3 all-new Kia cars coming to India within 18 months: Kia SP to Carnival
Kia Motors will launch the SP concept based SUV in August, and Carnival MPV and Rio based cross-hatch in 2020
Kia Motors is readying the much-awaited SP concept based SUV for the Indian market. The company has recently unveiled the near-production ready Kia SP signature concept. It is expected that the new Kia SP SUV will be launched in the Indian market by July-August 2019. Not just this 5-seater SUV, Kia will also launch 2 new models in 2020.
The Kia SP concept based SUV is likely to be called Trazor or Tusker, though official announcement is yet to be made. It will challenge the likes of Hyundai Creta, Nissan Kicks and Renault Duster. The SUV will be available with 2 engine options – a 1.5-litre petrol and a 1.5-litre diesel. Both manual and automatic versions are likely to be on offer. It is expected to be priced in the range of Rs 10 lakh – Rs 16 lakh.
The Korean automaker has already confirmed that it will introduce the Carnival premium MPV in the country in early 2020. The MPV is available in multiple seating configurations in the international markets, though India is most likely to receive the 7-seater model. It is expected to be launched in the end of first quarter of 2020, most probably in March. Likely to be priced around Rs 20 lakh, the new Kia Carnival MPV will come as a premium alternative to the segment-leader Toyota Innova Crysta. It will be brought to India as a CKD unit and will be assembled at the company’s new Andhra Pradesh based facility.
The Kia Carnival MPV will be powered by a BSVI compliant 2.2-litre E-VGT diesel engine. This engine is capable of producing 199bhp of power at 3,800rpm and a peak torque of 441Nm between 1,750-2,750rpm. In terms of proportions, the Carnival is 5,155mm in length, 1,985mm in width and 1,740mm in height and has a wheelbase of 2,060mm.
Third Kia model for the Indian market is likely to be an all-new cross-hatchback. It is expected that the cross-hatchback will be based on the Rio hatchback. The Rio’s cross-hatch version (K2 Cross) is already on sale in select global markets such as Russia and China. The exact launch timeline is yet to be announced, but media report claims that the cross-hatch could be launched in late 2020.
What’s interesting is that Kia is also working on a sub-4 meter SUV for the Indian market. The concept version of the small SUV could debut at the 2020 Auto Expo. The company could launch the production version of the SUV in early 2021. It is expected to be based on the new Santro’s platform, which also underpins the new Hyundai Venue compact SUV.
