A Kia Sportage SUV and Kia Soul crossover has been
spied undisguised on Indian roads. As Kia is
plotting an entry into the Indian market, these could be Kia’s own test units.
Kia products have been spied on Indian roads before,
but they were either in transit to countries like Bangladesh, Bhutan or Nepal,
or brought by OEMs for benchmarking. Kia is yet to officially announce their
entry into India, nor have they decided on a location for a plant.
The model spied are likely candidates to be part of
Kia’s initial lineup for the Indian market. The Kia Sportage, if localised to a
good percentage, will take on the Hyundai Tucson, Mahindra XUV500, upcoming
Renault Captur and VW Tiguan.
The smaller Kia Soul, could be Kia’s best
selling model in India if priced competitively, as it’s based on the crossover
formula that is taking the market by storm.