Kia Seltos 6000 Km Update: Alibaug In The Summer

Our long-term Kia Seltos visits Alibaug on its first road trip

The Kia Seltos is one of the highest-selling SUVs in the market. Be it in terms of looks, features, space or performance, the SUV is impressive everywhere. Given its credentials, I was quick to call dibs on it when it arrived – at least for my weekend plans. We had the more sensible variant as well, the Turbo-petrol-DCT in the GT Line. And the Blue is one of my favourite shades as well. I had my childhood friend and his wife visiting me in Pune and they really wanted to visit Alibaug. And that meant my first few  kilometres with the Seltos were going to be on a road trip. 

Before we set out, I had a few concerns. In this spec, the Seltos comes with 18-inch alloy wheels which hurt the ride quality a bit. Apart from that, the 1.5-litre turbo-petrol is a peppy, but very thirsty engine. This could mean a fairly expensive road trip. However, the friends were quite excited by the Seltos. It looks good, packs in a good sound system, and useful features like ventilated seats, dual-zone climate control, and a panoramic sunroof which, for some strange reason, people get excited about. The boot was large enough to pack for 4 and we were ready to set off. 

As we got going, the comfortable seats and the features mentioned above only made the experience better. The rear passengers have the option to use the sunshade to block the heat and the front passengers have the extra cooling function of the ventilated seats. And while dual-zone climate control is not an essential feature, if you and your partner like different temperatures, or if the sunlight is falling from one side of the car, this feature too helps the convenience quite a bit. 

But the roads in and around Pune are quite bad these days. Add that to the 18-inch wheels of the Seltos and the experience started to take a hit. The suspension is unforgiving and if you go over a bad patch of road or even bad rumble strips without slowing, the passengers start to question your driving skills. The harshness is felt in the cabin and the side-to-side movement also tosses you around. The Seltos with these wheels really demands the roads to be perfect for you to enjoy it. Even on the highways, the areas which are not paved well will leave the passengers shaking in the cabin. This is really not expected from a family SUV, be it a sporty one. 

When it comes to mileage, I was surprisingly pleased. Given that I had to drive at a sedate pace for the passengers to remain comfortable and using the Normal drive mode, the Seltos returned around 14 kmpl which is very respectable. In the city it drops to 10 kmpl but is quick to climb on the highways. However, in crowded cities, the throttle input is a little strange. The initial input gives you very little acceleration and then there is a sudden burst of acceleration. This makes the bumper-to-bumper drives a bit jerky and even the acceleration for overtakes is a little too aggressive. And all of this in the normal drive mode and this sensation becomes worse in the Eco mode. The ‘throttle input to acceleration’ ratio needs to be more linear and the acceleration smoother. 

Another feature which I genuinely enjoyed on the trip was the remote engine start with the key. Given that the car gets very hot when parked in the sun, starting it with the key even a minute before setting off – like after a lunch break, post the ferry ride or when leaving the house – really helps in cooling the car. And the difference is huge. Plus, post starting the car with the key, you can simply unlock the car, put it in drive and drive off without any additional step. Nice. 

While I was very eager to drive the Seltos, it now has left me with mixed feelings for a road trip. The ride comfort remains the major concern with the 18-inch wheels while the mileage, its cabin features and quality remain a strong point in its favour. 

Km done: 6,200 km

Kms when received: 4,000km

Pros: Cabin Quality, useful features, engine performance

Cons: Ride comfort, drivability in traffic