Kia joins baby SUV craze with compact Seltos crossover

If you’re looking to buy a baby SUV, Kia and Hyundai are about to take aim at the established rivals with cheaper models aimed at budget buyers.

Kia’s Seltos SUV is an addition to the compact SUV class.

Kia has joined the trend for baby SUVs, putting pressure on established models in what could be great news for consumers.

The budget-minded brand unveiled its new Seltos compact crossover this week, giving Kia

an alternative to the likes of Toyota’s C-HR and the Mazda CX-3.

As with the Hyundai Venue, the Seltos will target budget-minded consumers with a blend of tech and practicality. Hyundai has made no secret of its desire to offer the Venue for less than $20,000, a number Kia is likely to match.

That could spark a price war as the segment’s top-seller, the CX-3, is forced to defend its turf.

The 2019 Kia Seltos enters a tightly-contested segment.

We don’t know how much the Seltos will cost, or exactly which features it will bring.

But we can say that local models will bring what Kia describes as “technology features that maximise connectivity and safety”, likely to include active driver aids and smartphone features such as Apple CarPlay and android auto.

Bold looks include LED lighting at the front and rear along with a choice of 16, 17 or 18-inch wheels.

The Seltos arrives locally in the third quarter of 2019.

Australian cars will be available with a 10.25-inch touchscreen, 8-inch head-up display and eight-speaker Bose stereo paired with mood lighting that can pulse to the beat of music.

Local models are set to be powered by a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine sending 110kW through a CVT auto as standard, with a range-topping variant likely to feature a 1.6-litre turbo engine sending 130kW to all four wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.