Kia Sonet India Global Debut: What’s So Special About the Venue-rival?

The compact SUV from Kia will sport petrol and diesel engine choices with diesel AT in the pipeline and receives three transmission choices in the form of MT, AT and iMT.

Most anticipated compact SUV, Kia Sonet was unveiled in India for the global markets recently. It will be the third product from Kia Motors after the Kia Seltos and Kia Carnival in the country. Be it engine options, style or features, it has been in the news for all the right reasons.

With the production ready global unveiling of the Kia Sonet, it’s set to make way tough for the favorite sub 4-metre SUVs like the Hyundai Venue, Tata Nexon and Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza. Expected to come in the price bracket of Rs 7- 12 lakh (ex-showroom), Sonet will hit showrooms in late August.

With unique elements such as clutch-less transmission and outstanding connectivity features, will Sonet make an impact? Let’s check out some of the tempting details:

Exterior Design & Inspiration

The mini-SUV sees ideal blend of power, compact size, and convenience. Alongside, features hefty wheel arches and blacked out c-pillars to re-ignite the rugged and sporty charm. At front there is the innovative looking eye line for the DRLs, while the front grille is inspired by the ‘tiger nose’. All in all the design feels fresh and contemporary, and will definitely appeal to the young buyers.

[widget id=”custom_html-19″]

Interior & Feature Highlights

Kia Sonet’s cabin is expected to have ample room for the five occupants. However, it’s the exclusive list of features that will make life easy for the passengers inside. Some of them include a big 10.25-inch HD touch display infotainment system NAV and live traffic, ventilated driver and front-passenger seats, LED sound mood lighting, air purifier with virus protection, 7-speaker BOSE audio system with sub-woofer, remote engine start for AT and MT via UVO Connect and Smart Key, wireless smart-phone charger, electric sunroof, 55+ UVO connected features, a smart watch for remote functions and OTA map updates.

UVO Connect

The much talked about UVO Connect feature lets you stay connected for convenience with more than 57 features that include remote control, navigation, vehicle management, safety, security etc. Kia’s UVO Voice Assist function that prompts ‘Hello Kia’ at the beginning is basically an AI-powered voice-recognition system that lets you operate multiple features like phone calls, weather information, time and date, Indian holiday information, media control, navigation control, climate control, and even finding out the latest cricket scores, etc.

And a segment and industry-first driver window up or down function through voice command. Owing to the ‘connected car’ USP, Kia today has 50,000 active ‘connected’ cars on the road – only car brand to achieve this feat till now.

New Manual Transmission (iMT)

Dubbed as Intelligent Manual Transmission, the iMT comes as a clutch-less transmission gearbox in the Kia Sonet. It’s offered as an optional gearbox. On the operating front, the iMT is same as a manual gearbox needing driver to shift gears with the help of a gear stick but does not consist of a clutch pedal. This two-pedal drive functionality allows full control of the gears to the driver. Hyundai recently introduced it in the Venue.

Engine, Specs & GT Line

The Sonet compact SUV will come with three engine choices namely 1.2L petrol, 1.5L diesel and a powerful 1.0L turbo petrol engine. Variety in the gearbox choices comprise of 5-speed MT, a 6-speed MT, a 6-speed AT, a 7-speed DCT, and the new -speed iMT.

Moreover, the Kia Sonet GT Line will don red accents on the outside and ‘GT Line’ insignia on the grille Inside, the seats will get contrast red stitching on seats and steering wheel, and alloy pedals. However, the more premium and more powerful GT Line trim will be on offer with the 1.0L turbo petrol and 1.5L turbo diesel variants.

Safety & Security Aspects

Kia Sonet was always expected to take the safety quotient a notch above and it did, with its brilliant set of safety elements. This includes 6 airbags, ABS with EBD, ESC with Brake Assist, Hill-start Assist, vehicle stability management, etc. Others very vital safety features comprise of tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS), auto headlamps, front and rear parking sensors, projector fog lamps, and many more.

With all those fascinating features, Kia Sonet will definitely put a dent to the existing hot cakes in the sub 4-metre segment.