New Kia Seltos takes aim at Corolla Cross and Kona

Kia Australia has priced its all-new hybrid-only Seltos from $37,990 plus on-road costs (ORCs), or $39,990 drive-away. The redesigned small SUV is due in showrooms this month.

That’s $6740 more than the outgoing petrol Seltos S. It puts the Korean contender right in the hybrid small SUV fight against the Toyota Corolla Cross and Hyundai Kona, at a time when Chinese brands are eating the segment’s lunch.

The new Seltos sticks with a model walk Kia says will be instantly familiar: S, S with Safety Pack, Sport, Sport+, GT-Line FWD and GT-Line AWD. Every variant runs a 1.6-litre hybrid matched to a six-speed dual-clutch auto.

Only the GT-Line AWD gets e-AWD, which Kia says is a first for its local hybrid line-up. A second e-motor drives the rear axle, with no mechanical link to the engine.

Kia hasn’t confirmed local outputs yet.

Government approval documents uncovered in August pointed to 119kW for front-drive versions and up to 169kW for the e-AWD. What we do know is that it’s grown: it’s 45mm longer and 30mm wider than before, on a wheelbase stretched by 60mm to 2690mm.

All that extra metal and electrification comes at a price. Here’s the walk from old to new, grade for grade:

S: up $6740 to $37,990 
Sport: up $7460 to $41,910
Sport+: up $7420 to $44,970
GT-Line FWD: up $6620 to $49,870
GT-Line AWD: up $6200 to $52,870

Against the old enemy, the gaps are tight. The base Seltos S is just $550 more than a Corolla Cross GX Hybrid ($37,440) and $1040 more than a Kona Hybrid ($36,950).

The GT-Line AWD costs $1880 more than the flagship Corolla Cross Atmos and GR-Sport AWD ($50,990). At drive-away level, the Seltos S ($39,990) and Honda HR-V e:HEV X ($39,900) are just $90 apart.

The Chinese hybrids are a different story.

A Chery Tiggo 4 Hybrid starts from $29,990 drive-away, which is exactly $10K less than the Seltos. An MG ZS Hybrid+ starts from $30,888 drive-away, a GWM Haval Jolion Hybrid from $32,990 and a Jaecoo J5 Hybrid from $34,990.

There’s some friendly fire in Kia’s own showroom, too. A petrol Sportage S is only $500 more than a Seltos S at $38,490. The Sportage S Hybrid FWD ($44,450) also undercuts the Seltos Sport+, and the Sportage SX Hybrid AWD ($49,450) is cheaper than the Seltos GT-Line FWD.

The new car is arriving in a busy segment. Small SUV sales grew 5.2 per cent to 144,723 units to the end of August, making it the second-biggest segment with 17.8% of the market.

The tertiary story here is where these small SUVs are built.

In August, Chinese brands accounted for 10,143 of the 17,820 small SUVs sold, or 56.9%, up from 38.4% a year earlier. Year to date, they make up 49.2% of the segment.

The Chery Tiggo 4 Pro leads the year with 17,806 sales (up 50.4%), ahead of the Kona (16,916), Jolion (15,033), MG ZS (11,822) and the new Jaecoo J5 (9439).

The Seltos, by comparison, managed just 285 sales in August (down 67.1%) and 4458 for the year (down 27.3%) as stock of the outgoing model dried up – called ‘runout’ in automotive terms.

Its electric sibling, the EV3, outsold it 515 to 285 last month.

The Seltos isn’t the only established nameplate doing it tough. The Mitsubishi ASX is down 84.2% this year, the Nissan Qashqai 72.8% and the Subaru Crosstrek 30.8%.

There’s also a warning sign for the pricier grades.

Sales of small SUVs under $45K are up 10.4% this year, while the over-$45K bracket has shrunk 15.3%.

The all-new Kia Seltos arrives in showrooms this month, with full local specifications to follow. That’s when we’ll find out whether the extra outlay buys enough kit to justify itself.

The bigger question is whether buyers will pay a $6K-plus premium for a Korean badge and hybrid efficiency when Chinese brands offer hybrid small SUVs for around $30K drive-away. Kia is betting they will.

How much does the 2026 Kia Seltos cost?
S – $37,990 ($39,990 d/a)
S with Safety Pack – $40,150 ($42,490 d/a)
Sport – $41,910 ($43,990 d/a)
Sport+ – $44,970 ($46,990 d/a)
GT-Line FWD – $49,870 ($52,990 d/a)
GT-Line AWD – $52,870 ($55,490 d/a)
*Prices exclude on-road costs unless marked d/a