Kia Motors India today revealed the first official rendering of the new Sonet compact SUV. The South Korean manufacturer recently teased the compact SUV in a television commercial.
The Sonet concept was unveiled for the first time at the 2020 Delhi Auto Expo to widespread acclaim, thanks to its fresh exterior design. With the new image released today, the Sonet aims to set new design benchmarks and inject a new dynamism in the compact SUV segment when it is launched later next month.
Design
The Sonet will belong to the sub-4 metre compact SUV space and will rival the likes of Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Tata Nexon and Hyundai Venue among others. The initial teaser image stays true to the concept which was shown at the Expo. It especially highlights its LED bits and broad shoulders. The new Kia Sonet SUV will also sport a Tiger Nose front grille with contrasting surrounds, a chiselled bumper, large air dams with silver surrounds and a clamshell bonnet design.
Karim Habib, Senior Vice President and Head of Kia Design Center, Kia Motors Corporation, said, “With the new Kia Sonet, we had the ambition to give this compact SUV a strong and muscular character found only in much larger vehicles. With this in mind, we have designed what we believe is a great SUV with a uniquely sporty attitude, a confident stance and a dynamic silhouette.”
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He further added, “We also gave the new Kia Sonet uncompromising attention to detail and a selection of colours and materials that could have only been inspired by the great cultural heritage that our designers found all over India. As a whole, we believe the new Kia Sonet will be a fantastic SUV with a very compelling and attaching character to our young and young at heart, always-connected customers in India and beyond.”
Expected Interiors and Features
The interiors haven’t been revealed yet but we can expect a design similar to what we have seen on the Seltos. There should be a floating two-part cluster for instrumentation and an 8-inch touchscreen, slim AC vents and mix of dark, beige and chrome trim. Equipment levels are expected to be class-leading with numerous firsts such as a 360-degree camera, branded audio system, UVO connected car features and so on. Safety equipment like dual front airbags with ABS and EBD should be standard.
Expected Powertrains
As for powertrains, the Sonet is expected to be offered with the same options as the Hyundai Venue, i.e. a 119 bhp 1.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine, an 82 bhp 1.2-litre naturally aspirated petrol unit, and a 1.5-litre diesel motor. Transmission options are also slated to be the same as the Venue including the latest iMT gearbox which is jointly developed by Hyundai and Kia.
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The Sonet will be the second ‘made in India’ car from Kia, following the introduction of the Kia Seltos. Kia Motors says that the new Kia Sonet is targeted at a younger generation who are tech-savvy, aspirational and socially connected.