New Delhi: All-new Kia Sonet subcompact SUV from the South Korean carmaker has finally made its global debut in India. It’s the second ‘made-in-India’ model from Kia in the country, following the Kia Seltos. The carmaker says that the Sonet “has a distinctive and dynamic design” along with several first-in-segment features.
The new Kia compact SUV carries a sporty design, which is apparent by the brand’s signature Tiger Nose grille with mesh in three-dimensional geometry. The crown jewel LED headlamps, ‘Heartbeat’ LED DRLs with integrated side turn indicators and ‘Heartbeat’ LED taillamps further mark a distinction to its portfolio. Some of its other interesting bits include alloy wheels, floating silver roof rails, ‘Turbo’ shaped front skid plates, sporty dual muffler design and diffuser fin rear skid plate, LED taillamps connected via a reflector garnish.
The GT Line trim looks sportier than the HT Line trim, thanks to its red accents on the front, black high glossy grille with GT Line logo and piano black diffuser fin skid plates with red accent.
Interior of the Kia Sonet has premium feel and appeal. One of its talking points is the dashboard integrated largest-in-segment 10.25-inch connected panel type HD touchscreen with infotainment system and navigation and live traffic information. The unit supports both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.
There is a 4.2-inch instrument cluster panel displaying multiple information (in different colours) including multi drive modes, navigation turn-by-turn, high line tyre pressure monitoring system and grip control.
For entertainment provision, the new Kia compact SUV offers a premium Bose 7-speaker audio system with sub-woofer. The Sonet is the first car in its segment to offer LED sound mood lamps. Other key highlights include smart pure air purifier with virus protection, front driver and passenger ventilated seats, remote engine start for automatic and manual gearbox via UVO and Smart key, OTA (Over-The-Air) map updates and smartphone wireless charger with cooling function. Read – Upcoming New Kia Cars In India
The Kia Sonet has been packed with several active and passive safety features including 6 airbags, electronic stability control, hill assist control, vehicle stability management, brake assist, anti-lock braking system with electronic brake-force distribution, front and rear parking sensors, Isofix child anchor, highline tyre pressure monitor, auto headlamps and projector fog lamps. One must note that the aforementioned safety features will vary variant-wise.
Engine options for the Kia Sonet will include – a 1.0-litre turbo-petrol, a 1.2-litre petrol and a 1.5-litre diesel. All three powertrains will be carried over from the Hyundai Venue. There will be multiple transmission choices including a 6-speed manual, a 6-speed automatic (for the diesel variant only), a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic (for turbo petrol variant only) and iMT (Intelligent Manual Transmission – for turbo-petrol variant only).
In the sub-4-metre SUV space, it will challenge dominance of the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza and Hyundai Venue. It will also face challenge from cars like Mahindra XUV300, Tata Nexon, Ford EcoSport and the upcoming Renault Kiger and Nissan Magnite.
In India, the Kia Sonet compact SUV will hit roads in the month of September. While its prices will be revealed in the next few weeks, it’s expected to cost from Rs 8 lakh for the entry-level petrol model to Rs 12 lakh for the fully-loaded diesel variant (all, ex-showroom).
