Kia Sonet spotted testing in production guise

- Kia will launch the Sonet in India in August or September 2020

- Will compete against the Hyundai Venue and Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza

Kia Motors has restarted road-testing the Sonet compact SUV after the Government of India eased the lockdown restrictions. The test mule looks like a near-production version of the Sonet concept that debuted at the Auto Expo 2020.

The heavy camouflage has done a good job at hiding the details, but the dual-tone alloys and the sharply raked window-line reveal its identity quite easily. The Kia Sonet was earlier set to launch in India in August this year, but the plan seems to have been pushed to September now.

The Sonet will be based on the same platform that underpins the Hyundai Venue, and will also share its mechanicals with the compact SUV. Kia is also expected to equip the Sonet with best-in-class features, and price it aggressively compared to the Venue.

Lower variants of the Kia Sonet will be powered by a 1.2-litre four-cylinder NA petrol motor. It is likely to be offered with a clutch-less Intelligent Manual Transmission (IMT). Higher versions will use an 118bhp/173Nm 1.0-litre TGDi turbocharged petrol unit that will be coupled to a six-speed manual or a seven-speed DCT. For mile munchers, there will be a Seltos-sourced 1.5-litre diesel motor that puts out 98bhp and 240Nm of peak torque. The oil burner will be offered with a six-speed manual transmission.

Kia is entering the compact SUV segment at a time when every other carmaker wants to have a pie of it. The segment has established players like the Maruti Vitara Brezza, Tata Nexon, Hyundai Venue, Mahindra XUV300 and Ford EcoSport. On the other hand, Renault and Nissan are readying the Kiger and Magnite SUVs, respectively, while Volkswagen and Skoda are also expected to enter the fiercely contested segment.

Image Source