2020 Kia Seltos Long Term Ownership Review

With its launch in August 2019, the Kia Seltos has made a tremendous mark on the automotive market. Introducing itself with multiple engine choices and an expansive trim level, the early adopters found it a little challenging to navigate its offerings, but those who did, don’t really have anything else to complain about. 
With its second generation just around the corner, we focus on how the Seltos has fared against the demand of the Average Indian Buyer. 
 

The Car

The car in question today is a 2020 Kia Seltos GTX+, carrying its highly celebrated 1.5L turbocharged Inline 4 engine and the somewhat less celebrated 7-speed dual-clutch transmission. At its time, it was the top available trim, with the X-Line not yet being introduced. Being nearly 5 years old, the car has suffered a little more than bumps and scrapes, but when the odometer reads north of 90K kms, that's to be expected. This Seltos has a high monthly run, with the owners taking the car out of the station almost weekly. Primarily used as a highway traveller, cities, hill stations, and beaches, this Seltos’s seen em all. 
 

How Has The Exterior Held Up?

This Seltos is in a gorgeous Gloss Black exterior colour with red accents found in the GT Line trim. The owner says he always had a soft spot for black, but never owned a black car before because of the upkeep required. However, as soon as he laid his eyes on the shiny black paint with, as he calls it, “strategically placed red colour to confuse the buyer”, he was mesmerized. He ended up getting his Seltos with all the chrome nick-nacks Kia could fit on his car. 
As his story goes, his dealership discouraged this colour, offering him other colours they had immediate stock, and gave him a waiting period of 2 months. When the owner decided to wait the 2 months, stock was suddenly available in 1 week. 

Now, after 5 years, he admits he could have taken better care of the looks and the paint, but it has stood the test of time. A look around the car revealed no rusting at all, even underneath the car. Typically, swirl marks aside, there is some orange peel.

Despite some obvious signs of wear, the exterior has held up well considering its age.

One issue that has affected Hyundai and Kia is localized paint failure, where you have rust speckles all around the car. This Seltos also suffered from this issue. The hood of the car started showing rust specks at around the 2-year mark, but then the owner got into a small collision that warranted a hood replacement. He considers this a blessing in disguise. 

All exterior black plastics, like the ones found on the side skirts and the rear bumper, have lost their gleam and shine and are now discoloured. Some of the chrome parts have also started to fall apart. 

One obvious issue on the exterior was deep scratches on the rear window made by the rear wiper. Due to age, the rear wiper blade had lost its shape, resulting in the wiper’s plastic making direct contact with the window, leaving behind deep scratches. 
 

How Is The Interior Doing?

At 5 years, the interior has held up surprisingly well. Granted, the owner’s cleaning routine is better than most, but the materials themselves have stood up well, provided the way the car is used (more on that later).

First things first, not one component of the interior was replaced or has gone bad. This includes the electronics and filters, even. The seats are a gorgeous black with “GT Line” embroidered at the top in red and white. A grey soft-touch headliner, leatherette wrapped glove compartment, and the dashboard is mostly black plastic with grey accents. All components still look pristine, with the exception of the gear cluster, which has gathered up a lot of scratches. 

Apart from the scratches on the gear console, the interior has upheld its quality quite well, especially the leatherette.

One key difference between the front and rear seat that the owner noticed is the level of comfort on longer trips. It is difficult to notice when just travelling between the city, but on longer trips, the rear seats start feeling stiff, and in the summer, they can get hot. The front seats being ventilated helps mitigate that. Lack of an incline feature on the rear seats further adds to their stiffness. From the looks of it, the rear seats are a little banged up, however, the owner claims it's due to them having recently stored construction material there. 

The handrest in the center console has seen a lot of use, but it is not visible. The leatherette shows no patches due to rubbing and no discoloration. Same with leatherette on the gear knob, glove compartment, and steering wheel. The owner reports that all the buttons and switches (in the dashboard, steering wheel, and door panels) are working well. He was a little unsure about the utility of the excessive buttons on the steering wheel, but has since gotten used to them. In fact, as he puts it, depends on them. 
Primary users of the car are 5’6” and 6’. As such, they depend on the seat adjustments a lot. The seat sees adjustment daily, and with the driver’s seat having power adjustments, gives them a lot of ease. They don’t tend to use the thigh adjustment all that much, and typically forget it's available.

To summarize, the interior has held up beautifully, especially the seats. With the owners using their vehicle to move a lot of cargo, the seats might be dirty, but have proven to be strong. 
Ambient lighting is minimal, and after the infatuation period was over, felt like a gimmick to the owners. They’ve not touched it after the first 6 months. 

Infotainment

Being the top variant of the time, Kia offered their best. A 10.25-inch touchscreen, slightly oriented to the driver. The owners did not opt for any protective layer to safeguard the screen. As such, there are slight signs of usage when the screen is off. However, turn it on, and the display is crystal clear and sharp. 
The available UVO OS is satisfactory and fulfills all the typical requirements. However, the ease of use and versatility of Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are much better. The UVO OS also has small faults, as sometimes the screen’s response time becomes slow, but the owners report that to be an isolated event. Furthermore, the navigation and map app is outdated, not showing some roads and highways. These roads and highways are not new, like the Delhi-Meerut highway. 
For Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, the USB port seems to be picky about the cable you can use. Cables that normally support both charging and data transfer don't always work here. 
Being a top variant of its time, you get an 8-speaker Bose setup that has incredible sound and frequency range. Both music and podcasts sound incredible here. The family seems to prefer them to the Sony home theatre they have at home. 
 

Cargo

Being a midsize crossover, the storage space on the Seltos is no slouch. 6 medium-sized suitcases are normal for this cargo bay. The entire cargo area is wrapped in a soft-touch material that has not held up well over the years. 

Cargo storage is more abundant and sturdy than you realise.

Over the years, the owners have used their car as a replacement for a cargo van. They have used their Seltos to move furniture, cabinets, wardrobes, a fullsize split AC, construction material, and electric cycles. Not only did they manage to fit everything inside, but apart from a few bumps and scratches, the interior has held up surprisingly well. 
With all the seats down, this Seltos has easily fit 2 people with appropriate leg room, their luggage, a short wardrobe, a bicycle, 2 small cardboard boxes, and a cool jug, and gotten them safely across state lines. 
 

Driving Experience & Dynamics

We got some mixed reviews here. While the owner was extremely happy with the driving experience of his Seltos, their Son has noticed some glaring issues. 

Starting from the top, the 1.5L turbocharged inline 4 engine produces ample power for your typical Indian middle-class family. The 7-speed dual clutch transmission is excellent for city driving, but depending on the driving mode, it can get tedious in bumper-to-bumper traffic. 

Visibility

As said earlier, primary users of the car are 5’6” and 6’. Coming from a Honda Brio, getting used to the size of the Seltos on the road took them some time, but less than they anticipated. Now, their everyday parking spot is quite tight. The Seltos’ 390-degree camera helps in that.

360 Degree Camera

The coverage and resolution on the 360 camera are satisfactory. However, the owners have noticed issues with accuracy. The camera is quite cautious, and like every rearview mirror, objects appear closer than they really are. This is good for everyday use, but when navigating a tight parking spot makes relying on the 360 view a little difficult. 

Driving Modes

The Seltos offers 3 driving modes, Eco, Normal, and Sport. Among these modes, there is no change in steering response or suspension stiffness. These modes just change throttle response and acceleration, but not in a good way. 

All 3 modes have their own advantages and disadvantages.

Eco Mode promises the best fuel economy, and it does deliver, provided you restrain your driving style. This mode does not like high revs and makes the car feel sluggish. One downside of this mode is that it lazies the throttle response to a level that feels intrusive. It only accepts gentle throttle engagement. If you face an emergency and need the car to react quickly, it does not let you. The RMPs climb, but the clutch does not disengage without a delay of at least a second or two, as if giving you time to reconsider. Owners’ opinion is that it sacrifices too much functionality to be used in city traffic. However, they say it's the best mode for highways. Eco mode, coupled with cruise control, returns them as much as 19-20 kmpl! 

Normal Mode is much more responsive than Eco Mode and provides a reliable and predictable driving experience. Both in city and highway driving, the Normal mode feels most appropriate. 
By predictable, we mean that it feels like any other commuter. It does not rev the engine too high, but doesn't shift too early. In stop-and-go traffic, however, you do feel a slight delay between the engine revving and the car responding. However, as the owner puts it, it's something you get used to fairly quickly and becomes unnoticeable soon, unlike the delay in Eco Mode. City traffic gives you a mileage of 10-14 kmpl, while highway takes you up to 16 kmpl.

Finally, we have the Sport Mode. Gives you the best throttle response and acceleration. Owners believe this mode is too eager and extremely difficult to use in bumper-to-bumper traffic. The Normal Mode fools you into believing that the Seltos can only be refined and polished. Sport Mode makes the Seltos quick and ferocious. Push the car in this mode and your mileage reduces as low as 6 kmpl, while the average you can expect is 8-10 kmpl. However, the car becomes capable of acceleration from naught to 100 kmph in around 8 seconds. The sprint possible in this mode points out a glaring issue in the steering response, but more on that later.

Mileage

A sum up of the previous section.
Eco mode gets you a mileage between 15-20 kmpl, driving dependent. 
Normal Mode gets you 10-15 kmpl.
Sport Mode gives you 6-10 kmpl at most. 

Traction Control

3 Traction Modes are available here, Sand, Mud, and Snow. However, the owners do not tend to use them much. Occasionally, they have used Mud; however, due to the infrequency of usage, they do not have any insights. Typically, you see a difference in traction control, giving you a safer drive over these various surfaces by altering traction to best suit the surfaces.
Furthermore, through us, the owners found out that traction control and electronic stabilization can be completely turned off, too. He has not driven the car with them completely off and does not seem eager to try. 

Manual Mode

The Manual Mode the Seltos offers is cosmetic. The handful of times the owners have used it, they were disappointed. While it allows manually changing gears, it doesn't let you hold the gear you’ve selected. Climb the RMP too much, and it upshifts automatically. Similarly, reduce your speed a little too much and you get an automatic downshift. All it seems to do is disrupt your fuel economy.

Braking

Considering the performance possible in Sports Mode, the Seltos has incredible braking. It gives the owner the confidence to drive spiritedly when he wishes to (always within the rules of the law, of course). Brake pads here are changed 1-2 times yearly, which is more than typical for a Seltos (more on that later). However, these brakes have the tendency to seize up when the car is not driven for a day or two. A combination of dust and moisture is the likely cause, but just putting the car in Drive and forcing it forwards releases the brakes with a loud *thud*. This has no effect on braking performance or the life and quality of the brake pads, calipers, or disks. At best, it's an annoyance.

Steering

The steering response is quite balanced. It's light and offers appropriate feedback depending on the speed. The drive modes do not affect the steering response at all. However, despite the fact that the steering response is as expected 99% of the time, it does cause a slight issue at times. 
Earlier, we pointed to a glaring flaw in the steering response. Most of the time, the steering response is predictable and speed-appropriate. However, in certain situations, the steering has the tendency to stiffen up. This mostly happens when trying to correct rapidly, causing you to jerk the steering wheel, or at higher speeds. It's a feature rather than a flaw. This can likely be to provide stability at higher speeds, but although this might mitigate human error, it also limits human intervention when needed.

Top Speed

It was believed that the Seltos has an electronically limited top speed of 165-167 kmph. However, this Seltos has been pushed to 180 kmph in sport mode.. Their other car, a Honda Brio, is electronically limited to 145 kmph. When reaching that, there is a sudden jerk, indicating that the car is capable of surpassing its limit but will not do so. In the Seltos, however, Owners report that at 180 kmph, the car seems tired and overextended. It doesn't feel limited to 180 kmph, but only capable of 180 kmph. 
They do report, however, that even at its top speed, the car was planted firmly on the road. Despite the uneven nature of the road and several bumps and jerks, the Seltos held stuck to the road, feeling right in its comfort zone.

Suspension

Considering the abuse this Seltos faces due to the amount of cargo it carries, the owners have nothing but praise for the suspension. Potholes are barely noticeable, and due to the fact that the owners do tend to drive off-road from time to time, they say it holds up pretty well in mud, sand, fields, and rocks. 
Body Roll is present, but for the class of the car, is typical. High-speed maneuvering can feel a little shaky, but the owner reports that he had full confidence that the Seltos was never outside its scope of capabilities. 
A small modification done to this Seltos is spacers added to the suspension, preventing it from bottoming out due to excessive cargo. This does make the unladen ride a little stiff, but barely noticeable.

Driving Completely Laden

At times, this Seltos has been stuffed to the point it becomes difficult to use the centre rear view mirror (allegedly). In such cases, the suspensions do not falter. There is obviously a difference in driving dynamics, but not something that can't be predicted. It bounces a little more, has a little stronger of a nose dive when braking, but is always in control.

Headlight

The headlights and their enclose seem untouched by time. The chrome trimming on the headlights has faded and deteriorated, sure, but the headlight enclosure is clear, with minimal scratches and no yellowing. Both the headlights and DLRs are as bright as ever, with no deterioration in quality.
 

Maintenance

Official and Third Party

The owners have gotten their Seltos serviced via the official Kia service center only a handful of times. They were awarded 3-4 free services with the purchase of their car, which they availed. However, they have since only had their vehicle serviced by a trusted third-party garage, and it has been functioning fine. 
The owners are cautious when it comes to service intervals, as one should be, having faced service-related issues with previous cars, hence have it serviced almost every month. The latest they go is 3 months. 
Apart from standard maintenance, their Seltos has not required any repairs. Typical areas of failure, like the clutch plate or AC compressors, are functioning well.
As stated earlier, they did have their hood replaced by Kia’s official service center. It took 4 days. 

Unfortunately, the “Service Required” warning can only be reset by an official Kia Service Center.

Tires and Brakes

Brake pads last long here. Considering they have covered nearly 1 lakh kms in 5 years. Their yearly run costs them at least 1 brake pad change, sometimes 2. 
At the 60k km mark, they had their tires changed. The ones from the factory were rated for 45k kms, but they were able to push them to 60k kms. 
They have now opted for the Yokohama Earth 1s, which they have put nearly 30K kms on. They show less than average wear for the use. 
 

Issues Faced

Despite the Seltos performing so well throughout the years, it has faced some big issues. 
Kia was known for having transmission issues, typically with its DCT. It would overheat, throwing up a warning and asking the driver to stop the car in order for the transmission to cool down. Ultimately, this was a software issue, and the transmission was fine. A quick software patch and this was fixed. However, this particular Seltos never got that patch, the issue went away on its own. They also just faced this once and were able to drive back home without the car throwing much of a fuss. We believe it must have been patched when the car went to Kia for a regular service. 

Another issue was with the battery. With manufacturers today cramming so many features in the car, the cars rely on beefy batteries. However, in case the battery fails, these cars don’t always portray that in the typically understood way. The owners faced an issue where the car failed to turn over, and the engine would not start. However, the screens and information cluster did light up. Being out of station at the time, it took the owners some time to determine the cause, and they were able to jump the car and drive it home, where they had their battery replaced. According to them, the cause for their battery draining was not found, as it was being used the entire day, and was parked for barely an hour, without the lights on. Before that, the car started without any issue, as well as after that. 
The issues with the brakes seizing have been covered earlier.
 

How does the Seltos Fare After 5 years?

The Kia Seltos holds up to time and abuse well. At 90K kms, and being used as a cargo trolley, the Seltos barely shows age. Apart from the discolored plastic on the outside and a huge dent on the left front passenger door, this Seltos looks new. 
The insides look way better than the outside. The materials show no wear or discoloration, and all features work as new. 
The engine and transmission have proven to be extremely reliable and pair well with all kinds of driving. Maximize performance or mileage, it's capable of all. It feels reliably planted at high speeds and handles the everyday office traffic with ease. All while keeping you comfortable and plush.
Despite facing some issues, the owners stand by their Seltos, and have even further aided in the purchasing of Seltoses by friends and family members.