My Kia Seltos diesel automatic: 8,500km and second service update

As I have mentioned it in my earlier posts, the D AT combo wasn’t our first choice mainly due to the toned-down nature of the BS6 Ph2 engine, but after these many months and kms, it feels like a very balanced package offering performance, efficiency and reliability

BHPian Col Mehta recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Our Seltos has completed 8500 kms in under 5 months and the ownership experience has been brilliant so far. Since we have a ~2000 km work trip coming up, we decided to get the 2nd service done before completing 10k kms. Here are a few observations:

The car feels better with each drive. As I have mentioned it in my earlier posts, the D AT combo wasn’t our first choice mainly due to the toned-down nature of the BS6 Ph2 engine, but after these many months and kms, it feels like a very balanced package offering performance, efficiency and reliability. The initial torque delivery is perfect for all driving conditions and the TC gearbox is ever so smooth with no lag or jerkiness. It’s an equally capable car on open roads – pulls cleanly and the mid-range is very addictive in the Manual and Sport modes. The engine becomes vocal and starts losing steam post 4k RPM though, so there is no point in pushing it further. That’s the only time you wish the engine had more to offer – something our 1st gen Creta 1.6 D AT had. The car is holding up well with no rattles or squeaks, that’s another checkbox ticked. The plastic and other trims feel solid.

The service:

The service experience was decent. Booked an early appointment and we were attended to immediately upon arrival. Had no major issues to report, the job card was opened instantly, and the regular service was completed within an hour. The cleaning took another one hour or so. While I’m usually not happy with the SC’s cleaning effort, I thought they did a pretty good job this time and I would rate them 9 out of 10 for the overall work.

The engine oil grade:

Discussion with a senior technician:

Spoke with one of the senior technicians regarding BS6 diesel traits (DPF and oil dilution). Interestingly, he didn’t sound too concerned with oil dilution, mentioning that it’s a common phenomenon with BS6 diesels and as long as the oil doesn't go above the "B" level, there is no need to worry about it.

Going forward though, we want to change the engine oil every 5k kms keeping oil dilution in mind, however, he advised against it (I think we would still want to change it early for our mental peace).

Regarding DPF, the technician sounded confident that the phase 2 diesels with urea injection are well calibrated to manage potential DPF clogging and unless the car is driven only in city traffic for a long time, they don’t see many DPF issues anymore. I think it’s a good sign. With our driving pattern, which is 60:40 highway-city, we are confident keeping DPF clogging at bay. We also checked the soot mass level which showed 71%. The technician stated the passive regeneration happens only when the level goes above 100% and continues to bring it down to 0% (as long as the car is being driven continuously at the required RPMs). Never knew this. Any comments on this from our expert members will be highly appreciated.

We just love the sage green interior theme and almost everyone who has sat in the car has admired it too.

However, it's not a perfect car either as it comes with its own share of issues like less compliant ride quality due to a stiff suspension setup, and not super comfortable seats. That said, we are happy with the car overall and do look forward to driving it next.

Ending with a few random clicks:

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