Kia India expects 40 % of sales in 2023 to accrue from iMT trims

Automaker Kia India aims to garner 40 per cent of its overall sales this year from cars with an intelligent manual transmission (iMT) as demand for automatic vehicles continues to grow in the domestic market, according to a senior company official.

The automaker is replacing manual transmission with intelligent manual transmission (iMT) in turbo petrol and diesel trims of Seltos, Carens and Sonet.

The entry-level trims of the models, which come with a 1.5-litre petrol engine, would however continue to feature the manual transmission in order to cater to the price-conscious customer.

The iMT trims come with a gear shift lever but no clutch thus enhancing ease of driving especially in city conditions.

It also gives the buyers an option to shift from automatic to manual mode.

In an interaction with, Kia India National Head (Sales and Marketing) Hardeep Singh Brar said the company sold 1.35 lakh units in 2020 and out of that iMT contribution stood at 7 per cent.

“Last year we sold around 2.5 lakh units and iMT contributed 30,000 units. We have got confidence from growing consumers’ preference for the iMT technology and thus we decided to bring iMT to all diesel and turbo petrol cars,” he added.