Kia Seltos Hybrid Now On Sale From $39,990 Drive-Away, Up to $55,490

• The all-new Kia Seltos is a hybrid in every grade, priced from $37,990 RRP ($39,990 drive-away) for the S up to $52,870 RRP ($55,490 drive-away) for the GT-Line e-AWD.
• Kia gives combined fuel use from 5.1 L/100 km and a 112 kW front-drive output, with 126 kW on the GT-Line e-AWD, all of them the maker’s own figures.
• The car is in Kia dealerships now, and its ANCAP safety rating has not been announced.

What the First Hybrid Seltos Costs, Grade by Grade

Kia Australia has put the first hybrid Seltos on sale at its dealerships, and the cheapest way in is the S at $37,990 RRP, or $39,990 drive-away. The range climbs through six grades to the GT-Line e-AWD at $52,870 RRP, or $55,490 drive-away. Kia prices every grade with one 1.6-litre petrol hybrid and a six-speed dual-clutch automatic, so the money buys equipment and drive layout, not a different engine.

The full list, RRP first and drive-away second: S $37,990 and $39,990; S with Safety Pack $40,150 for the RRP; Sport $41,910 and $43,990; Sport+ $44,970 and $46,990; GT-Line front-wheel drive $49,870 and $52,990; GT-Line e-AWD $52,870 and $55,490. The price lists we checked disagree by $70 on the drive-away figure for the S with Safety Pack, so get that one in writing from the dealer. The gap between RRP and drive-away runs from $2,000 on the S to $3,120 on the front-wheel-drive GT-Line, so budget for the higher figure when you compare cars.

Premium paint adds $600 on every colour except Clear White. The line-up has seven colours, two of them white (Clear White and Snow White Pearl), two grey, plus Aurora Black Pearl, Denim Blue and Tan Beige.

Dennis Piccoli, the chief executive of Kia Australia, described the launch through the nameplate’s record. “The all-new Seltos represents a significant step forward for one of Kia Australia’s most important vehicles,” Piccoli said. He added: “Seltos has built a strong reputation among Australian customers through its combination of practicality, value and versatility. This new generation builds upon those foundations with the addition of hybrid technology, advanced connectivity, greater refinement and a stronger SUV character than ever before.”

Hybrid Power, e-AWD and the Fuel Figures

Every Seltos runs a petrol engine alongside an electric motor, powered by a high-voltage battery, on Kia’s K3 platform. Front-wheel-drive grades produce a combined system output of 112 kW and 265 Nm. The GT-Line is the only grade with a choice of drive: it comes as a front-wheel-drive car or with e-AWD, the first electrified all-wheel-drive system in a Kia Australia hybrid. A separate electric motor drives the rear wheels when needed, with no driveshaft to the back axle, and the combined output rises to 126 kW. Kia says that layout gives better traction on wet roads and loose gravel.

Kia also fits Smart Regenerative Braking 3. Holding the right-hand paddle on the steering wheel makes the car adjust the braking force that recovers energy to the battery to suit traffic flow and driver behaviour.

Fuel use is the maker’s figure and follows the ADR 81/03 (WLTP) standard. Kia quotes combined consumption from 5.1 L/100 km for the S, and its table lists four combined figures in all: 5.1, 5.3, 5.4 and 5.8 L/100 km, with CO2 of 115, 121, 123 and 131 g/km. Ask the dealer which figure belongs to the grade you want. As an illustration, over 10,000 km the lowest and highest of the four figures differ by 70 litres of petrol: 510 litres at 5.1 L/100 km against 580 litres at 5.8. No independent fuel figure for the new model was on file when this was written.

“As customer demand for electrified vehicles continues to grow, the all-new Seltos will further strengthen Kia’s presence in the highly competitive small SUV segment,” Piccoli said.

Room, Boot and the Kit Each Grade Gets

The new Seltos is 4,430 mm long, 45 mm longer than the outgoing car, and 1,830 mm wide, 30 mm wider. The roof is 30 mm lower at 1,600 mm. The wheelbase grows 60 mm to 2,690 mm, and Kia puts the extra length into the back seat, where legroom rises 25 mm to 990 mm. Headroom is up 12 mm in the front row and 14 mm in the second row on grades without the panoramic roof. Rear passengers also get backrests that recline up to 24 degrees on every grade.

The boot holds 483 litres with the seats up (VDA method, up from 468) and 1,441 litres with the 60:40 rear seat folded (up from 1,428). Both figures are given with a space saver spare in the car. A dual-level boot floor gives either a flat load surface or more depth. Check the spare on the exact car you are buying: the S list shows a temporary spare tyre, while the GT-Line list shows a tyre mobility kit against the all-wheel-drive model.

The S has 16-inch alloy wheels, a 12.3-inch driver display and 12.3-inch infotainment screen, wired and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, dual-zone climate control, a reverse camera, a smart key with remote start and Kia Connect. Kia Connect lets an owner pre-set the climate remotely and receive over-the-air software updates. The S also carries the safety kit listed for the whole range: Forward Collision Avoidance Assist 2 (Kia’s autonomous emergency braking), an in-cabin safety camera that is new to Kia’s local line-up, and a centre airbag between the front seats.

Here is what each step up buys, at RRP. The Safety Pack adds $2,160 to the S and brings the surround view monitor, the blind spot view monitor, Remote Smart Parking Assist and a parking collision avoidance system that works in reverse. The Sport costs a further $1,760 over the S with Safety Pack, carries the same parking and camera kit, and adds 18-inch wheels, a built-in sat nav and Highway Driving Assist 2. The Sport+ adds $3,060 more for a powered driver seat, heated front seats, rear privacy glass and rain-sensing wipers. The GT-Line sits on 19-inch wheels with a head-up display, Harman/Kardon audio, a heated steering wheel, ventilated front seats with driver memory, a panoramic sunroof and a power tailgate. Choosing the e-AWD over front-wheel drive on the GT-Line costs $3,000 at RRP.

How the Price Sits Against the Corolla Cross and Other Hybrids

The Toyota Corolla Cross is the nearest like-for-like rival: it is sold here only as a hybrid. Toyota’s prices as listed in March 2026 put the GX front-wheel drive at $37,440 before on-road costs, the GXL front-wheel drive at $41,190 and the GXL all-wheel drive at $44,190. The Atmos all-wheel drive is $50,990.

Set against the Seltos RRPs, that makes the Kia $550 dearer at the entry grade (S $37,990 against GX $37,440), $720 dearer in the middle (Sport $41,910 against GXL $41,190), $780 dearer for the front-wheel-drive Sport+ against the all-wheel-drive GXL (Sport+ $44,970 against GXL $44,190) and $1,880 dearer at the top (GT-Line e-AWD $52,870 against Atmos all-wheel drive $50,990). Those are not like-for-like figures: Toyota states its prices before on-road costs, and Kia does not say what its RRP includes. Ask both brands for a drive-away quote in your state before comparing. Toyota claims 4.2 L/100 km for the front-wheel-drive Corolla Cross against the Seltos S at 5.1, and a 146 kW system output against 112 kW on the front-drive Seltos. Its boot holds 425 litres in front-wheel-drive form against the Seltos at 483. Both fuel figures are claims, and the page we checked does not state the test standard behind Toyota’s, so treat that gap as a guide.

The Hyundai Kona Hybrid BLK Edition, the Seltos’s closest small SUV rival, starts at $42,600 before delivery and on-road costs.

The Jaecoo J7 Black Edition is a plug-in hybrid, a different kind of car, but it is useful for price context at $49,990 drive-away on a November offer, which is $3,000 below the Seltos GT-Line front-wheel-drive drive-away price.

On ownership terms, Kia offers a seven-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, seven years of capped-price servicing at any authorised Kia dealer, and a warranty balance that passes to the next owner. Toyota’s Corolla Cross carries five years and unlimited kilometres, extending to seven years on the engine and driveline when the car is serviced on time in its dealer network, and caps the first five services at $275 each. The Kia warranty page notes that the seven-year kilometre terms differ for Kia’s electric models. Its hybrid page lists a seven-year, 150,000 km warranty on high-voltage components, with the high-voltage battery system as its example, and that line does not name the Seltos, so get that cover confirmed in writing for this car. The warranty page also lists a separate two-year, unlimited-kilometre cover for the battery, so ask the dealer which battery that covers in a hybrid. Complimentary roadside assistance runs for 12 months, extendable to eight years when the car is returned to a Kia dealer for every scheduled service.

Before You Sign: Ask About ANCAP, the Spare and the Drive-Away Price

Kia is working with ANCAP on the new Seltos, and the safety rating has not been issued. Buyers who put a star rating first can wait for the announcement or ask the dealer what Kia expects. Until then, the confirmed equipment is Forward Collision Avoidance Assist 2 and the in-cabin camera on every grade, with Highway Driving Assist 2 from the Sport upward.

Three questions are worth asking at the dealership: the drive-away price in your state for the exact grade, including the GT-Line front-wheel-drive car, whether the car has a space saver spare or a tyre mobility kit, and the capped-price service schedule for the Seltos hybrid. Scheduled maintenance costs are not covered by the warranty, so the servicing prices decide the running costs over the seven years.

Graeme Gambold, Kia Australia’s Chief Ride and Handling Engineer, led the local suspension and steering program for the car, which Kia describes as a calibration developed specifically for Australian road conditions. “The all-new Seltos has undergone extensive local evaluation and development to ensure it performs exceptionally well in Australian conditions,” Gambold said. He described the aim in his own words: “Our focus was on delivering a balanced driving experience, combining ride comfort, precise steering response and confident body control across a wide variety of road surfaces.” His summary: “The result is a refined and capable small SUV that feels equally at home in urban environments, on long highway journeys and on regional roads.”

A test drive on roads you use every week is the quickest way to check that claim. Book the same grade you plan to buy, and take the Corolla Cross in the same morning, so ride, noise and fuel use can be set side by side.

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Reviewed by Preetam Gadekar