EXCLUSIVE: Seltos is first made-in-India SUV to surpass 700,000 sales milestone

The Seltos, Kia’s first made-in-India vehicle, has driven past 700,000 cumulative sales in the domestic market. Launched on August 22, 2019, Kia India’s first locally manufactured vehicle continues to spearhead the Korean car and SUV manufacturer’s growth story in India.

Between August 2019 and October 2026, the Seltos has clocked domestic market sales of 704,829 units, which gives the midsize SUV a 36% share of the 1.68 million Kia utility vehicles sold in India till October 2026.

The Seltos is also Kia India’s No. 1 export model with over 160,000 units shipped to overseas markets. While the Sonet compact SUV, the company’s second best-selling model, is 110,000-odd units behind the Seltos in domestic market wholesales, the Carens MPV has sold 331,186 units.  

Fittingly enough, the Seltos drove past the 700,000 milestone in October 2026, which delivered Kia India’s highest monthly dispatches of 33,462 units and had a 40% model-wise share with 13,423 units. This is the Seltos’ second-highest monthly sales after clocking 15,000 units in January 2020, five months after launch.

The Seltos (704,829 units) accounts for 42% of Kia India’s cumulative domestic market wholesales of 16,88,627 units. Second-gen model launched this year has sold 81,090 units in FY2027 YTD.

Seltos helped make Kia a household name in India

The Kia Seltos can be credited with making a relatively unknown Korean brand in India a household name. At launch seven years ago, the Seltos shook up the midsize SUV market with 16 variants at multiple price-points, more features, more space, more comfort and more luxury. In its very first month of sale (August 2019: 6,236 units), the Seltos debuted in the India Top 5 UVs list and also outsold the Seltos sold in Korea by 127 units.

Not surprisingly, Seltos sales in the last eight months of FY2020 were 81,717 units and helped Kia cement itself in the Top 5 passenger vehicle OEMs. 

Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, which brought the world and the market to its knees, the Seltos maintained its sales momentum in both FY2021 (89,173 units) and FY2022 (95,929 units) and then crossed the 100,000 milestone for the first time in FY2023 (100,132 units).

However, increased midsize SUV competition after FY2023 slowed down sales. FY2024’s 100,423 units were just 291 units more than in FY2023. In FY2025, Seltos sales fell by 27% to 72,618 units albeit demand rose by 5% in FY2026 (83,747 units), helped by strong growth in Q4 (January-March 2026) with the launch of the second-generation Seltos.

Launched in January 2026, the new Seltos has sold 113,078 units till October, up 87% YoY, and has a 40% share of the 286,470 vehicles Kia India has dispatched to its showrooms in the past 10 months.

Second-gen Seltos: Bigger and better, fourth-ranked midsize SUV in FY2027

The second-gen Seltos, launched on January 2, 2026, has seen a strong revival in demand for this midsize SUV. Kia India, which strategically launched the new model at a time when the SUV market in India is witnessing growing demand for midsize SUVs, is benefiting from the replacement demand from previous first-gen Seltos owners, attracting buyers from even a segment above (executive SUVs) as well as those keen on upgrading from compact SUVs. 

In this calendar year to date, Kia India’s best-selling product has clocked sales of 113,078 units, up 87% YoY (January-October 2025: 60,526 units). In fact, the last 100,000 Seltos SUVs have been sold in just nine months – 102,439 units between February and October 2026.

The 10,639 units in the opening month of CY2026 saw the Seltos achieve five-figure sales after a gap of 25 months (November 2023: 11,684 units). Since then, barring June (9,654 units), the Seltos has comfortably crossed 10,000 units: January (10,639 units), February (10,308 units), March (11,041 units), April (10,566 units), May (10,597 units), July (12,541 units), August (11,716 units), September (12,593 units) and October (13,423 units).

The boldly styled, spacious MY2026 Seltos, which offers improved ride comfort and a wide choice of powertrains along with sensible pricing, is a key contributor to the strong growth of the midsize SUV market.

The Seltos, which battles in a segment which has over 20 models, including eight EVs and some hybrids, is currently ranked fourth with wholesales of 81,090 units in the January-October period. This segment is led by the Mahindra Scorpio (112,841 units), Hyundai Creta (107,682 units), and the Maruti Victoris (88,804 units) after the first seven months of FY2027. 

MY2O26 Seltos packs a punch and more

The MY2026 Kia Seltos, which has won a 5-star Bharat NCAP crash test rating, is priced from Rs 11 lakh through to Rs 21.82 lakh (ex-showroom). It has three engine options on offer: a 115hp, 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol, a 116hp, 1.5-litre turbo-diesel, and a 160hp, 1.5-litre turbo-petrol, all available with manual and automatic gearboxes. Fuel efficiency is a claimed 19.1kpl for the diesel AT and up to 17.9kpl for the petrol engines. 

The Kia Seltos interior features premium leatherette upholstery, a 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen and digital driver’s display, ambient lighting, ventilated front seats, panoramic sunroof, and dual-zone climate control.

With 286,470 units sold between January and October this year, Kia India has crossed its CY2025 sales of 280,286 units and should end CY2026 with estimated wholesales of over 340,000 units.

Kia India to surpass 300,000 annual sales for the first time in November 2026

In CY2026, Kia has targeted global sales of 3.35 million vehicles worldwide including 2.77 million vehicles outside of Korea and 565,000 units in Korea. In the first 10 months of this year, Kia India has sold 286,470 units which marks 21% YoY increase (January-October 2025: 236,138 units) and has surpassed its previous highest annual sales of 280,286 units in CY2025.

With just 13,530 units left to go to hit 300,000 annual sales this year, Kia India will achieve this new milestone for the first time this month (November 2026). With the new second-gen Seltos firing on all cylinders and the new ICE-powered flagship Sorento three-row midsize SUV clocking 4,242 units in the August-October period, Kia India could even close in on the 350,000 mark. Stay tuned in as we bring you in the latest number-crunching analyses.

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