Honda City has been eating the sales of all its rivals as well as the cars falling in the same price territory while Kia Seltos has been unstoppable. Here is a detailed comparison between the two.
Honda City 2020 vs Kia Seltos Dimensions Comparison – Which one is bigger?
Honda City measures 4,549 mm long, 1,748 mm wide, 1,489 mm tall with a boot space of 506-litres while the Kia Seltos has length of 4,315 mm, width of 1,800 mm and height of 1,645 mm. Boot space of Seltos is 433 L
| Dimensions | Honda City | Kia Seltos |
| Length | 4549 mm | 4315 mm |
| Width | 1748 mm | 1800 mm |
| Height | 1489 mm | 1645 mm |
| Wheelbase | 2600 mm | 2610 mm |
| Ground Clearance | 165 mm | 190 mm |
| Turning Radius | 5.4 m | 5.3 m |
| Boot Space | 506 L | 433 L |
| Fuel Tank Capacity | 40 L | 50 L |
| Wheel Size | 185 / 55 R16 | 215 / 60 R17 |
Dimensions Review
- Honda City is 234 mm longer than Seltos and due to this, it has a longer turning circle of 5.4 metres.
- Kia Seltos is wider by 52 mm and taller by 156 mm than the Honda City.
- Wheelbase of Kia Seltos is 10 mm more than City.
- Being a SUV, Kia Seltos has more ground clearance than Honda city, to be exact, 25 mm.
- Boot Space of sedans have always been more with City having a massive 506 L of space, although a 4 litres shrink from previous gen.
- Kia Seltos has 10-litre more fuel capacity than the compared sedan.
- Kia Seltos has got 17-inch alloys while Honda has restricted City to 16-inch wheels.
Honda City vs Kia Seltos Engine Options Comparison
Kia Seltos comes with 1.4 L turbo petrol, 1.5 petrol as well as 1.5-litre diesel unit while City missing out on RS 1.0 has got 1.5 litre petrol as well as Diesel engine.
| Powertrain | Honda City | Kia Seltos |
| Petrol | 1.5 L | 1.5 L |
| Turbo Petrol | – | 1.4 L |
| Diesel | 1.5 L | 1.5 L |
Honda City 1.5 Petrol vs Kia Seltos 1.5 Petrol – Which Engine is more Powerful / Fuel Efficient?
Honda City and Kia Seltos gets powered by 1.5 litre units with different output and mileage figures but similar transmission choices. Honda City I-VTEC engine puts out 119 BHP and 145 NM of torque.
While the Kia Seltos MPI units belts out 113 BHP and 144 NM. Claimed mileage is between 16.5 kmpl and 16.8 kmpl.
| Specifications | Honda City | Kia Seltos |
| Engine | 1.5 L I-VTEC | 1.5 L MPI |
| No. Of Cylinders | 4 | 4 |
| Drivetrain | FWD | FWD |
| Power | 119 BHP | 113 BHP |
| Torque | 145 NM | 144 NM |
| Transmission | 6 Speed MT / 7 Speed CVT | 6 Speed MT / 7 Speed CVT |
| Fuel Efficiency | 17.8 kmpl / 18.4 kmpl | 16.8 kmpl / 16.5 kmpl |
| Paddle Shifters | Yes (CVT only) | – |
*We havent put to comparison the turbocharged 1.4-litre GDI unit since its doesn’t have a direct engine rival in Honda City.
Petrol Engine Review
- Kia Seltos is 6 BHP and 1 NM less powerful than Honda City.
- Also the fuel efficiency of City petrol manual is 1 kmpl and CVT is 2.1 kmpl more than that of Kia Seltos.
- Paddle shifters are available in City Petrol CVT which Kia has not in the Seltos automatic range.
Honda City 1.5 Diesel vs Kia Seltos 1.5 Diesel – Which Engine is more Powerful / Fuel Efficient?
Honda City is powered by trusted 1.5-litre unit which offers great drivability and 99 BHP and 200 NM of torque is belted out by this engine. Only 6 speed manual is on offer which delivers ARAI Mileage of 24.1 kmpl.
Hyundai Creta Diesel engine is a 1493 cc unit with mileage between 21.4 kmpl for 6 speed manual and 18.5 kmpl for 6 speed torque converter automatic. It generated 113 BHP and 250 NM of maximum torque.
| Specifications | Honda City | Kia Seltos |
| Engine | 1.5 L I-DTEC | 1.5 L U2 CRDi |
| No. Of Cylinders | 4 | 4 |
| Drivetrain | FWD | FWD |
| Power | 99 BHP | 113 BHP |
| Torque | 200 NM | 250 NM |
| Transmission | 6 Speed MT | 6 speed manual / 6 Speed AT |
| Fuel Efficiency | 24.1 kmpl | 18 kmpl / 20 kmpl |
Diesel Engine Review
- Kia Seltos betters the City both in terms of power as well as torque aspects.
- Kia Seltos has diesel-automatic combo which City doesn’t have.
- Honda City diesel is way more fuel efficient than city, to be precise, 6.1 kmpl, which is a lot of difference between the manual diesel option.
Honda City vs Kia Seltos – Which is better in terms of features?
| Features | Honda City | Kia Seltos |
| Headlamps | LED | LED |
| Tail Lamps | LED | LED |
| Tyre Size | 16-inch | 17-inch |
| Interior Theme | Dual Tone | Dual Tone / Single Tone |
| Seat Upholstery | Leather | Leather |
| Steering Wheel | Leather | Leather |
| Infotainment System | 8-inch | 10.25-inch |
| Instrument Cluster | Analog | Analog |
| Air Conditioner | Automatic + Rear AC Vents | Automatic + Rear AC Vents |
| Push Button Start with Keyless Entry | Yes | Yes |
| Connected Car Technology | Yes | Yes |
| Electric Sunroof | Yes | Yes |
| Ambient Lighting | Yes | Yes |
| Manual Sunshade | Rear Windscreen | Rear Window |
| Outside door handles | Body Coloured | Chrome |
| Cruise Control | Yes | Yes |
| Armrest | Front & Rear | Front & Rear |
| Ventilated Seats | – | Front |
| Steering wheel adjustment | Tilt & Telescopic | Tilt & Telescopic |
| Air Purifier | – | Yes |
| Wireless charging | – | Yes |
| Driver Seat Adjustment | Manual | Electric |
| Heads Up display | – | Yes |
- Kia Seltos offers multiple features over City like air purifier, electric driver seat adjustment, heads up display, ventilated front two seats, chrome outer door handles and a bigger infotainment system.
- Connected Car technology is available in Seltos as well as Honda City but the UVO connect of the former is much more feature rich.
- Honda city has sunshade for rear windscreen while Seltos has got manually operable sunshade for the rear side windows.
- Chrome door handles on the outside are available in Seltos while they get body colour paint in City.
Honda City vs Kia Seltos – Which has more safety features on offer?
| Safety Features | Honda City | Kia Seltos |
| No. of Airbags | 6 | 6 |
| Parking Sensors | Rear | Front & Rear |
| Park Assist | Reverse Parking Camera | 360 degree camera |
| Blind spot monitor | Yes | Yes |
| Hill Start Assist | Yes | Yes |
| Vehicle Stability Control | Yes | Yes |
| TPMS | Yes | Yes |
| Auto Dimming IRVM | Yes | Yes |
| Auto Headlamps | Yes | Yes |
| Rain Sensing Wipers | Yes | Yes |
| Anti pinch guard power window | All | Driver side only |
- Kia Seltos has parking sensors on the front and rear with 360 degree surround view camera while City has got rear parking sensors and camera with dynamic guidelines.
- Auto Up/Down and anti pinch guard for power window is available for all windows in City and for Seltos, it is limited to just driver side.
Honda City vs Kia Seltos – Which has better build quality?
Honda City gets underpinned by ACE body structure with which the sedan got full marks in the ASEAN NCAP while Seltos has also a 5 star in the Australian NCAP. It shares platform with the Creta suV.
| Honda City | Kia Seltos | |
| Platform | ACE Body Structure | Advanced K2 Platform |
| Airbags | 6 | 6 |
| NCAP | 5 stars (ASEAN) | 5 stars (ANCAP) |
Honda City vs Kia Seltos – Which is the most popular choice?
Kia Seltos is amongst the most preferred choice of the customers in this price bracket and with whopping average of 13,000 sales per month, it beats the average monthly sales of 2,500 units of Honda City.
| Honda City | Kia Seltos | |
| Sales (in units) | 2,500 | 13,000 |
Honda City vs Kia Seltos – Which offers better warranty package?
Both Honda City as well as Hyundai Creta comes with upto 3 years and unlimited kilometres of warranty package.
| Honda City | Kia Seltos | |
| Warranty | 3 years / unlimited kms | 3 years / unlimited kms |
Honda City vs Kia Seltos – Which is more affordable?
Honda City price starts at Rs. 10 Lakhs and goes upto Rs. 16 Lakhs for the top end diesel manual trim while Kia Seltos has a lower starting price of Rs. 9.89 Lakhs with top end diesel automatic costing Rs. 17.34 Lakhs (Ex Showroom).
| Honda City | Kia Seltos | |
| Price (Ex Showroom) | 10 Lakhs – 16 Lakhs | 9.89 Lakhs – 17.34 Lakhs |
Why Honda City is better than Kia Seltos?
- Drivability – Honda’s engine including i-VTEC and I-DTEC are known to offer unmatchable drivability, steering feedback although certain engines of Kia Seltos are better in the aspect of output figures.
- More space inside the cabin – Honda City is way more longer than Kia Seltos and the space on the inside has always been best in class and with an increase in overall length, it has now got stadium like space.
2020 Honda City Video
Why Kia Seltos is better than Honda City?
- Highly Feature Rich – Kia Seltos has on offer 360 degree camera, ventilated front seats, heads up display, air purifier, wireless front charging which Honda doesn’t offer in 5th gen City.
- Engine & Gearbox options – Kia Seltos comes with two petrol engine (one being a turbo unit) and a Diesel engine, and whats more interesting is that, all of them are available with manual & automatic transmission.
- Better off roader – Kia Seltos stands high from ground clearance and can easy tackles rough and rural area roads and go off roading as well
- Better suited for tall passengers – Since Seltos is a SUV, it is taller and wider than the sedans, and due to better dimensions, the 6-feeter person will find himself comfortable in Kia Seltos.
