With combined sales of 35,555 units since launch, the Kia Syros and Skoda Kylaq have a 7% share of the 488,803 compact SUVs sold in India in the first four months of CY2025. While the Syros accounts for 20% of Kia India’s vehicle sales and is its fourth best-selling model, the Kylaq has taken charge as Skoda India’s best-selling model with a 64% share.
24 May 2025 | 807 Views | By Ajit Dalvi
If the utility vehicle market is the mover and shaker of the passenger vehicle market in India, then the compact SUV sub-segment is the UV segment’s key growth driver. Of the total 983,026 UVs sold in the first four months of CY2025, the compact SUV segment accounted for 488,803 units ...
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If the utility vehicle market is the mover and shaker of the passenger vehicle market in India, then the compact SUV sub-segment is the UV segment’s key growth driver. Of the total 983,026 UVs sold in the first four months of CY2025, the compact SUV segment accounted for 488,803 units or exactly 50%, leaving the remaining half to the midsize SUV and MPV categories. The strong double-digit growth is also the reason why most UV makers in India have an SUV or two in the compact SUV segment. The Kia Syros and the Skoda Kylaq are the newest compact SUVs in the market, launched within days of each other, with sales beginning in January 2025.
As per SIAM wholesales numbers, the Kia Syros (19,986 units) and the Skoda Kylaq (15,569 units) together sold 35,555 units, which gives them a 7% share of the 488,803 compact SUVs dispatched by OEMs to dealers between January and April 2025 (see data table above). While the Kia Syros has a 4% share, the Skoda Kylaq has a 3% share of the compact SUV sales in the first four months of this year.
Given their strong market performance, not surprisingly, both models are among the Top 10 best-selling compact SUVs in April 2025. Both have also aced the Bharat NCAP crash test with a five-star rating. Let’s take a closer look at how each of these two new SUVs have contributed to their company’s sales in the past four months.
Kia India expects the sub-four-metre Syros, its second compact SUV after the Sonet (which has been its best-selling model since January 2024), to give it a fresh charge in the compact SUV market and also help grow its UV share in India.
Starting off with 5,546 units in January 2025, its highest monthly sales to date, to 4,000 units in April, cumulative four-month Syros sales of 19,986 units gives this ace-of-space compact SUV a 20% share of Kia India’s total PV sales of 99,199 units in the January-April 2025 period.
Of the company’s seven-model portfolio, the Syros ranks fourth in the past four months after the Sonet (30,565 units, 31% share), Seltos (25,576 units, 26% share, Carens (21,611 units, 22% share) and ahead of the Carnival (923 units), EV6 (520 units) and EV9 (18 units).
Positioned above the Sonet and below the Seltos midsize SUV, the five-seater Kia Syros is targeted at families and, according to Kia India, has been designed and engineered following in-depth analysis of local market trends to ensure that it precisely meets the needs of Indian consumers.
The Kia Syros bagged a top five-star rating in the Bharat NCAP crash testing, scoring 30.21 out of 32 points in Adult Occupant Protection and 44.42 out of 49 points in Child Occupant Protection. This makes it Kia’s first made-in-India model to get a five-star crash test rating by either Bharat NCAP or Global NCAP.
The Syros’ ex-showroom price range is from Rs 900,000 to Rs 17.80 lakh. On-road Delhi pricing for the 13-variant Syros starts at Rs 10.18 lakh for the base 1.0 HTX variant and goes up to Rs 21.18 lakh for the top-end 1.5 CRDi HTX+ (O) AT variant.
The Syros is sold in four standard trim levels and two option trims – HTK, HTK (O), HTK+, HTX, and HTX+, HTX+(O) – paired with manual and automatic transmissions. Kia’s newest SUV for India has two engine options: a 1.0-litre turbo petrol which develops maximum power of 120 hp and 172 Nm of torque, and a 1.5-litre CRDi diesel with 116hp and 250 Nm of torque.
The Kia Syros has a claimed mileage of 18.2kpl for the petrol MT and 17.68kpl for petrol AT; for diesel variants, the mileage goes up to 20.75kpl for the MT and 17.65kpl for the AT.
The Kylaq, Skoda India’s vehicle of entry into the booming compact SUV market, has received a massively strong customer response. So much so that from February 2025 onwards, it has become the company’s best-selling locally produced vehicle, ahead of the Kushaq SUV and Slavia sedan.
As the monthly wholesales data table above depicts, the Kylaq’s sales have risen month on month – from January’s 1,242 units through to 5,364 units in April 2025. This has seen this compact SUV’s share of Skoda India’s overall PV sales increase from 30% in January to 73% in April 2025. The Kylaq’s four months’ sales of 15,569 units give it a 64% share of Skoda India’s total PV sales of 24,441 units in the first four months of this year. In fact, the Kylaq is the company’s best-selling product over the past four months, ahead of the Slavia (4,645 units, 19% share), Kushaq (4,086 units, 17% share), Kodiaq (140 units) and Superb (1 unit).
The most dynamically sorted compact SUV, as Autocar India calls it, the Kylaq’s highlights are space, performance and handling. The latest Skoda in town is a high-on-quality product that straddles multiple segments – the Kylaq competes against premium hatchbacks, compact SUVs, and compact sedans, targeting customers looking at a do-it-all family car with top-notch driving dynamics and safety features.
Sold with only a 1.0-litre turbo-petrol engine, which develops 115hp and 178 Nm of torque and mated with manual and automatic transmissions, the Kylaq has a top speed of 188kph. On the fuel efficiency front, it delivers 19.05kpl in the city and 19.68kpl on the highway.
Aggressive pricing has been a key factor for the success of the Kylaq which has an ex-showroom price of Rs 825,000 through to Rs 13.99 lakh for the top-end variant. The on-road Delhi pricing for the seven-variant Kylaq starts at Rs 892,000 (on-road Delhi) for the base Classic variant up to Rs 16.72 lakh for the top-end Prestige AT variant.
The Skoda Kylaq, which rolls out of the company’s Chakan plant in Pune, shares its MQB-AO-IN platform with not only sibling Kushaq but also the Volkswagen Taigun and Virtus. This compact SUV has good space for four passengers and comes with features like a 10-inch infotainment screen, a sunroof, and electrically adjustable front seats. The Kylaq has a long list of safety features including six airbags, which are standard on all variants.
The Skoda Kylaq has the distinction of being the best-performing compact SUV in Bharat NCAP test thus far. The five-star rated model scored 30.88 out of 32 in Adult Occupant Protection and 45 out of 49 points in Child Occupant Protection.
Bullish on accelerated demand for the Kylaq coming its way and having ramped up production capacity, Skoda India expects Kylaq sales to hit the 8,000-unit monthly mark by the end of CY2025. We’ll keep you posted along the way. Stay tuned in.
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