Kia Seltos Diesel Manual Launched; Range Starts At Rs 12 Lakh

The Kia Seltos diesel is now available with a 6-speed manual gearbox. Priced from Rs 12 lakh, the Seltos diesel manual powertrain is available across all five trim levels offered in the Tech Line range – HTE, HTK, HTK+, HTX and HTX+. The top diesel manual variant is priced at Rs 18.28 lakh (all prices, ex-showroom). The GT Line and X Line variants continue to only get the option of an automatic gearbox with the 1.5-litre diesel mill.

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The move follows in line with the powertrain upgrades made to the smaller Sonet with the debut of the facelift. As part of the mid-lifecycle update the subcompact SUV received the option of a traditional manual gearbox paired with the 1.5-litre diesel engine. Kia has pulled the plug on the manual gearbox for the diesel engine in the Seltos and Sonet in early 2023.

Also read: 2024 Kia Sonet Facelift Review: It’s Better Than Ever!

Diesel manual powertrain only available on the Tech Line variants.

“A lot of customers wanted to experience the joy of shifting gears, and hence, we are introducing 6-speed manual transmission in 5 Seltos diesel variants for true enthusiasts who love to have full control on the road. This inclusion in the new Seltos will make its positioning as the smartest, safest driving experience even stronger," said Myung-sik Sohn, Chief Sales and Business Strategy Officer, Kia India.

Also read: Kia Sonet Facelift Launched In India; Prices Start At Rs 7.99 Lakh

Aside from the gearbox, Kia has made no changes to the Seltos which received a mid-lifecycle facelift in mid-2023. The company says that the manual gearbox will be offered as an option alongside the current iMT (clutch-less manual) unit. Kia however has not clarified if the iMT gearbox will continue to be offered across all Tech Line variants.

Kia says it will continue to offer the iMT gearbox option for the diesel Seltos.

Also read: Why Kia Reintroduced A Manual With The Facelifted Sonet Diesel

The Seltos diesel is also available with a 6-speed torque converter automatic gearbox in select variants.

Speaking of positioning, the Seltos diesel manual’s prices start about Rs 45,000 below the recently launched Hyundai Creta facelift. The Creta however does offer the option of the diesel manual on the fully-loaded model while the Seltos GTX and X-Line diesels are only offered with automatics.