KIA Motors Corporation is a South Korean company. KIA is a brand we’ve regretfully neglected for far too long and now need to remedy. We aim to fix that by focusing on the KIA Seltos.
This car is aimed at the up-and-coming, buying-their-second-car, younger market who’ve maybe just scored their second big promotion or career move, somewhere in their late 20s to early 30s.
We mentioned the Seltos is aimed at the younger market, and that’s reflected in its tech heaviness, such as a superior sound system by BOSE. More on that later.
If you’re a millennial looking for a car with attitude, you’ll find it here in two main layouts. For those urban warriors, a front-wheel drive. For you more adventurous lot, still doing things like the occasional beach party or bundu bashing for a nice spot to take a little trip to, there’s the all-wheel-drive configuration.
Keen on saving? You’ll get a six-speed manual. If you have more dosh to spend, get the six-speed automatic. But we personally like automatic driving in the major urban centres, what with stop-start traffic, so maybe this is the option for you. There’s even a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission to give you the advantages of automatic, but with some optional manual driving on the side.
Some things now about the vehicle itself. It comes with what are fast becoming motor industry standards: LED headlamps. The headlights that emit from them are quite striking and definitely useful in the streets of our cities where often streetlights are on strike. The back ones are also very bright and useful to keep you from being rear-ended unexpectantly. (Travel distances being harder to discern at night and all).
The wheels have crystal cut alloy on them. This certainly adds to the premium feel of the vehicle. You’ll look super stylish as you drive around town with these spinning around.
What’s really cool is you can set the mood with Ambient Mood Lighting – it’s basically lights that come from certain corners of the cabin. We particularly like the neon red. Great if you’re gearing up for a night at a club with your mates.
It has some other awesome tech too, like the Smart Head’s Up Display, which measures in at 8 inches. It’s a great HUD because it’s designed to be easy to glance at while driving – so you don’t get distracted. Most accidents happen because a driver is distracted for a second or more glancing about for info or to change the media input. And then suddenly something unexpected happens and it’s too late to react.
On the topic of media, the infotainment system is full high definition touchscreen and sits at a hefty 10.25 inches. As with all things Korean, it’s fully functional, with plenty of tech to play with, as far as cars go.
And on the topic of safety, the KIA is made of high-strength steel, so you’re kind of encased in armour should you have the bad luck of being in an accident. It’ll be worse for the other guy. Plus six airbags should absorb most of the impact you’d otherwise experience.
Finally, we mentioned BOSE, right? Well, the sound system is like a boss. As we alluded to, they’re a top-quality audio company and the speakers in the Seltos are specially designed to fit snuggly in the vehicle… giving you more reverb, and more pulse-pounding power in your playlist.
We personally think the KIA Seltos is perfect for the up-and-coming, trendsetter, modern-day jet-set. Those who like their weekends and even their day-to-day driving experience to be a party of a ride. So if that’s you, maybe it’s time to go Korean.