2019 Kia Seltos SUV offers six airbags, bounty of safety features and a terrain management system!

Bertrand D'souza Updated: July 08, 2019, 12:01 PM IST

The Kia Seltos has been unveiled to much fanfare at a global premiere event in the national capital today. A head-turning mid-size SUV the Seltos will be commercially available through 265 dealer touch points around India in just a couple of months. We've told you about the powertrain, the design and a few of the features available in the Seltos. This article further outlines the safety features and a terrain management system that Kia will also offer to consumers seeking to buy the Seltos.

Six airbags, ABS with electronic brake force distribution, ESP, traction control, stability management, hill-start assist control or HAC, brake assist, rear and FRONT parking camera, and even a 360 degree camera for all around the car visibility and several more active safety features can be found on-board the Seltos. What the exact configurations are for these, if they will be offered as standard equipment (probably too much to ask) or will the entire gamut be available only in the top end trims is yet to be seen. Even the occupant cell has been engineered to offer maximum protection in the event of a crash by using a combination of high strength steels and deformation zones to absorb impacts.

These safety features also work in tandem with the UVO connect feature. Roadside assistance can be requested through voice calls, an SOS notification can be sent to a call centre that can use global positioning to track and locate your vehicle and dispatch emergency services. Stolen vehicle tracking and immobilization through a global fence system provides an additional layer of security.

The Kia Seltos will also feature a traction management system that will provide optimal grip in a variety of terrains. Kia claims the Seltos will be able to navigate the rough smoothly, be it mud, wet and slippery conditions or sand by selecting the driving mode on a dial I noticed on the centre console. What the capabilities of this system are is still to be seen but if its anything similar to what Jeep offers on the Compass then it will be impressive. However it also brings us to the question, will the Kia Seltos offer just a front wheel driven powertrain or a 4x4 system. I guess we will just have to wait for more details to emerge in the very near future. For now though the prospects of the Kia Seltos appear promising, with customers being offered a bouquet of choices, be it comfort, convenience, safety and performance.

Also see: KIA Seltos First Look Video