Popular new small hybrid SUV imagined

This small SUV’s design revamp will compliment its hybrid shift. 

The latest renders, designed by GotchaCars, have revealed further details on a new design for Kia’s Seltos. 

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It has squared off bodywork lines and rear light clusters similar to those used on the EV3 which wrap around the back of the car.

It also gets neat pop-out door handles, a sleek coupe-like roof, and a vertically-slatted grille and headlights.

The current generation Seltos on sale in Australia starts from $31,250 before on-road costs.

It has previously only been available in Australia with petrol engines. According to Korean Car Blog, though, the Seltos will debut with a hybrid power set-up along with an all-electric variant.

The hybrid variant will feature a 1.6-litre four-cylinder hybrid set-up, producing 105kW (likely to be shared with its Hyundai Kona sister vehicle), and the same is likely to be true of its EV spin-off.

A hybrid set-up would bring the small SUV into line with several of its Aussie rivals who offer such variants. 

Hyundai’s Kona which comes in petrol, hybrid and electric variants has a 15 per cent share of small SUV sales for October 2025.

Kia will particularly be hoping this new Seltos can break the strong hold of the Chinese brands in the segment.

The Seltos is set to rival confident Chinese sellers such as the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro, GWM Haval Jolion and MG ZS. This trio combined captured almost 40 per cent of sales in the category in October, and all are available with both hybrid and combustion drivetrain options. 

While Kia’s Seltos was once a strong seller, it has struggled to keep up in the highly competitive Aussie market, capturing just 6.1 per cent of sales in October.

Overseas media is speculating this hybrid variant will start from around 20 million won in South Korea (about $21,000) and will launch in the first quarter of 2026.