do the job. The swirl marks and minor dents on black vehicle are more magnified compared to other colors.

Your parking spot gave me a mini heart attack. If you cannot change the parking location, I would suggest getting some foam padding on those pillars.

Best of luck and happy riding.

[guyfrmblr]

Wonderful review and congratulations on your new car. The black color looks dashing on Seltos.

Originally Posted by noopster

There is an annoying bug (feature?) on the TPMS when the low-pressure indicator only vanishes after you top it up to 35 or above.

TPMS in my previous Civic exhibited similar behavior. I had to always top it up to the company recommended pressure and drive few miles after topping up for the warning to disappear.

[Hayek]

Congrats Anoop, what a wonderful review. Will be replacing the Vento shortly and the Seltos was at the top of my list until the GNCAP results came out. Of course, none of its competitors have been tested as yet - and I may use that as an excuse to stick to the Seltos. What’s your driving cycle going to be like - does the 40 km (to / to and fro) office include highway stretches or is it largely crawl mode traffic. The reason I ask is the problems people faced with DPFs for cars that are largely driven in urban conditions. Though of course, frequent Goa drives or Mumbai expressway runs would take care of that.

Best wishes and hope you have a great ownership experience.

[Sreesh1009]

Congratulations Noopster!
Car looks elegant in the Black Shade. Have you planned on getting PPF done on it to retain the paint quality?
Also, do you have plans on getting the speed chimes removed?
Wishing you and your family lakhs of joyous miles with this car!


Off topic : I see a lot of people commenting about the safety, crash results, Kia's quality issues etc. Can we please leave these things out while congratulating Noopster. I'm pretty sure he knows about all of this. Let's not ruin his experience. Thank you

[mankuthimma]

Congrats noopster ! Wishing you many years+kms of safe and proud ownership of this beauty !

I can relate to every bit of your decision making process and ownership experience of Seltos. I too was in the same boat - looking for an upgrade from a 13 yr old trustworthy Swift, Creta vs Seltos, IVT vs DCT vs AT, silver vs rest of the colors and to top it all, the uncertainty of pandemic situation. At one point, I even wrote to the team-bhp mods directly asking which was a good compromise between IVT, DCT and AT. Even though I was not a member then, they graciously responded to my email and that laid rest to all the if's and but's running in my mind. Looking back it was a fun, roller-coaster, swaying experience zeroing on the GTX+ D-AT with reliability of AT and the additional safety features as the major decision factors.

I too share your observations - black interiors are sporty and classy, D-AT runs as smooth as a petrol with added advantage of higher fuel efficiency. HIghway runs are more fun! Infact my friends/family members who drove the car assumed it to be a petrol car until I told them it is a diesel one and they couldnt believe it!
I like the tight suspension and the back seat occupants dont find it uncomfortable. Infact it has smoothened after 6 months now. The so called gizmos - blind view monitor, 360 degree camera, front parking sensors, ventilated seats, HUD, they serve their purpose well, one has to experience the convenience they provide.

Lastly, for all the noise around safety rating, it doesnt bother me much. It would have been a nice bragging factor though. But I still believe in my SA's humble words during one of the test drive - "if you drive safely, why worry about safety features saar??"!!

[superguy282]

Congratulations Noopster! Wishing you a tons of fun miles with car We too are considering the Seltos IVT variant. Let's see where that leads.

Originally Posted by mankuthimma

Lastly, for all the noise around safety rating, it doesnt bother me much. It would have been a nice bragging factor though. But I still believe in my SA's humble words during one of the test drive - "if you drive safely, why worry about safety features saar??"!!

While I agree that the Seltos is a very well rounded package, and everyone may not require/care about all out safety, I must disagree with your SA's words. If only it were that simple. There are tons of other road users that possess a threat to you whether you drive like a hooligan or a nanny. Which is why Safety should be taken seriously. Brushing of safety features in this manner just isn't done!