What is known about consumables
Dealers surveyed by socialbites.ca reported that deliveries of Kia Seltos and Soul crossovers from Avtotor will resume at the end of 2023.
“Cars are gradually being brought in from Avtotor – Seltos and Soul. The manager of the Kia car dealership in Moscow told a socialbites.ca correspondent who asked about buying a car from new deliveries, although it is only now starting to be delivered, but according to its name it is produced in 2022.
No other Kia models are coming from the Kaliningrad plant, but 2022 Sportage crossovers from old stocks and 2023 cars with minimum mileage supplied through parallel imports remain in stock.
St. The Kia dealer in St. Petersburg stated: At least two assembled car carriers of the new Kia were received in Kaliningrad. Kia Seltos crossovers are also available in various trim levels.
“The cars were delivered before Christmas. There is a gray Seltos in the Luxe Plus package with a two-liter engine and CVT for 3.5 million rubles. There are also three more cars in the Luxe configuration for 100 thousand rubles cheaper – red, blue and white,” said the seller.
These cars come with a five-year, that is, 150 thousand kilometers, Kia brand warranty. The service interval for them is 15 thousand km. According to Kia’s online store, more than 60 new 2022 Seltos crossovers are currently available at Russian dealers.
Avtotor reserves
At the beginning of January this year, the Telegram channel No Limits public Photo of a train of about 25 car carriers loaded with Kia Seltos and Kaiyi X3 crossovers, also assembled at Avtotor. The cars were seen at one of the scenes in the Moscow region.
Avtotor produces a wide range of Kia cars until 2022, including the Seltos, Soul and Sorento crossovers, Cerato and K5 sedans.
The updated Kia Ceed has been assembled in Kaliningrad since October 2021. I managed to put the fifth generation Sportage crossover on the assembly line at the Russian plant. Hyundai cars popular in the domestic market are also assembled here, including the Tucson and Palisade crossovers and Sonata sedans.
Production of compact models Hyundai (Creta, Solaris) and Kia (Rio and Rio X) is localized at the KHMP plant owned by Korean automaker Hyundai. (“Hyundai Engine Manufacturing Rus”) In St. Petersburg.
Maxim Kadakov, editor-in-chief of Za Rulem magazine, told socialbites.ca that as of spring 2023, there are about 7 thousand semi-assembled Korean cars, primarily Kia crossovers, on the territory of the Avtotor plant in Kaliningrad. :
“These were mostly Kia Seltos; in fact, all the interior passages of the automobile factory were filled with them. They were deficient to varying degrees; There were not enough internal panels and electronic units. “The assembly and shipment of some of these vehicles has already been completed.”
According to him, Avtotor also had other unfinished Kia models and single Hyundai units, including Palisade crossovers. The expert notes that these volumes will not have a serious impact on the Russian market, and the time frame in which these cars will be sold directly depends on their prices.
Avtotor is making every effort to complete these cars and offer them for sale. I think there will be buyers who will want to buy these special cars. They know them, they trust them. “These cars have spare parts, they have dealers, all the technological maps and tools necessary for their maintenance are available,” emphasizes Kadakov.
I hope for other models too
Kia Rio, Hyundai Solaris and Creta cars have a chance to appear on the Russian market. The other day, St. Petersburg was purchased by the Russian Art-Finance company. The Hyundai plant in St. Petersburg announced that it is ending its closure. About this in detail Wrote “socialbites.ca”.
Sergei Tsyganov, author of the Telegram channel “Russian Car”, said: 70 thousand car kits remain at the facility where the finished cars will be assembled. The question of which brand they will enter the Russian market with has not yet been resolved. While the company assembles Hyundai Solaris and Kia Rio under its own brands, it is planned to assemble five cars per day until January 19. clarified Tsyganov.