2022 Kia Seltos Review

Name: 2022 Kia Seltos
Brand: Kia

Price Range: $14,991 - $25,590

Average

7.6

out of 10

edmunds TESTED

The 2022 Kia Seltos is stylish, roomy, and available with plenty of the latest technology and safety features. It's rather quick, too, as long as you get the optional turbocharged engine. Comfort is lacking, however, and it's not a particularly fun SUV to drive. But overall the Seltos is worth a look along with other popular models such as the Honda HR-V, Hyundai Kona and Mazda CX-30.

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Average price: $24,337

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Appraise My 2022 Kia Seltos

Pros

Plenty of cargo space
Upscale interior design and materials
Distinctive styling and paint color choices add personality

Cons

Front seats aren't very comfortable for long drives
Less than athletic handling

What's new

More advanced driver aids features are now standard
Lower trim levels gain some standard features
New Nightfall Edition adds blacked-out styling elements
Part of the first Seltos generation introduced for 2021

Overview

Written by automotive expert Ronald Montoya

8/2/2021

The 2022 Kia Seltos is a relatively new entry to the small crossover SUV class. The Seltos debuted last year and sits in the Kia lineup between the smaller Soul and the larger Sportage. It seeks to stand out from its competitors with a stacked headlight design and an available two-toned roof.

Continue reading Edmunds Expert Rating below

For sale near Ashburn, VA

660 listings

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2022 Kia Seltos
LX 4dr SUV
$16,599
- 42,550 miles
- No accidents, 1 owner, personal use
- 5 Seats, 27 City / 31 Hwy MPG
- Hampstead Pre-Owned (52 mi away)
- AWD/4WD
- Back-up camera
- Bluetooth
- Tire Pressure Warnin...
- USB Inputs
Close
Located in Hampstead, MD
Our family would like to thank you for taking a moment to check out our 2022 Kia Seltos.Here at Hampstead Pre-Owned we pride ourselves on providing am...
AutoCheck Vehicle History Summary
Accident Free Vehicle: Yes
Personal Use Only: Yes
History Provider: AutoCheck
Title Details: Clean Title
Salvage Vehicle: No
Frame Damage: No
Theft History: Yes
Lemon Status: No
Free History Report: No
Features and Specs:
29 Combined MPG (27 City/31 Highway)
Listing Information:
VIN: KNDEPCAA7N7316648
Stock: KGM316648
Certified Pre-Owned: No
Listed since: 03-24-2026
2022 Kia Seltos
S 4dr SUV
$20,998
- 46,837 miles
- No accidents, 1 owner, personal use only
- 5 Seats, 27 City / 31 Hwy MPG
- CarMax Dulles (3 mi away)
- AWD/4WD
- Back-up camera
- Bluetooth
- Navigation
- Keyless Entry/Start
Close
Located in Sterling, VA
Wanna drive? CarMax puts you in the driver's seat-and that includes transparency. Certain cars may have unrepaired safety recalls, so check nhtsa.gov/...
AutoCheck Vehicle History Summary
Accident Free Vehicle: Yes
Personal Use Only: Yes
History Provider: AutoCheck
Title Details: Clean Title
Salvage Vehicle: No
Frame Damage: No
Theft History: No
Lemon Status: No
Free History Report: No
Features and Specs:
29 Combined MPG (27 City/31 Highway)
Listing Information:
VIN: KNDEUCAA1N7281825
Stock: 28661186
Certified Pre-Owned: No

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The Seltos' interior is filled with premium-feeling materials that help it seem like a more expensive vehicle. And though it's a subcompact SUV, four adults can fit comfortably inside. If you need to transport cargo, the rear seats fold down to provide up to 62.8 cubic feet of cargo space — that's more than most other SUVs this size offer.

Overall, we're impressed with the Seltos' styling, technology and spacious cabin, but there are a few drawbacks that keep it from the top of our extra-small SUV rankings. Take a look at our detailed Seltos Expert Rating to learn more.

Edmunds Expert Rating

edmunds TESTED

by the Edmunds Experts

Average

7.6

out of 10

We drove the 2022 Kia Seltos on our test track and on real roads. Our Edmunds team conducts rigorous independent vehicle testing, driving 500,000 miles a year.

Performance

7.5/10

How does the Seltos drive? We tested a top-of-the-line Seltos SX, which comes with the turbocharged engine. Acceleration is sluggish from a stop, but after that this little SUV is pretty punchy. In Edmunds' testing, the Seltos sprinted from 0 to 60 mph in 8.1 seconds. That's great for this class and means you can quickly get up to highway speeds. The transmission shifts smoothly and quickly.

The Seltos is less impressive once the road bends, however. The responsive steering and taut suspension tuning should be beneficial, but drive with some enthusiasm and the Seltos just feels overly nose-heavy and ill-suited to the task.

Comfort

7/10

How comfortable is the Seltos? The Kia Seltos is comfortable enough for your daily routine and short road trips. It absorbs most bumps without trouble and isn't overly floaty on the highway. The front seats are OK, but they don't have enough thigh support and cushioning to make them truly comfortable on long drives. The rear seats are actually pretty comfortable for an extra-small SUV.

There's a fair amount of road noise that enters the cabin, and the climate control system is a little weak when it comes to thoroughly cooling the cabin down on hot days.

Interior

7.5/10

How’s the interior? The Seltos' interior is simple, practical and roomy. Special mention goes to the available 10.25-inch infotainment screen; it has crisp graphics and is easy to use. The bottom screen, which displays the single-zone climate settings, is equally sharp.

As one of the larger extra-small SUVs (yes, that's kind of an oxymoron), the Seltos has enough room for most people. As long as you're under 6-foot-2, you should find the Seltos pretty accommodating in both front and back. The Seltos is also pretty easy to get in and out of.

Visibility is somewhat hampered by thick roof pillars. It's always good practice to glance twice to make sure there are no pedestrians walking toward you from the right side. The wide-angle rearview camera is definitely beneficial when you're backing up.

Technology

8/10

How’s the tech? The Seltos comes with a pleasing number of features. The Bose audio system (SX trim only) produces clear sound and punchy bass. The navigation system is easy enough to use. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone integration is standard across the board but works best on the available 10.25-inch infotainment display. Our test car had two USB ports, a 12-volt power port and a wireless charging pad in front. Rear passengers will fight over the single USB port.

The advanced safety and driver aids in our top-of-the-line Seltos SX worked well and weren't overly intrusive with warnings. But the adaptive cruise control is very conservative with its following distances.

Storage

8/10

How’s the storage? You can hold a lot of stuff in the back of the Seltos. It's one of the leaders in its class with a maximum cargo capacity of 62.8 cubic feet. Leave the rear seats up and there's still 26.6 cubes. Loading cargo isn't a hassle either thanks to a wide liftgate opening and decent cargo depth.

Interior storage for front passengers is sufficient. There are plenty of water-bottle-size pockets, a small cellphone tray in front of the gear shifter, a small console box and a glovebox. As for child safety-seat installation, the Seltos' car seat anchor points are clearly marked and easy to access. You'll be able to install a rear-facing safety seat without too much trouble.

Fuel Economy

7.5/10

How’s the fuel economy? The Kia Seltos has a few powertrain combinations. We tested the SX, which has the more powerful turbocharged engine, and our vehicle had all-wheel drive too. The EPA estimates that combo will get 27 mpg combined (25 city/30 highway). That's below the class average, though a base Seltos with front-wheel drive gets a more respectable 31 mpg combined.

We recorded 27.9 mpg on our 115-mile mixed-driving evaluation route. Overall, we believe you should be able to match the EPA's numbers without much trouble.

Value

7.5/10

Is the Seltos a good value? The Seltos is a better than average value for the class thanks to its pleasing number of standard features. The top SX trim is pricey, but it adds a lot of stuff, including the turbocharged engine. Build quality is solid, but the interior materials lack substance and the abundant plastic makes it feel a tad cheap.

Kia's limited and powertrain warranties are fantastic. You get five-year/60,000-mile bumper-to-bumper and 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain coverage.

Wildcard

7.5/10

The Kia Seltos looks a little bit like a Land Rover Evoque SUV, and you can enhance its style with contrasting roof and body paint colors. It definitely stands out in the extra-small SUV class. The rest of the package isn't very inspiring. But is it practical? Definitely.

2022 Kia Seltos trim level differences

The 2022 Seltos is available in five trim levels: LX, S, EX, Nightfall Edition and SX. You'll generally get progressively more features on each one, plus a more powerful engine for the Nightfall Edition and SX. Standard feature highlights include: Compare the 2022 Kia Seltos trim levels in-depth.

Which Seltos trim does Edmunds recommend?

We think the Seltos S trim provides a nice balance between features and price. It gets you a larger touchscreen, automatic climate control, partial leather seats and more. For 2022, Kia added a number of driver aids as standard equipment, making this lower trim even more of a value.

Cost to Drive

Monthly estimates based on costs in Virginia

$176/mo

$224/mo

Avg. Compact SUV

Calculate my fuel costs

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Reliability

The 2022 Kia Seltos has a 5 years / 60,000 miles basic warranty and 1 recall. Below you’ll find our owner reviews.

Recalls

1 recall found

Checking if a car has a recall is simple. Just type the car's VIN number into the NHTSA website (https://www.nhtsa.gov/recalls). If there's an unrepaired recall, you'll see it there.

If a recall shows up, just call your local car dealer. They'll know about the recall and will work with the car maker to fix it for free (if the recall happened within 10 years of the car being first sold).

Recall Number:: 25V099000
Manufacturer Recall Number:: SC336
Manufactured from:: 2020-07-02 to 2022-04-19
Number of vehicles affected:: 137256
Defect Description:: Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2021-2023 Seltos and Soul vehicles. The piston oil rings may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can result in engine damage.
Defect Consequence:: Engine damage can cause a vehicle stall or fire, increasing the risk of a crash or injury.
Corrective Action:: Dealers will inspect and replace the engine as necessary, free of charge. Dealers will also install piston-ring noise sensing system (PNSS) software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 4, 2025. Owners may contact Kia customer service at 800-333-4542. Kia's number for this recall is SC336.

Warranty

5 years / 60,000 miles Basic Warranty

Basic Warranty: 5 years / 60,000 miles
Drivetrain Warranty: 10 years / 100,000 miles
Rust Warranty: 5 years / 100,000 miles
Roadside assistance Warranty: 5 years / 60,000 miles

Kia Seltos Reviews

Owner Reviews

3.7

126 reviews

5(49%)

4(15%)

3(10%)

2(8%)

1(18%)

See all 126 reviews of the Kia Seltos

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Most Helpful Owner Reviews

Trending topics

So far, very VERY good!!!

Will, 11/13/2021

2022 Kia Seltos EX 4dr SUV AWD (2.0L 4cyl CVT)

A month ago, I traded in my 2013 base Soul for the 2022 Seltos EX, and love it. I've put just over 400 miles on it, most of it cross town commuter driving. I'll start my review discussing what I've read in other reviews, then finish up with some general observations. I agree with most of the reviews concerning front seat head and leg room. I'm 6' tall and find both to be substantial, … even with the sunroof, which is standard with the EX. Some reviewers were also impressed with back seat legroom, but I beg to differ there. If you're a 6 footer and will be carting around 2 or 3 other large adults, you should probably opt for a larger vehicle. The back seat passenger(s) will not be very comfortable in the Seltos. That's a non-factor for us, as it's usually just my wife and me. If we'll be taking anyone else, we'll take her Equinox. One of the "cons" from expert reviews is that the standard engine is under powered. I find that it has plenty of pep. Unless you want a car to take to the drag strip or the Indy 500, the base engine will do just fine. When I have taken it on the highway, I've had plenty of power to merge into traffic and pass slower vehicles. One complaint, primarily on owner reviews, is that if you don't want to use ISG (Idle Stop Go), you need to turn it off every time you start the car. Well, that's not unique to the Seltos, or even Kia in the whole. Most modern cars have that feature, and most of them default to "on" every time the car is started. More about ISG later. Now for my general observations. I find the Seltos extremely comfortable. I'm a 70 year old six footer, and have no trouble getting in and out of it. I've got plenty of driver's head and leg room, and my foot goes easily between the accelerator and brake - unlike some cars I've driven. The leatherette seats in the EX are plenty comfortable for short local driving, but may leave a bit to be desired for longer trips. I like the leather padding on the steering wheel. I've put a cover on the wheel of most of the other cars that I've owned, but didn't need to do it with the Seltos. I had never before driven a car with either CVT or all wheel drive. I fully expected that they would take some getting used to, but that has not been the case. If anything, the CVT is smoother and quieter than some of the cars I've had with traditional automatic transmission. When I first got the car, I had the display on that shows how much power goes to each wheel. It showed that under normal situations, all power went to the front wheels. It rained on a couple days and on those days, there was a bit of power going to the back wheels as I was accelerating, the switched to front wheel only once I got up to speed. I've gotten excellent gas mileage. Most of my driving has been in town, and I've been getting 28-29 MPG regularly. The infotainment system, navigation, and driver displays all took a little effort to learn, but they make sense. For the size car, there is ample cargo space - even more when we fold the back seats down. And we can drop the back floor down a bit and give even more space. I like the fact that the Seltos actually came with a spare tire. A lot of cars sold today just have a tire repair kit - no spare. The car came with a complementary 1 year subscription to UVO. It was kind of glitchy at first, specifically using it to remote start the car. However, I was able to get it fixed after a couple of emails to tech support. An interesting note is that for a week or so after I got the car, each time I got home and parked the car in the garage, I got an email reminding me that my doors were unlocked. After that, the emails stopped coming. Maybe the app "learned" my habits and determined that it was the normal situation Back to ISG. I like it. The engine always starts up again as soon as I take my foot off the brake pedal, and it's smooth and quiet. The only way I know that the engine has started again is the tachometer and the engine stopped symbol is not illuminated. I frankly do not understand why anyone would NOT want to use it. One argument I've heard is that more gas is burned each time the engine is started. That is false. It may have once been the case, but not with modern fuel injection engines. Another argument is that it's hard on the starter and the engine. Again, both have been improved. For example, 30 years ago, a starter could typically last 50,000 start events before failing. Now, that's been increased 10 fold - up to 500,000. And motor oils have also been improved. Also, it's COLD starts that put more pressure on the starter and engine - not warm starts where the oil is already circulating. True, ISG does not result in a huge fuel savings, but every little bit helps. And ditto with reduced pollution.

Great Car

Brandon, 10/25/2021

2022 Kia Seltos EX 4dr SUV AWD (2.0L 4cyl CVT)

Pros: The infotainment system works well and has a lot of features. The touchscreen is one of the biggest I've seen for a car. The Apple CarPlay feature works great. The safety features are also great and not intrusive while driving. The interior is synthetic leather and gives this small SUV an upscale feeling. I love the exterior appearance of the vehicle. The audio sounds good, even …

Comfortable roomy interior, and nice cargo area.

CAMPJEEP, 04/14/2020

2021 Kia Seltos SX 4dr SUV AWD (1.6L 4cyl Turbo 7AM)

I have always been a Jeep owner and will miss the Jeep family. I started out to get a Jeep Compass Limited for my retirement vehicle (since I don't go off-roading anymore). For what I payed for my new 2021 Kia sx turbo I got so much more than expected in value for the cost, like when sitting in the the roomy interior of the kia (I am 6 foot tall, 240 lb ), the styling their with the … 10.3-inch navigation screen, all the driver-assistance tech, the Bose premium 8 speaker sound system looks and sounds very nice. Even the speaker grills are shaped like mountains when sitting in there, those comfortable seats for my long legs. Kias warranty. Looking at the exterior I noticed the wheels, the attention to detail in the front and the rear styling, fit and finish of the exterior, the 28% approach and departure angles (OK) not so much for the plastic skid plates front and rear. But it dose make it look a little rugged-looking though. The power from 0 to 60, and that (center differential lock) and torque vectoring for this price point. I wanted to mention the best in class braking 60 to 0, this is just my opinion only. (The 235 tires might have something to do with that.) I am impressed with the ride and how it handles on the rough back roads, there are some pavements that are louder than others but 95% of the time it is very good for its class, it has 235 tires with 18 inch rims and is not as quiet as my 2011 Grand Cherokee Overland (Hemi) ha ha but is almost half the price and I am retired now. It dose get twice the millage though... Remember the tires have a lot to do with road noise, stopping distance, handling and ride, (the width of the tire, its sidewall height and tread compound). UPDATE 10/20/2021 SX AWD (1.6L 4cyl Turbo ) I now have 13,000 miles on the Seltos. We have went to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park twice now myself and two grandkids and we had room for all of are stuff and no comfort complaints, It is about 7 hour trip from are home in Ohio and my back side never never had any complaints either ha ha. The 1.6 Turbo had no problem going up Jellico Mountain on I-75, and in the Smoky Mountains it handled the US-441 Newfound Gap Road with curvy roads and steep winding curves like a champ and a 11-mile section of U.S. Route 129 there has become a hugely popular destination for motorcyclists and sports car drivers and had no problems their. On Christmas Eve 2020 11PM it was 17 degrees and we had 6 inches of snow and I tested it out on are hilly back roads stopping half way up a hill and starting up again and it handled that with no problems. I run Firestone weathergrip touring tires. At 9,000 miles I had it serviced and oil changed for the second time and they recalibrated the DCT transmission threw a technical service bulletin. It did shift better and I would advise asking about it, my dealer let me know with out asking... It is not a sports car but the AWD and the1.6 turbo is very energetic while returning better then estimated fuel millage. We have got 31,32 on are road trips and 27,28 all around gas millage on regular gas. I have tried here to give you some honest real on road driving impressions that I have had driving the Setos sense 4/2/2020. I am just really enjoying driving the Seltos SX.

Great small sized SUV

Monique Butts, 08/30/2020

2021 Kia Seltos SX 4dr SUV AWD (1.6L 4cyl Turbo 7AM)

I traded in my Mazda CX5 for the new KIA Seltos. I have to say I'm really loving it! Compared to my Touring model Mazda, the Seltos really delivers on quality, features and comfort for about the same price. Smooth ride! The turbo sx model I highly recommend so you're not hesitant when pulling out or merging. Plenty of cargo space in the trunk area with a nice cargo cover for security or …

We have a limited number of reviews for the 2022 Kia Seltos, so we've included reviews for other years of the Seltos since its last redesign.

2022 Seltos Features & Specs

Trim:

MSRP (New) Excludes Destination Fee	$22,590
Engine Type	Gas
Combined MPG	29 MPG
Cost to Drive	$176/month
Seating	5 seats
Cargo Capacity All Seats In Place	26.6 cu.ft.
Drivetrain	all wheel drive
Warranty	5 years / 60,000 miles

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Safety

Our experts like the Seltos models:

Blind-Spot Collision Warning: Warns you of vehicles in the Seltos' blind spot and illuminates a light in the mirror as an alert.
Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning: Alerts you of vehicles or objects crossing the Seltos' path when reversing.
Driver Attention Warning: Monitors your driving patterns and displays an alert if it senses you aren't paying attention to the road.

NHTSA Overall Rating

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration offers independent analysis.

Frontal Barrier Crash Rating
Overall4 / 5
Driver5 / 5
Passenger4 / 5
Side Crash Rating
Overall5 / 5
Side Barrier Rating
Overall5 / 5
Driver5 / 5
Passenger5 / 5
Combined Side Barrier & Pole Ratings
Front Seat5 / 5
Back Seat5 / 5
Rollover
Rollover4 / 5
Dynamic Test ResultNo Tip
Risk Of Rollover15.1%

IIHS Rating

The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety uses extensive crash tests to determine car safety.

Small Overlap Front Driver-Side Test
Good
Small Overlap Front Passenger-Side Test
Good
Moderate Overlap Front Test – Original
Good
Moderate Overlap Front Test – Updated
Not Tested
Side Impact Test – Original
Good
Side Impact Test – Updated
Not Tested
Roof Strength Test
Good
Rear Crash Protection / Head Restraint
Good

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2022 Kia Seltos Review

Price & Payment

Pros

Cons

What's new

Overview

For sale near Ashburn, VA

AutoCheck Vehicle History Summary

AutoCheck Vehicle History Summary

Edmunds Expert Rating

Performance

Comfort

Interior

Technology

Storage

Fuel Economy

Value

Wildcard

2022 Kia Seltos trim level differences

Which Seltos trim does Edmunds recommend?

Cost to Drive

Reliability

Recalls

Warranty

Kia Seltos Reviews

Owner Reviews

Most Helpful Owner Reviews

2022 Seltos Features & Specs

Safety

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