Kia Motors to start second shift at Anantapur plant to meet growing demand for Seltos: Details inside

Kia Seltos was launched in India on Wednesday with prices starting at Rs 9.69 lakh for the base petrol, going up to Rs 15.99 lakh (all prices, showroom) for the range-topping diesel. The automaker has so far received 32,035 bookings for Seltos. The current waiting period stands at about six to eight weeks for the Seltos. However, to curb down the waiting period and meet the growing demand, Kia Motors has planned to add a second shift at the Anantapur plant.

Manohar Bhat, VP - Marketing and Sales, Kia Motor India has himself confirmed the details on the growing demand for the Seltos SUV. Bhat has further confirmed that it won't stop bookings for the Seltos.

It is to be noted that Kia facility in Andhra Pradesh is spread over 536 acres and has an installed capacity of three lakh units per annum across three shifts. Currently, the carmaker has about 5,000 models ready that have been dispatched to dealers.

The automaker has set up 265 touchpoints in 160 cities that include 206 sales points. All these dealerships of Kia Motors feature Kia's internet of things (IOT) theme or the Kia link App. It means that digital purchase and after sales services will be available at all Kia dealerships. The Kia Link App will help scheduling a service appointment and the owners will be notified about an upcoming or service due reminder, to maintain the vehicle performance. The launch of the Seltos will be followed by with a new car from Kia Motors every six months, until 2021.

Kia Seltos is available in Tech Line and GT Line trims, each of which are offered in five variants - E, K, K+, X and X+. Kia Seltos is available in 16 variants. The Tech Line gets more premium appearance with a beige and black cabin with leather upholstery. On the other hand, the GT Line gives sportier look to the Seltos with an all-black cabin, black leather seats with red contrast stitching. The GT Line also gets sporty looking bumper.

Kia Seltos comes with BS VI compliant powertrain. The SUV comes with an option of 1.4 litre Turbo GDI petrol engine that produces 138 bhp and 242 Nm of peak torque. It is mated to a 6-speed manual and a 7-speed automatic transmission. The SUV comes a 1.5-litre diesel engine which churns out 113 bhp and 144 Nm of peak torque. It is mated to a 6-speed manual and an IVT (Intelligent continuously variable transmission) automatic transmission.

Also, Kia Seltos comes with a 1.5-litre VGT diesel that belts out 113 bhp and 250 Nm of torque. It is paired to a 6-speed manual and a 6-speed torque converter automatic transmission. The compact SUV is available in normal, eco and sports drive modes. It also gets different traction modes like Snow and Mud.

The mid-size SUV have the iconic tiger-nose grille with full LED headlamps on the front and vertically housed LED fog lamps. On the rear, the car will be equipped with LED taillights and dual exhaust pipes.

Along with 17-inch five-spoke dual-tone alloy wheels, the compact SUV comes equipped with roof rails and shark fin antenna. Inside the cabin, the new Kia Seltos features a 10.25-inch touchscreen audio video navigation system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility.

The compact SUV also gets features like 8-inch HUD (Heads Up Display), blind-spot view monitor, EPS (Electronic Power Steering), eco coating, three-spoke multifunction steering wheel and push-button start/stop. The compact SUV is available in eight monotone and five dual-tone colour options.

On the safety features front, the car carry multiple airbags, ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) with EBD (Electronic Brakeforce Distribution) and BA (Brake Assist), reverse parking sensors and camera, the compact SUV also gets VSM (Vehicle Stability Management), ESC (Electronic Stability Control), TCS (Traction Control System) and HAC (Hill-start Assist Control). There is a 360-degree camera as well.

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