Kia Motors is readying the Seltos Electric and the production is expected to start from August 2020. Our friends at IndianAutosBlog have accessed an internal document of the company that confirms that Kia Seltos Electric is a reality, contrary to all the reports that claimed it as mere speculation. It has been learnt that the South-Korean automaker will launch the electric version of the SUV in the Chinese market only and it will not be introduced in the Indian market at least by 2022. The company will launch Sonet in August and a compact MPV in 2021 in India.
Kia Seltos (Kia KX3) has received an overwhelming response in the Indian market but despite that the company has no plans to launch the electric version, codenamed as Kia KX3 EV, in the country. Taking a leaf out of Hyundai Kona's book, Kia Seltos EV will be initially offered in two trims: standard and long range. It will be powered by a 45.2 kWh Lithium-ion battery which develops a top power of 109bhp and peak torque of 285Nm with a top speed of 150kmph. The electric SUV comes with a driving range of 300kms with an energy consumption rating of 16.4 kWh/100 km. If we talk about Hyundai Kona EV, it draws power from a 39.2 kWh Lithium-ion battery which provides it a range of 312kms along with power output and torque performance of 134bhp and 395Nm, respectively.
The long-range variant of Hyundai Kona Electric gets a 64.2 kWh Lithium-ion battery which delivers maximum power of 201bhp and highest torque of 395Nm. It has a driving range of 482 kilometers. There is a word that Kia might source the battery-pack from the China-spec Elantra electric sedan in the standard range variants of Seltos. The Chinese version of Hyundai Elantra electric boasts of a 56.5 kWh Lithium-ion battery which outputs 182bhp and 310Nm while having a range and energy consumption rating of 490 kilometers and 12.7 kWh/100 km, respectively. The company plans to manufacture 10,000 units of Kia Seltos electric on an annual basis from August 2020 and see the response and feedback.
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