Kia Motors has released a fresh teaser sketch of its upcoming new Sonet, while also confirming the small crossover will launch in South Africa late in 2020.

The Sonet will be the second Kia imported to South Africa from India, following the introduction of the larger Seltos.

Back in February 2020, the Korean firm’s Indian arm unveiled the Sonet concept, previewing the production version that will be fully revealed at the end of the first week of August (and likely run on the same platform as the Hyundai Venue).

Kia says this latest teaser sketch (which follows an official video teaser) shows the new Sonet will feature the brand’s latest “tiger nose” grille, complete with a three-dimensional geometric mesh.

“With the new Kia Sonet, we had the ambition to give this compact SUV a strong and muscular character found only in much larger vehicles. With this in mind, we have designed what we believe is a great SUV with a uniquely sporty attitude, a confident stance and a dynamic silhouette,” said Karim Habib, senior vice-president and head of the Kia Design Centre.

“We also gave the new Kia Sonet an uncompromising attention to detail and a selection of colours and materials that could have only been inspired by the great cultural heritage that our designers found all over India,” he added.

Reports out of India suggest the Sonet will be offered with the same turbocharged 1,0-litre petrol engine as the Venue, along with a naturally aspirated 1,2-litre petrol and a 1,5-litre turbodiesel (for that market, anyway). Kia Motors SA says powertrain options for SA-spec models will be released closer to the local launch date.

Original article from Car