Demand of the CNG vehicles has been increasing in India, thanks to surging petrol and diesel prices. Car manufactures including Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, Tata and Toyota are planning to expand their CNG product portfolio this year. It seems that Kia India will also foray into the CNG vehicle space with the Sonet CNG. The model was recently caught on camera during its test rounds near the company’s manufacturing facility. The prototype carries the brand’s old badge along with the CNG sticker on the rear windshield and CNG intake valve.
The Kia Sonet CNG is likely to come with the 1.0L, 3-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine as the test mule carried the GT and T-GDi badges. The SUV’s GT Line variants are available with 1.0L turbo petrol and 1.5L diesel engine options. The turbo-petrol unit pushes out a peak power of 118bhp and 172Nm of torque. At present, it comes with a 6-speed iMT and a 7-speed DCT automatic gearbox. If the automaker will introduce the Sonet CNG with the turbo-petrol engine, it could be paired to a 6-speed manual transmission.
The Kia Sonet GT Line trim has been offered with some exclusive features such as wireless phone charger, drive modes (AT only), traction control (AT only), front parking sensors, hill start assist, electronic stability control and 6 airbags.
Compared to its petrol counterpart, the Kia Sonet CNG is likely to be priced around Rs 70,000 – Rs 90,000 premium. It’s range-topping CNG model is estimated to cost around Rs 13 lakh (ex-showroom).
Talking about Kia India’s future plan, the company is ready to enter into the electric vehicle (EV) segment this year. If reports are to be believed, the Kia EV6 GT will arrive as a full-import unit and make its debut by mid 2022. Globally, the electric crossover comes with multiple powertrain options.
There is a 58kWh battery pack with RWD and single motor and AWD with dual motor setup making power worth 170bhp and 235bhp respectively. The higher variants get a 77.4kWh battery pack with a 229bhp, single motor and RWD system and 325bhp, dual motor with AWD. The GT trim derives power from a dual-motor AWD setup that’s good for 585bhp and 740Nm.
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