2024 Kia Seltos Review: Neither Luxurious Nor Cheap

The opposite of luxury isn't cheap; not in the car world. When it comes to inexpensive transportation, no companies are doing it better for the North American market than Kia, Hyundai and Nissan right now.

The 2024 Kia Seltos is inexpensive, but not cheap. The subcompact crossover has firmly had one foot planted in the urban market since its U.S. arrival as a 2021 model. Today, changes to the car make it not just palpable, but a spirited rural route taker and highway machine that punches above its proverbial weight.

Fresh fascia brings the Seltos in line with the looks of the Sorento, but don't push it into line with the Niro, Sportage, or EV9. The fast looks wider, but isn't, giving the car a more planted appearance on the street. LED headlights and Star Map band lighting that weaves into the grille are available.

Kia's on a cool wheels turn and the Seltos's wheel options play into that. They're fun, complex and give the Seltos a bit of character. Two 17-inch and an 18-inch design are available.

Buyers who want their Seltos to walk on the dark side can opt for the X-Line model, which adds black to the door garnishes, roof rack and wheels, while also delivering an exclusive grille design.

Seltos comes standard with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that delivers 146 horsepower (hp) and 132 pound-feet (lb-ft) of torque. A smaller engine option that packs more of a punch is available. That turbocharged 1.6-liter power plant deliver 195 hp and 195 lb-ft of torque. Both engines are paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission.

Kia's most powerful engine option is the one to get, but it comes at a cost. Opting for the four-cylinder allows a buyer to choose between front- and all-wheel drive, achieving an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated 31 or 29 miles per gallon (mpg) in combined driving situations, respectively. The 2.0-liter comes paired with all-wheel drive and gets just 26 miles mpg.

The Seltos is not terribly fuel efficient, nor is it electrified. Those are its two biggest knocks. But, while giving those up, the consumer gets an SUV that is zippy around town, more than competent on the highway, and engaging on winding roads. It's not a sports car, but when equipped with all-wheel drive, the model remains planted while its comfortable suspension soak's up the road's imperfections in a way befitting a much more expensive model.

Kia offers the Seltos with Normal, Sport and Smart drive modes, but they're not truly necessary. As always is the case in the company's cars, Smart is the best balance, allowing the model to be fuel economical when it can, but without giving up the benefits of an eager throttle response.

The interior of the car is reasonably refined for its price point. There are materials compromises and good use of parts bin knobs and dials, hallmarks of any lower priced model, but nothing here that looks like it's cheap.

Technology is a bigger differentiator in the Seltos than its materials. It comes standard with three USB ports and can be equipped with a power liftgate and Digital Key, which allows a user to utilize their phone or smartwatch to lock and unlock the car. Seltos buyers who want ventilated seats and a sunroof will want to check the options box for the SX Sunroof Package.

Kia has added to the Seltos's infotainment and driver's information displays for the 2024 model year. There's now a simple 4.2-inch instrument panel display paired with an 8-inch infotainment screen in the Seltos base model. Opting for a higher grade moves up the offering to twin 10.25-inch screens.

The larger screens are where Seltos beats most of the competition, including the new Chevrolet Trax and Nissan Kicks. Not only are they plenty large, but they're also responsive with information sorted out in an easy-to-read manner.

Depending on the Seltos trim level, the new SUV can come equipped with an interior color scheme that is very different than what is traditionally seen. Navy, Brown and Midnight Green colorways are available.

No matter the color, owners get access to plenty of spacious seating for four adults, despite the SUV's subcompact size. The rear cargo space is suitably roomy for the class of vehicle as well.

A long roster of standard and available safety and driver assist technology also help the Seltos to outpace the competition. Driver attention warning, high beam assist, lane centering technology, rearview collision monitoring, and rear occupant alert come standard. Forward collision avoidance assist with pedestrian and cyclist detection, blind spot collision warning, adaptive cruise control with stop and go, speed limiter, navigation-based cruise control and forward collision avoidance with junction turning alertness round out the heavily-populated roster of features.

Kia offers the Seltos in LX, S, X-Line and EX grades with pricing that ranges from $24,390 to $29,990. It's a bargain at the starting price and continues to be well-equipped with polished looks as the price nears the maximum.

While the Trax is equally as energetic on the road, with slightly better handing dynamics, the Kia wins on technology and comfort. Materials, engine and technology in the Seltos are better than those in the Kicks and Toyota Corolla Cross. Add in the all-wheel drive factor and Seltos continues to win versus the Chevy Trailblazer, Subaru Crosstrek and Mazda CX-30 due to the same technology, space, comfort and style reasons it bests front-wheel drive competition.

The Kia Seltos is a winner that easily makes the case for you to dump your aging Soul for something new and more comfortable with better drive dynamics. It pulls double duty as a perfect antidote to the ages old going-to-college car dilemma thanks to all-wheel drive availability and a large roster of safety technology bound to pass the parental sniff test.