One of the most eagerly anticipated vehicles of the year, Kia Sonet, made its global debut today. The Sonet is Kia Motors India's third offering in the country after the Seltos and the Carnival. The youngest member of the compact SUV segment, Kia Sonet will go up against the likes of Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Hyundai Venue, and Tata Nexon.
We first saw Kia Sonet in the concept form at the Auto Expo 2020. While we were quite impressed with the Sonet concept, it must be added here that the production-ready Sonet looks equally awe-inspiring, if not more. That the 'Made-in-India' Kia Sonet will be exported to other countries is a piece of great news.
Talking about the exteriors of Kia Sonet, the new compact SUV's front is quite imposing. The signature 'tiger-nose' grille with a 3D 'stepwell' geometric mesh accords it a typical Kia look. There are projector headlamps with DRLs. The rear has LED tail-lamps connected by an LED light bar. Among the other features are black ORVMs, silver-finished roof rails, and dual-tone alloy wheels.
Like Kia Seltos and Kia Carnival, the all-new Kia Sonet is loaded to the gills when it comes to the cabin features. The most significant among them is the segment-best 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. The compact SUV also features steering wheel-mounted controls, digital instrument cluster, automatic climate control, ambient lighting, alloy pedals, keyless entry, push-button start/stop, rear AC vents, smart air purifier and sunroof. There are six airbags as well. Not to forget, there is also the UVO technology with as many as 57 connected features.
So far as the powertrain options are concerned, Kia Sonet has three -- Smartstream 1.2-litre petrol, 1.0-litre turbo-GDI petrol and 1.5-litre diesel. The transmission options include 5-speed MT, 6-speed MT, 6-speed iMT, 6-speed AT, and 7-speed DCT. We have already seen the iMT in Hyundai Venue.
The Kia Sonet launch in India will take place in September 2020. We have already reported that the Kia Sonet price in India is expected to be in the Rs 8 lakh (ex-showroom) to Rs 13 lakh (ex-showroom) range.