Kia Motors has successfully launched the Seltos in India where it has turned out to be a hit right from the time of launch. Sales have exceeded all expectations with a total of 6,200 units of Seltos sold in August 2019.
Kia Motors now gears up for the launch of its second product, the Carnival MPV. In a recent interview with ET Auto, Kia India Head of Sales and Marketing, Mr Manohar Bhatt confirmed that Kia will launch their second car at the 2020 Auto Expo. This will be in the form of Kia Carnival MPV, which has now been spied on test with rival Toyota Innova Crysta in India.
Kia Carnival will be a more premium alternative to the Toyota Innova Crysta. It will be larger in dimensions measuring 5,115mm in length, 1,985mm in width and 1,740mm in height with a wheelbase of 3,060mm. The Toyota Innova Crysta on the other hand measures 4,735mm in length, 1,830mm in width and 1,795mm in height with its wheelbase measuring 2,750mm.
In terms of its exterior design, the Kia Carnival will be simple. It will sport a distinctive tiger nose grille, swept back headlamps, power sliding doors for easy ingress and egress and LED fog lamps as seen on the Kia Seltos. It gets a clean rear end with split LED tail lamps and chrome accents above its number plate housing.
Though the Kia Carnival is offered in a range of seating configurations in global markets, India will get its 7 or 8 seater version. Its list of interior features will include ventilated and heated seats, 3 zone climate control and Kia’s UVO connected car technology.
It will receive a touchscreen infotainment system that supports both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Safety features would include a total of 8 airbags, ABS, EBD, electronic stability control, hill start assist, 360 degree camera, lane departure warning and blind spot detection, etc.
Kia Carnival will be powered by a 2.2 liter diesel engine which will comply with the new BS VI emission norms. This engine offers 202 PS power and 440 Nm torque sending power to the front wheels via a 6 speed manual and 8 speed automatic gearbox. It is also offered with a more powerful 3.3 liter V6 petrol engine offering 206 PS power and 330 Nm torque, but this engine is not planned for the India spec Carnival.
Expected to be priced between Rs.22-30 lakhs, the company targets extensive localisation upto 60 percent so as to keep prices at affordable levels. Once the Carnival is launched, Kia Motors will then turn their attention to two new products, the Rio Hatchback and Sportage SUV.
