As drivers here at Jim Butler Kia of St Louis seek out the best possible vehicle on a budget, the Kia Seltos shines with segment-leading value and performance. Next year’s model has all the right stuff to boast a youthful appeal, with a modern approach to an efficient and practical daily driver. At first glance, the rear features a different glow, and taillights with an updated look. The new X-Line model is the suave replacement for the Nightfall Editions, which offers a special grille, different wheels, gloss-black trim, and a cool black roof rack.
The turbocharged 1.6-liter 4-cylinder in the X-Line and SX trims is now equipped with a longer stroke than the previous model as well as a larger turbocharger, new injectors, and an adjusted cylinder head that cranks out an increase of 20 horsepower. The transmission is now a more traditional 8-speed model with a torque converter, replacing last year's 7-speed dual-clutch automatic. The Car and Driver crew were impressed during their test drive with the engines’ power, with the smoothed-out performance from the transmission being the slightly unassuming star of the show.
The 2024 model’s suspension remains unchanged, which offers ideal control over body motion, and brake-based torque vectoring offers excellent performance during the unexpected rapid stop. There have been so many modern feats of engineering over the past decade, as some of the new features on crossovers everywhere would have never been imagined just a few short years prior. The 2024 model’s addition of acoustic front glass keeps the cabin quite quiet for a budget crossover, keeping all intrusive noise to a minimum from the front end and side mirrors.
The steering quality of many crossovers out there sometimes becomes so precise that the element of spirited fun can be taken out of the daily drive. If your daily commute has the usual dose of stop-and-go that many St Louis drivers face, the 2024 Seltos’ revised cabin will render the A to B quite a bit more bearable. Every model except the base LX trim comes with an awesome pair of 10.3-inch touchscreens, and both the infotainment and climate controls are still maintained by hand.
Perfect for constantly changing urban environments, cyclist detection is now included across the lineup as a component of forward collision warning. One of the most evident and eager forms of competition against the Seltos is the Chevy Trax, and the Seltos’ overall stance, standard features, and price point put up a thoroughly rigid fight. The Motor Trend reporting pros were enthusiastic about the jumping power from the turbo engine, excellent cargo capacity, and very stylishly detailed exterior. They also enjoyed a very relaxed ride, light steering, and breaking with a refreshingly natural characteristic.
Second-row legroom is smartly above average for the segment, and a few exemplary instances of instrumented testing showed the Seltos outperforming the Subaru Crosstrek regarding many of the vital drive stats. Automatic emergency braking and available blind spot monitoring have now been enhanced for greater capability, in a fully programmable speed limiter can also be added on. Other additions that will please the tech-loving crowd are available projection LED headlights, a power liftgate, and ventilated front seats.
