New Kia Cross-Hatchback To Be The South Korean Brand’s Third Made-In-India Product

Kia India Hatchback: Details & rumours of third Made-In-India Kia model out. Kia Motors will launch 6 models in India in 3 years.

Updated: Saturday, January 19, 2019, 18:07 [IST]

Kia Motors will soon make their official debut in India. Prior to that, the South Korean brand has confirmed that there will be six new Kia models launching in the country within a span of three years.

The first one among the proposed six will be the production version of the Kia SP Concept, while the second product will be a compact-SUV set to launch at Auto Expo 2020.

Now, Autocar India states that a new Kia cross-hatchback is in the works. Once launched, it will be the third made-and-assembled-in-India Kia product to hit the market. You can see that the brand is introducing new products in segments which are popular, yet not that competitive.

The company has already set up their manufacturing facility in India and we have visited it as well — read our experience here.

For instance, the five-seater SUV segment has only the Hyundai Creta (and maybe the upcoming Tata Harrier, while the Jeep Compass's sales figures are going down) as the main rival to the SP Concept.

On the other hand, the compact-SUV market has developed a lot of interest over the years, but has got only the Tata Nexon and Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza as the main players (the Ford EcoSport follows the lead from a distance).

Finally, coming to the cross-hatchback segment, the market is dominated by the Ford Freestyle by a good margin. The new Kia cross-hatch will probably be more expensive than the Freestyle, and will land in the premium hatchback territory. Hence, the Maruti Suzuki Baleno, Hyundai Elite i20 and Volkswagen Polo will the products to beat.

Regarding its launch, nothing can be expected by at least 2021. Rumours suggest that it will be based on the next-generation Kia Rio hatchback. The Rio is also sold as the K2 Cross in various other markets such as China and Russia. Unlike the Kia K2 Cross, the India-spec model will be cut-short to under four metres.

It is way too early to share anything on the specifications of the upcoming Kia hatchback crossover. Rumours suggest that it will come with a 1.0-litre turbo-petrol unit and a 1.5-litre diesel.

Thoughts On The New Kia Models For India

Kia Motors has got a lot planned for the Indian market. However, the brand has shared only some vague details of this since its offcial debut was announced back at Auto Expo 2018. With Hyundai's backing, Kia products might even make to the list of top-selling cars in India. What do you think?