Kia unveiled the Ciros premium mid-size SUV in the Indian market on December 19.
Kia Motors India today (January 2) announced the launch date of its Kia Ciros. The Korean company will launch its premium mid-size SUV on February 2. Kia had unveiled the car in the Indian market only last month with many of the segment’s premium features. The car reservation will start from January 3.
This is the first car in the sub-4 meter segment in India, where the seats are all ventilated and electrically adjustable. Apart from this, segment-first features like 60:40 split and reclining rear seat and panoramic sunroof are also offered in the premium SUV. For added safety, features like Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) Level 2, 360-degree camera and 6 airbags (standard) are also provided.
Reservations will begin from January 3. This is the company’s fifth SUV in the Indian market, placed between Seltos and Sonet. The new Kia Ciros was designed with a more premium customer base in mind than the Sonet. Ciros was introduced in 6 variants. This includes HTK, HTK (O), HTK+, HTX, HTX+ and HTX+ (O).
The company calls it a mini carnival. Its reservation will start from January 3 and delivery from February 2025. The company has not yet announced the prices. The price of Ciros can start from Rs 9 lakh (ex-showroom).
This vehicle will not have direct competition with anyone, but it will be a cheaper option than compact SUVs like Hyundai Creta, Maruti Grand Vitara and Kia Seltos. It will also compete with subcompact SUVs like Tata Nexon, Maruti Brezza, Mahindra XUV 3XO and Hyundai Venue.
Exterior: Coming to the exterior design of the Kia Ciros, Kia’s first ICE car with flush door handle in India, it follows the company’s overall design language, inspired by the Kia Carnival, Kia EV3 and Kia EV9 . The Ciros is the first ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) car in Kia’s Indian lineup to feature flush door handles.
The Kia Ciros sports a traditional square and upright SUV design, with vertical LED headlights placed on the sides of the bumper. Like the new Carnival, it gets triple LED headlamps and a single drop-down LED Daytime Running Light (DRL). The upper part of the front is sealed and almost looks like an electric vehicle. The air intake is integrated into the lower section, highlighted by contrasting silver trim underneath.
From the side, the Kia Ciros features black A, C and D pillars, combined with a body colored B pillar, creating a bright and clean window line. Other highlights include thick plastic covering over the wheel arches and a noticeable crease in the rear window line.
The car will get 16-inch 3-petal alloy wheels in the lower variants and 17-inch 3-petal alloy wheels in the higher variants. The big boy design in the back makes the car look like a minivan. There are L-shaped taillights around the rear windshield on the flat tailgate and the rear bumper gets a sleek black and silver two-tone finish.
Interior: Two-tone cabin theme. Its interior is quite futuristic. The Kia Ciros features a two-tone black and gray cabin theme, with a Kia EV9-inspired dashboard and a two-spoke steering wheel. Apart from that, it also has a glossy gray element spanning the entire width of the dashboard, while its air vents are slim and rectangular in shape.
The biggest highlight of its cabin is the triple-screen setup offered there. It has two 12.3-12.3-inch screens for the infotainment system and the driver’s display, as well as a 5-inch unit for the climate control. Kia claims that together they make a 30-inch screen.
Below the touchscreen unit, there’s a scroll-style knob for volume control as well as physical controls for the infotainment. Below that, there are physical controls for the climate control unit and below that, several charging options, including a Type-C port and a wireless charger.
Apart from this, push-button start/stop buttons, 360-degree camera and parking sensor buttons are also provided in the console near the gear lever. The gear lever in its DCT and automatic variants is finished in dual-tone matte and gloss gray, while an orange stripe is also given for a sporty look.
The interior door handles benefit from a brushed silver finish while the controls for the 3-level ventilated seats are positioned on the doors. Kia has also provided a 4-way power adjustable driver’s seat on the Ciros.
The seats also received a two-tone black and gray pattern. On which the leatherette covering has been given. For rear passengers, it also has a central armrest, sun blinds and 3-level seat ventilation. Like the front, it also has a ventilation control on the rear seat which is located on the door.
For convenience, it also comes with Type-C charging ports and AC vents on the rear seat. At the same time, an armrest is also provided on the first row seats and has an air purifier. Kia has provided a panoramic sunroof in the higher variants of the Ciros, while a single pane unit has also been provided in its lower variants.
Performance: 1-litre turbo-petrol engine: Two engine options have been offered for the performance of the Kia Ciros. It has a 1 liter 3-cylinder turbo-petrol engine that generates a power of 120 hp and a torque of 172 Nm. For the transmission, this engine will be available with the option of a manual gearbox (MT) 6-speed and a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission (DCT). This petrol engine is available on Hyundai i20 N-Line, Venue and Kia Sonet.
At the same time, another 1.5 liter 4-cylinder diesel engine will be available, generating 116 hp power and 250 Nm torque. For transmission, it will be available with the option of a manual gearbox 6-speed (MT) and a 6-speed torque converter automatic transmission (AT). The company did not disclose the mileage of the two engines. This diesel engine is also available in Hyundai Venue, Creta, Carens, Seltos and Sonet.
Safety Features: 6 airbags (standard) with ADAS Level 2 For added safety, the Kia Ciros is equipped with 6 airbags (standard), a 360-degree camera and an advanced parking assist system. (ADAS) Level 2. It includes features such as adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane keep assist and blind spot monitoring.