2027 Kia Seltos review: International first drive

Kia is about to take a bold step with one of its most important models.

The new-generation Seltos small SUV, due in Australia in October 2026, will switch to hybrid power, ditching traditional petrol-only engines that were the only choices in the previous model’s line-up.

It is the result of tough new emissions rules encouraging car companies to sell more frugal cars, as well as a surging demand for hybrid cars across all brands – Kia included – that has seen rival Toyota go hybrid-only on every model available with the technology.

The second-generation Seltos is larger than its predecessor for more passenger and boot space, gains a new suite of technology, and promises a more refined and composed driving experience.

Drive was flown to South Korea as a guest of the manufacturer to test the new Seltos on Kia’s home roads – in its home-market specification – ahead of its Australian arrival later this year.

And yes, it will be worth the wait. Read on to find out why.

Pricing is not due to be confirmed until closer to the car’s Australian arrival, but Kia has indicated to media the Seltos hybrid will be “competitive” on price with the Hyundai Kona, and offer nationwide drive-away pricing.

The Kona Hybrid is priced from $36,950 plus on-road costs in base trim, up to $48,950 plus on-roads in Premium N Line trim (or $45,950 without the N Line pack).

Hyundai is currently offering a drive-away deal of $39,990 on the base variant, up to an indicated $53,700 for the flagship on an NSW postcode.

In contrast, the current Seltos is priced from $31,250 to $46,670 plus on-road costs, or $33,990 to $49,640 drive-away.

If Kia matches its sibling brand’s pricing, it would see the price of the cheapest Seltos surge by nearly $6000 plus on-roads, and top out $2000 higher – not unsurprising given today’s model is seven years old and does not have a hybrid powertrain.

It is competitive with a Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid ($37,440 to $50,990 plus on-roads) and Honda HR-V e:HEV hybrid ($39,900 to $42,900 drive-away).

China will sell you a lot more for less, however. A top-of-the-range Chery Tiggo 4 is currently only $32,990 drive-away, while a Geely Starray EM-i Inspire is a fully loaded plug-in hybrid in the size class above for only $41,490 plus on-roads.

Kia will offer the same S, Sport, Sport+ and GT-Line grades as the current Seltos, with the expected option of a Safety Pack on the S to add certain crash-avoidance systems for buyers who are happy to pay the extra money for them.

Standard feature levels are also yet to be confirmed, as is the colour palette, but the Iceberg Green and Frost Blue shown on the launch cars – as well as the matte greys and reds – are not expected to reach Australia as our cars come from a different factory to US and Korean examples.

A fuel consumption figure for the new Seltos hybrid is yet to be published, but it is expected to be similar or slightly higher than the Hyundai Kona’s 3.9 litres per 100 kilometres, as the Kia is likely to be lab-tested under more stringent WLTP standards ahead of its October arrival.

In South Korea, where test protocols are even tougher, the Seltos claims consumption of 5.1 to 5.6L/100km, depending on wheel size, against 5.05 to 5.5L/100km for the Kona.

Over a few hundred kilometres of driving on motorways and extra-urban roads in South Korea, the trip computer in the FWD hybrid we tested returned 5.2L/100km, though we saw figures as low as 4.9L/100km, and as high as 6.0L/100km in hilly conditions. It’s a great result.

Kia is yet to confirm if the Seltos will support Australia’s lowest-grade 91-octane unleaded petrol, which will return to full quality by the time the car arrives in October.

Kia is targeting a split safety rating for the new Seltos: four stars for the entry-level S, and five stars for more expensive models – or an S with Safety Pack – fitted with more advanced autonomous emergency braking technology capable of detecting additional obstacles.

Of course, we won’t know how either version actually performs in a crash until the Seltos is formally crash-tested by ANCAP or its European counterpart Euro NCAP.

Korean lanes tend to be wider than those in Australia, and it’s fair to expect Kia will be best at tuning its advanced safety features for its home roads, but we were never too bothered by the crash-avoidance systems in the Seltos.

Lane-keep assist can chime in on tighter curves, but it is not an irritation. The driver monitoring camera did not beep at us for brief glances away from the road, and the adaptive cruise control and lane-centring assist systems work well.

South Korea does not require the traffic-sign recognition to beep at the driver when the car exceeds the speed limit it has detected, unlike Europe, with which Australia typically shares its vehicle software. Expect this to change in Australia.

The traffic-sign recognition tech is prone to misreading signs, however, and detecting limits from on-ramps and off-ramps – though the jury is out on how it will deal with Australian signage.

The new Seltos is a bigger car than before: 45mm longer, 30mm wider, 30mm lower, and 60mm longer in wheelbase (the distance between the front and rear axles) for improved practicality.

That makes it one of the larger ‘small SUVs’ on the market, bigger than the Kona, though in the same realm as the Corolla Cross, Qashqai or a budget-priced Chinese offering such as the GWM Haval Jolion.

It adopts styling from Kia’s electric-car range, with strong hints of the larger EV5 in its boxy shape, and funky striped daytime-running lights to give it a unique look at night.

Larger in all dimensions than its predecessor, the new Seltos is more spacious and comfortable inside for buyers looking to use it as a family car.

Up front, it leans heavily on design cues from other cars in the Kia range, from the EV9-like screen setup – two 12.3-inch displays split by a 5.0-inch climate-control panel – to a Tasman-inspired steering wheel in non-GT-Line (or X-Line, overseas) variants.

Perceived quality is one area where the Seltos catches the Kona out. Soft-touch materials are used in key places where you’d find hard plastic in the Hyundai, and there’s greater use of metallic highlights to brighten the cabin appearance.

The front seats are comfortable and supportive on long drives, with good under-thigh adjustment and firm but comfy side bolstering to keep you in place in corners. Heating and ventilation are available, plus dual power adjustment and leather-look trim.

The driver’s seat can be reclined close to flat in select grades for a nap while parked.

The steering wheel is not too big nor too small for the Seltos’s size, with easy push-button or roller-dial controls, and available heating, activated by a panel on the doors that also manages heated/ventilated seats.

The gear shifter has moved from the centre console to a wand on the steering column, where the start button also lives. It takes some getting used to, but it becomes second-nature after the car has been in your garage for a little while.

Kia has moved many of the air-conditioning controls onto the 5.0-inch screen between the main displays. It works well when parked, but it’s blocked by the steering wheel rim while driving, so you’re forced to crane your head around, or press an arrow button to expand its functions on the central touchscreen.

Fortunately, air temperature and fan speed are not on that small screen, instead kept on easy-to-use toggle switches under the main display, complemented by physical shortcuts for multimedia functions, and a volume dial.

Storage is not as plentiful as the Kona. There isn’t quite as much space in the centre console, or a shelf on the passenger side of the dashboard, but we wouldn’t say it’s lacking. The under-armrest cubby is generously sized, as is the glovebox. There are bottle holders in the doors, and the centre area has two pop-out cupholders.

A wireless charging pad is available – placed quite centrally, which may roast your phone on a hot day – plus three front USB-C ports (two capable of 100 watts, enough for a beefy laptop), dual-zone climate control, a panoramic sunroof, and ambient lighting.

Space in the rear is good for a compact SUV. At 186cm (6ft 1in) tall, I had good knee room, plenty of toe room, and surprising head room under the glass roof of the test car pictured, plus a reclining seatback, though the seat base is quite flat.

Amenities in the rear include air vents, two USB-C ports, map pockets, a fold-down armrest with a complex cupholder arrangement that can switch to open storage as required, bottle holders in the doors, and even outboard heated seats; a rarity in this category.

Boot space has grown for the new model, up to 536 litres to fall in line with cars from the size class above. It is a deep and wide space, short on clever cubbies – and faced with a load lip to haul items over – but equipped with removable hooks for hanging bags, a light and a power tailgate.

The boot floor can be adjusted in two levels for extra practicality, and the rear seats fold in a 60:40 split.

Front-wheel-drive variants in Australia will be fitted with a space-saver wheel, which comes at the cost of the vehicle-to-load (V2L) tech available overseas, where the hybrid battery can be used as a giant power bank for external devices via a power socket in the boot.

That’s a fair choice in my view, because the inconvenience of a flat tyre in country areas – without a spare to get you back on the road – outweighs the potential benefits of V2L.

However, all-wheel-drive models in Australia will delete the spare wheel, yet don’t gain V2L, due to “trim complexity”. It’s a missed opportunity, in our view, given this pairing is offered overseas.

The 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen runs the same software you’ll find in a Hyundai Kona, as well as most Kias sold in Australia.

Bigger than the 8.0- and 10.25-inch displays in today’s Seltos, the new screen is quicker to respond, carries more contemporary graphics, and is easier to use, though it is not as snappy as a smartphone, and there are still myriad menus to learn.

Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are expected to be standard, alongside embedded satellite navigation and digital radio likely on certain variants. The voice assistant includes ChatGPT integration, if asking your car general-knowledge questions is your thing.

A 12.3-inch instrument display sits in front of the driver, which is clear, but not very customisable, only allowing for modest graphics changes, as well as swapping the vehicle data in its central pod, but not enabling major changes (such as a map) via the settings.

The head-up display expected to be fitted to high-grade models projects a generously sized series of readouts onto the windscreen.

Kia is expected to offer support for its Kia Connect connected-car phone app, including a digital key that allows drivers to use compatible iPhones to unlock the car and start the engine without the key fob present.

The base audio system in models Drive tested delivers decent sound quality without peaking the speakers on loud notes, though the optional Harman Kardon stereo is likely to be better.

As with most new Kias, the Seltos will have its suspension and steering tuned for Australian tastes and road conditions, including the rough, undulating country tarmac common outside of our capital cities.

It means the South Korean-market models we were allowed to drive aren’t completely representative of what Australians can expect, but we’re confident in saying Kia’s local engineers are starting from a great base.

Gone (for Australia) are the 2.0-litre non-turbo and 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engines of the old Seltos, replaced by a 1.6-litre non-turbo petrol-electric hybrid in all variants designed for local showrooms.

In the front-wheel-drive form we tested, it’s not a powerhouse – overtaking or motorway on-ramp performance is best described as leisurely – but it’s peppy at lower speeds, where the electric motor carries much of the load, only firing the engine under hard acceleration.

The switch between electric and petrol power is generally smooth, and the engine is not as raucous as in Toyota hybrids, though you can feel the car shifting through gears on battery power, as the electric motor sits between the engine and transmission.

All-wheel drive is available for the first time in a small Hyundai or Kia hybrid, using a second electric motor added to the rear axle.

There is no direct connection between the front and rear wheels as a result, but it means the AWD version gets more power (131kW vs 113kW) – though it wasn’t available to drive in this instance.

Paddles behind the steering wheel allow for electric-car-like control of the electric motor’s regenerative braking in Eco mode, including a Level 3 setting that’s quite strong for a hybrid, with the further option to bring the car to a full stop by just holding the left-hand paddle.

The only blot on the experience is some occasional jerkiness under moderate braking, if the wheels strike a bump just as the car is ramping up its regenerative braking. It’s not a major issue, but one I noticed nonetheless.

The South Korean suspension tune on the cars we tested is on the softer side of the spectrum.

It glides over imperfections in the road, and soaks up speed bumps neatly, but the suspension does not settle quite as quickly as we’d like over bumps at motorway speeds, and there is plenty of body roll in tight corners.

Gladly, Kia Australia has promised local cars will prioritise “more responsive” handling, with a firmer feel to the ride, and “reduced body roll”. I'm excited to drive the final Australian version on local roads to see if Kia achieves that ideal balance between comfort and control.

Still, the Seltos I tested does not disgrace itself in corners. There is respectable grip from the Nexen tyres, and it feels more surefooted to drive than a Chery Tiggo 4 or MG ZS.

The steering is light and easy in Eco mode, adding some weight in Sport, with decent accuracy and responsiveness in both modes for placing the car on country roads.

The brake pedal is well tuned, too. The point at which the electric motor’s regenerative braking is complemented by the ‘friction’ brake discs behind the wheels is blended well into what you feel under your foot.

Tyre roar and wind noise are kept under control; though, as a general rule, the South Korean roads we drove on are better-surfaced than noisy Australian country highways.

There is still plenty we don’t know about the new Kia Seltos – how much it will cost, and what it will be like to drive on Australian roads – but this first taste in South Korea has left me very impressed.

It is spacious, practical, well finished inside, loaded with straightforward technology, frugal on fuel, and even in its overseas-market form, a quiet and easy car to drive, all with the expected backing of Kia’s seven-year warranty.

If you like the look, and aren’t in a rush for a new car, the hybrid Seltos is worth waiting for.

Alex Misoyannis has been writing about cars since 2017, when he started his own website, Redline. He contributed for Drive in 2018, before joining CarAdvice in 2019, becoming a regular contributing journalist within the news team in 2020. Cars have played a central role throughout Alex’s life, from flicking through car magazines at a young age, to growing up around performance vehicles in a car-loving family. Highly Commended - Young Writer of the Year 2024 (Under 30) Rising Star Journalist, 2024 Winner Scoop of The Year - 2024 Winner

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