Without any doubt, one of the most hotly
anticipated SUVs in recent time has been the upcoming Kia Sonet. Last week, Kia
Motors India let us do a complete walk-around of the car in controlled
conditions. This week new spy shots have caught the car on the road without any
camouflage. One thing that is clear is that the all-new Kia Sonet has a very
strong road presence despite being a sub-4 metre SUV.
The Kia Sonet which was caught in the
pictures in the GT Line variant. In the front, it is clear to see how bold the
tweaked Tiger Nose grille looks in the sunlight, complemented well with GT
badging and red inserts on the honeycomb-design which have been inspired by
Indian stepwells. On either side, you will find LED headlights, paired to a
Heartbeat-styled DRL glow pattern which looks quite elegant in the dark. The
front bumper also looks thoroughly modern and houses elements like a large
lower grille with GT Line red-inserts, angular fog lamp cutouts which feature
ice cube-style LED lights.
On the side, highlights such as flared
fenders, sttelply rising beltline, 16-inch diamond-cut allies wheels and silver
roof rails give it quite the imposing stance. While the front and rear profile
of the all-new Kia Sonet are quite eye-catching, the rear profile is our
favourite part. It gets a wraparound windshield-design aided by the use of
gloss black panels over the C-pillar, wrap-around LED taillamps with a
Heartbeat-style glow pattern, a one-piece taillamp design, faux rear diffuser
and GT Line red inserts.
While the Kia Sonet looks modern outside,
the interior styling is equally well designed. You get a gloss black extended
panel which houses the 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment and the half-digital
instrument cluster. For comfort, you get ventilated seats which as seen in the
pictures here, get an all-black leather with red stitching in the GT Line
variants. Other highlights include wireless smartphone charging, 57 UVO
connected car features, keyless-entry-and-go, 360-degree camera and auto AC.
When it comes to performance, you get
three engine options - a 1.0 turbo petrol making 118 bhp/172 Nm, 1.2 NA petrol
making 84 bhp/114 Nm and a 1.5 turbo diesel making 99 bhp/240 Nm. You also get five
transmission options - 5-speed MT, 6-speed MT, 6-speed iMT, 6-speed auto and
7-speed DCT. The GT Line variant is only available with the 1.0-litre turbo
petrol and 1.5-litre diesel engine options. The new Kia Sonet will be the only
vehicle in its segment to offer the choice of a diesel-automatic powertrain.
