Kia Motors, the South Korean auto major, on Thursday rolled out the production version of its first car for India, the Seltos, manufactured at its state-of-the-art facility in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh.
The company, further, announced the commencement of mass production of the Seltos after testing the vehicle over 20 lakh kilometers in different climatic conditions and some of the most challenging terrains, according to a press release.
The first Kia Seltos was rolled off the assembly line by Ambassador of the Republic of South Korea to India, Shin Bong-kil, and Kookhyun Shim, the Managing Director and CEO of Kia Motors India, among other dignitaries from the State Government.
Kookhyun Shim, the Managing Director and CEO of Kia Motors India, said, “The roll-out of the first Seltos is an emotional moment for all of us, especially for the people at the plant as we worked together.”
He thanked the state government for its co-operation in setting up the plant spread across 536 acres with an annual capacity of 3 lakh vehicles. He said, Kia had initiated the mass production of the Seltos in record time with an annual capacity of 300,000 vehicles. "This plant will also be capable of producing hybrid and electric vehicles," he added.
The Seltos will be launched on August 22 and bookings are being accepted across all Kia dealerships in 160 cities along with its official website. Since the commencement of pre-booking on July 16, it has already gathered record-breaking bookings of 23,311 within a span of 3 weeks.The deliveries will begin pan India from August 22.