While it was Hyundai who debuted connected car tech in India with the Venue, Kia Motors have become the first manufacturer in the country to sell over 1 lakh connected cars. In fact, Kia says that one of every Kia two cars sold in India is a connected vehicle. As of now, Kia cars with UVO connected tech account for more than 55% of the total sales of the company in India. Kia's best-selling connected car vehicle in India has been the Kia Seltos in its GTX Plus DCT 1.4 turbo-petrol variant, which again contributes to almost 15% of Kia's total connected car sales.
Commenting on the technology superiority, Kookhyun Shim, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Kia Motors India said,
"For today's internet-savvy generation, a car should be their extension in every aspect including connectivity which can ease mobility. Our advanced UVO connect technology is a breakthrough effort in this direction which integrates smart devices with our cars for enabling a seamless, safer and memorable drive experience. Technology has always been at the focal point since our maiden launch in the country and we are elated to achieve one more milestone in car connectivity."
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Kia offers you a free three-year subscription of the UVO Connect feature with every connected car you buy from Kia Motors. The UVO Connect app gives users access to 57 unique features. That includes remote engine start/stop where you can remotely start or stop the engine through a app on your mobile or even pre-cool your cabin from your phone using the 'remote smart pure air on' feature. It also offers other convenience features such as auto collision notification, live car tracking, geo-fencing and more.
With Kia launching the Sonet sub-compact SUV earlier this year, it very quickly climbed up the sales charts becoming the best-selling sub-compact SUV in the country in November with over 11,417 units sold. The Sonet hugely helped Kia with growing sales in India and also contributed to the numbers of cars sold with the UVO Connect tech. Available with a wide range of powertrain options and trims to choose from, the Sonet is the most feature rich car in its segment. It was bound to be runaway success.
Currently, Hyundai and Kia are the leading manufacturers with connected car tech in the mass market, while other carmakers are yet to catch up. Both Hyundai and Kia offer this feature across a wide range of their products. Other manufacturers like MG Motors, Nissan and Tata too offer connected car tech with some of their models. While its a fancy feature to have, we still doubt the rear world relevance of such features.
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