Took delivery of my Kia Seltos DCT: 10 observations post initial 300km

The petrol motor is fabulous. It is refined, pulls strongly.

BHPian ramneek009 recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Took delivery of my Seltos GTX+ DCT in white last Friday.

Seltos replaces our ageing Innova crysta 2.8 automatic which had covered 2.30 lakh kms in 6.5 years. While Innova was running really well, GRAP restrictions and 10 year diesel vehicle ban in NCR ensured it was staying parked for 30-45 days. We keep our cars for 6-7 years, so the replacement being a petrol car was a no brainer.

The only two cars that were considered were Creta N-line and Seltos. We already have a Verna in the house, and i hated that the driver side door controls were non illuminated. So, booked the Seltos after a long test drive with delivery promised within 15 days. Buying the car in December meant good year ending discounts. After a couple of negotiation rounds, managed to close the deal at 21.4 lacs for October 2024 manufactured car with corporate registration and 5 year extended warranty.

Delivery day was finalised after the downpayment. Asked the bank to clear the balance payment only when i give a go ahead after the second inspection on the delivery day.

Reached the showroom on time and during the inspection found deep scratches on the rear glass. Showed the scratches to the GM sales who was present at the showroom and he apologised for the problem and suggested to wait for a couple of days so that they could arrange another vehicle for delivery.

1 day later, a new car was arranged for delivery. The odometer read 8kms. Completed the PDI, fortunately everything was okay this time and the car was delivered as promised by the dealer.

As i am writing, the odometer reads 314kms.

Initial impressions:

• The petrol motor is fabulous. It is refined, pulls strongly.
• The DCT gearbox jerks a bit at lower speeds. Once it builds up speed, everything is smooth and quick. To tackle this, i put the car in eco mode whenever i am driving in the city.
• Brakes are setup nicely. Strong stopping power and good bite.
• Do not like the all black interior. I keep the panaromic roof blind open during the day to make things better but during the night, it feels gloomy and dark.
• Bose labelled sound system is medicore at best. I am still trying to adjust the settings to make it liveable, if not then will definitely upgrade the speakers.
• Rear space is good. I am 5'10 and can sit comfortably behind with driver's seat set for my driving pattern. i have around 3" of leg space between my knees and the seat.
• Its a crime to give electric seat adjustments and skip memory settings.
• My driving is 70% highway and 30% city. Fuel economy reads as 14.1 kmpl right now. Will be able to comment more on this once i have done couple of tank fulls.
• Headlights are very average. With winters in Delhi, i am dreading the visibility once it gets foggy here. Need to find a solution to this.
• Car came shod with JK Tyres from the factory. Might upgrade to better rubber next week.

That is it for now. Have a road trip to the hills coming in 2 days. Will get to know the car better in the next few days.

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