Second generation Seltos represents a massive departure from the original that has been on-sale since 2020.
All-new second generation Seltos has been approved for South Africa. Picture: Kia India
With the South African market launches of the Tasman and Carens over, Kia has confirmed its next arrival as being that of the all-new Seltos in early August.
Hints
Back in May, the brand confirmed a roll-out of five new models for South Africa in 2026, which started with the Tasman in April and then included the Carens the following month.
Announcing its plans on the sidelines of the Carens unveiling, it stated that the second quarter of the year would see the debut of a new crossover/SUV, it declined to name.
However, the dropping of subtle hints throughout the event effectively confirmed the newcomer as being the second-generation Seltos that made its world debut last December.
All-new
Supposed to have gone on sale in June, the new Seltos, known internally as SP3, rides on the new K3 platform and becomes the latest model styled in accordance with Kia’s latest Opposites United styling language.
Again coming to South Africa via the Anantapur plant in India rather than the main Gwangju facility in South Korea, the Seltos’ new underpinnings have resulted in the following dimensions:
- Length: 4 430 mm;
- Wheelbase: 2 690 mm;
- Width: 1 830 mm;
- Height: 1 600 mm
By comparison, the outgoing Seltos measured 65 mm shorter and 20 mm lower, while also being 30 mm narrower and 80 mm shorter on the wheelbase front.
Still with seating for five, the uptakes in dimensions have seen an improvement in boot space from 433-litres with the rear seats up, to 536-litres.
Inside
Not only derived from the Tasman, but also the electric EV range, the interior represents a dramatic departure from the original Seltos.
In addition to the retention of physical buttons and switchgear, the Seltos now comes with a pair of 12.3-inch displays, a new dashboard, gear lever moved to the steering column on certain automatic models, and a completely revised specification and safety spec sheet.
Powertrain
Up front, the South African model is likely to follow the Indian variant in being offered with both petrol and diesel engines.
As such, the Seltos will be powered by the 118kW/253Nm 1.5 T-GDI that debuted in the current facelift model two years ago, and the 1.5 CRDI shared with the Carens that punches out 85kW/250Nm.
The third option, most likely for entry-level variants only, is the normally aspirated 1.5-litre petrol that makes 85kW/144Nm.
Transmissions are set to include a six-speed manual or CVT on the latter, a six-speed manual or a six-speed torque converter automatic on the diesel, and a seven-speed dual-clutch on the T-GDI.
Wait almost over
As it stands, Kia hasn’t provided any hints of pricing or specification, however, expect the Seltos to come with a substantial price tag over the outgoing model.
At present, the Seltos range spans 10 derivatives priced from R379 995 for the base 1.5 LS manual to R625 995 for the dual-clutch 1.5 T-GDI GT-Line.
