Kia Seltos diesel variants get manual transmission. Check how much they cost

Kia has introduced 6-speed manual transmission in its flagship SUV Seltos. The SUV, which was launched last year, did not offer this gearbox option with the 1.5-litre diesel engine. Seltos now has five new trims which offer the manual transmission choice. The diesel variants which will now be offered with the 6-speed manual gearbox are HTE, HTK, HTK+, HTX and HTX+. With the new gearbox, the diesel variants of the Seltos now offers three transmission options which also include the Intelligent Manual Transmission (iMT) and 6-speed torque converter.

Kia has launched the diesel manual variants of the Seltos at a price of ₹12 lakh (ex-showroom). Spread across five variants, the price of this engine-gearbox combination goes up to ₹18.28 lakh (ex-showroom). The decision to introduce the 6-speed manual gearbox for comes days after Hyundai launched the Creta facelift SUV, arch rival of Seltos in the compact SUV segment. The diesel variants of the Creta are offered with three transmission choices which include a 6-speed manual, an iVT and AT gearbox.

Launched back in July last year, the Kia Seltos facelift SUV has already clocked more than 65,000 unit sales across India. It is Kia's best-selling car inIndia, contributing more than half of its overall sales. The Korean carmaker hopes the introduction of the manual transmission choice will further its chance to get more buyers on board. Myung-sik Sohn, Chief Sales and Business Strategy Officer at Kia India, said, "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."

Also watch: Hyundai Creta facelift first drive review

Kia Seltos offers 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol, 1.5-litre diesel and a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol as engine choices in its new avatar. In terms of transmission choices, it also offers 7-speed DCT gearbox for the turbo petrol engine and a CVT unit for the 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine. The power output ranges from 113 bhp to 158 bhp while torque output ranges between 144 Nm and 253 Nm.