Crossovers are becoming as influential as Hollywood superheroes you saw in theaters and looks like the Koreans are busy leading the most mainstream category of all. For Hyundai and Kia, they're not resting their laurels on the SUV craze as they are so busy launching crossovers, their eyes come rolling. Such examples are the debutantes known as the Hyundai Venue and the Kia Seltos.
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| 2020 Hyundai Venue |
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| 2020 Hyundai Venue |
Starting with the Hyundai Venue, it’s the newest compact crossover you’ve never heard of. Prices start at 17,990,000 Korean Won (less than 800,000 PhP), so it’s basically the cheapest of the SUV lineup, less than the Kona. With all that affordable pricing, what do you get in a cheeky little crossover with a name that breaks tradition from city-naming ones like the Santa Fe, Tucson, and the Palisade?
Checking on the design, the boxy styling on this high-riding compact is just one of the noticeable details of the Venue. There is the front face reminiscent of the Kona, although the waffle-styled nose shows its cheapness unless you go for the other grille that is slightly good than this, as well as the squarish rear lamps with the letter Z on it. The minimalist approach to the Venue’s styling really shows just how cheap this C3 Aircross rival is.
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| 2020 Hyundai Venue interior |
The interior of the Venue is about as functional as a revived Nokia 3310 phone but it’s decently practical for the small family and some boot for today’s grocery. While you may consider it a family car, the Venue can also be used for TNVS purposes, and with a cabin of this size, it’s like having a little chat room with you and the passenger who called you. Although cheap to look around, the Venue feels not so bad to live with.
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| 2020 Hyundai Venue |
Despite being an SUV, the Venue is available only with front-wheel drive and while it comes with a nifty choice of drive modes, especially snow, mud, and sand, the Venue feels like it won’t catch up with the likes of the Citroen C3 Aircross’s wondrous Grip Control feature but it feels so decent playing as the elephant in the room even with a wide array of safety tech too much to mention.
Powering it is a 1.6L Smartstream MPi engine producing 123PS of power and 15.7 kg.m of torque and with the available Intelligent Variable Transmission, which is basically a CVT first applied on the latest Kia K3, expect combined fuel economy up to 13.7km/L. So, it’s not as enjoyable to drive as the competition from its class but the Venue sure has a lot to go for the extra mile.
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| 2020 Kia Seltos |
With the Hyundai Venue in the glossary, what about the stylish equivalent known as the Kia Seltos? As the compact crossover inspired by the SP Concept and one of the most ambitious models Kia has ever made due to the fact that it will be the first Kia to be available in India soon, the Seltos has a lot to talk about for a compact crossover with the 19,290,000 Korean Won (830,000 PhP) price tag, which is more expensive than the Hyundai Venue mentioned above.
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| 2020 Kia Seltos interior |
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| 2020 Kia Seltos interior |
Unlike the Hyundai Venue, the Kia Seltos features a much thought-provoking design that is relatively superior for such size and while the exterior design is about as dramatic as the concept car it was based on, the interior is not Nokia 3310-level like the one from the Hyundai Venue. This is as functional as today's Samsung Galaxy smartphone and you'll have a lot of reasons to toy around with its self-updating sat-nav, its smartphone connectivity, its HUD, the BOSE sound system, climate control, and other stuff. Aside from toying around with its gadgets, the Seltos, like the Hyundai Venue, is decently comfortable for a compact crossover of many uses; be it a family car, a road-tripper's car, or for TNVS duty. Expect anyone doing the latter driving the Seltos anytime soon but don't get your hopes up because of what lies underneath.
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| 2020 Kia Seltos |
The Seltos is powered with a choice of either a 1.6L T-GDi or a 1.6L CRDI-VGT diesel engine, both mated to a 7-speed DCT, but the turbocharged petrol is the one to go for because of its 177PS of power, meaning that it has the gusto to get to work as easy as pie. The diesel has a lot of torque to pull some stuff but who cares about diesel today. Of course, the DCT promises faster shift times compared to the normal automatic but for an inexperienced user, this can be somewhat of a hassle.
While the Seltos comes with the same driving modes as the Hyundai Venue, it comes with the optional 4WD system for better traction and usability in case you are busy listening to today's weather forecast but considering that if you want to take it on gravel or snow, go help yourselves because the Seltos has slight offroad capability despite the optional 4WD drivetrain.
Of course, the Seltos has a wide array of safety features in its class but again, too much to mention.
Looking at the combined fuel economy rating, the diesel can get through 17 to 17.6km/L whereas the petrol can get through 11.8 to 12.7km/L, both in front-wheel drive configurations, which is decently impressive.
With both of these Korean crossovers in the glossary, which would you pick? For budget, you can go for the Venue, but for something much of an all-rounder, you can go for the Seltos. The decision is up to you.
Photo: Hyundai Motor Company/Kia Motors
