Living with the Kia Sonet

The sub-four metre SUV market is probably the hottest segment when it comes to car sales in India at the moment. If Kia had arrived in India a few years ago, we would’ve probably seen a sedan in place of the Sonet that the brand sells today. Why so, you ask? Compact SUV’s, as they are popularly called, are anything but far and few, and the volumes that each model sells in made it an obvious choice for Kia to join the bandwagon.

Kia has its entrant in this segment in the form of the Sonet, which was introduced in the country in September 2020. Kia Motors India was kind enough to send us a unit of the Sonet, an HTX Plus diesel manual trim finished in a shade of Gravity Grey. I was handed over the keys of the Sonet as it performed its official duties and this is what I learned about it after living with it for a while.

Getting into the Kia Sonet is a convenient affair, as the keyless entry no longer requires you to use the key fob anymore. A single press of the request sensor on the grab handle and the car is unlocked as it senses the key in the nearby surroundings.

A push-button start further adds to the ease of life and I no longer need to take the key out of my pocket for almost anything now. Being particular about where I keep my stuff in the car while on the Go, I was pleasantly surprised when I found a slot between the cup holders that my phone could sit in. Yes, it’s a dedicated phone holder at that.

Those cup holders though, do not hold 1 litre bottles, so, if you’re someone who likes to keep a water bottle handle handy, the door-mounted cubby holes are where they’d go. If you happen to carry a 500ml bottle, the cup holders have the capacity to hold two of them for you. The height-adjustable driver seat helped me find a comfortable driving position, while also giving me the option of a little extra headroom than those cars or versions that miss out on this feature. Should you have a fellow passenger who carries multiple phones, the Sonet will happily accommodate them in the two dedicated slots on the centre console.

While the white interiors help the Sonet feel roomier, something that personally added more space (albeit mentally) is the blind for the sunroof, which, once opened, lets more light into the cabin, thus giving a sense of more air and space to breathe in. The rear side of the front-arm rest houses an air filter that not only filters clean air into the cabin, but also tells you about the Air Quality Index (AQI) of the car. Sitting below the latter is a USB charging port and a cubby hole that can house your mobile as it gets charged, although we found the size more ideal to stow away something like a wallet.

Sit inside, and you are welcomed by the dual-tone white and black upholstery, which looks and gives you a vibrant feel, but practicality isn’t as high due to the tendency of a dusty atmosphere on most occasions, which are likely to soil the white interiors, wherever present. The leather-wrapped flat-bottom steering wheel feels nice to hold, and the design is pretty attractive too.

Did we mention that the steering-mounted controls help save us from the distraction of having to look at the touchscreen system when we need to adjust the volume or skip a track?

Elsewhere on the centre console are those beautifully designed buttons for the AC controls, while the AC vents themselves get a unique design and finish, the latter in a shade of brushed aluminium. A few other notable features include an auto-dimming IRVM, mood lighting, and the cool-looking A-pillar mounted speakers.

As the summer season starts to set in, the heat is usually felt throughout the day, and this is where the beauty of the cooled seats helped keep temperatures low, at least for the front passengers. For those of you who like to keep the sunglasses in the car, the Sonet has a dedicated sunglass holder with a soft liner inside.

The 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system packs a lot of features, including Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Uvo connectivity. The system also lets you play around with multiple other features such as the mood lighting, air filter and perfume settings, as well as navigation. Safety features include dual airbags, ABS with EBD, rear parking sensors, Isofix child seat anchorages, rear view camera, and a Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).

The Kia Sonet we drove is powered by a 1.5-litre, four-cylinder diesel engine that produces 99bhp and 240Nm of torque. The model in question is paired to a six-speed manual gearbox, while a six-speed torque converter automatic transmission is also offered.

Our test unit returned a fuel efficiency of 16.28kmpl in the city and should return approximately 20kmpl on the highway.

Being a diesel mill, the strong point of this Kia Sonet is its healthy mid-range, which allows for quick overtakes in and around the city as well as the highway, should the situation demand it. The steering is light and precise, although we would have liked it to be a bit more heavy as it gets around the triple-digit speeds. The suspension feels just about fine as we potter around the city, although a few irregular surfaces might cause the rear suspension to feel bouncy.

Speed bumps and potholes are taken in fair stride, and the diesel clatter doesn’t bother us either unless we start pushing it harder than usual. The gearbox doesn’t need to be constantly worked upon during highway runs, however, the engine might struggle a bit under a full load of five occupants and their luggage.

The Kia Sonet can swallow a healthy dose of luggage in the 392 litre boot, evident from our multiple shoots where it was required to gobble up all the camera equipment, bags, a then a little more. As you see in the image, the bootspace took up all our belongings, six backpacks and a duffle bag at that!

Still, falling short of space or need to shift houses? Drop the second row of seats flat and you get oodles of space to fill up all your stuff in. One thing that did bother us, though, was the high loading lip, which made it difficult to keep heavy bags as it took more effort than usual. Any luggage cannot be packed too high, as it is bound to intrude with the parcel tray. The wheel arches also eat into a bit of space that would have been otherwise useful in accommodating additional baggage.

Seating in the second row is fairly tight for three individuals, and is hence best suited for two passengers, who can complete a long journey in comfort. Passengers get two individually adjustable head-rests, and a foldable arm-rest with dual cup holders.

Some of our team members like to sip on coffee on the go, and these features helped them sit back and relax, without having to worry about the container or any chance of spillage.

The Kia Sonet, just like all other models from the brand’s line-up, comes with a factory warranty of three years or unlimited kilometres.

Kia also offers an extended warranty for the Sonet for up to five years and unlimited kilometres.

The Kia Sonet has a lot to offer, be it the feature list, the gorgeous looks, or the fuel-efficient yet punchy motor that takes us to scenic locations every now and then. If we had to nitpick, it would be the lack of a diesel automatic variant in the lower trims of the model, which, we feel, would result in sales going north. After all, who doesn’t like a convenient, yet frugal automatic transmission, even if it’s a dash over your budget.

The Sonet is available in two body-styles including HT Line and GT Line and 11 colours. Customers can also choose from three engine and five transmission options across six trims, with prices ranging from Rs 6.79 lakh to Rs 13.19 lakh (ex-showroom).

With such a wide price range and multiple variant combinations, we’re not surprised to learn about the model’s success, which currently commands a waiting period of up to six months. Rivals to the model include the Hyundai Venue, Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Tata Nexon, Toyota Urban Cruiser, Ford EcoSport, and new arrivals such as the Nissan Magnite and the Renault Kiger.

Pictures by Kaustubh Gandhi