To tap into the growing CNG car market, Kia India – the country’s sixth largest carmaker – will launch the Carens CNG later this year.
“We have been testing the CNG fuel on the Carens – in terms of performance, drivability, efficiency – and will most probably launch it towards the end of this year,” Hardeep Singh Brar, senior vice-president & head of Sales & Marketing, Kia India, told FE. “But the Carens is the only vehicle on which we are planning to introduce CNG; we don’t plan to have CNG in models such as the Sonet or the Seltos.”
According to the FY25 sales data sourced from the Vahan portal, CNG cars have outsold diesel cars for the first time – when 787,724 CNG cars were sold, overtaking diesel car sales at 736,508 units. CNG car sales were driven by three reasons: more models (from Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, Toyota, and Tata), rising petrol and diesel prices, and significantly low running costs of CNG (ranging from Rs 3-4 per km, as compared to a petrol car’s Rs 6-8 per km, and a diesel car’s Rs 5-6 per km).
This week, Kia opened bookings of the Carens Clavis – a top-end variant of the Carens – which will be launched later this month. “It’s a new-age premium recreational vehicle (RV) that carves a unique niche between an MPV and an SUV,” Brar said. “The name ‘Clavis’ is derived from the Latin phrase clavis aurea, meaning ‘golden key’.”
With the launch of the Carens Clavis, this vehicle now has two distinct identities – the regular Carens for buyers on a budget and to be sold in the fleet segment, and the Carens Clavis for aspirational car buyers and families who want 6- and 7-seat comfort.
The Carens Clavis looks different from the Carens, thanks to its upright SUV-like stance and aerodynamic silhouette, new LED headlamps and connected taillamps, 17-inch dual-tone alloy wheels, front and rear skid plates, side door garnish inserts, and the new ivory silver body colour. The cabin gets a large, 26.62-inch dual panoramic display.
It will be available in three powertrain options: Smartstream G1.5 Petrol and Smartstream G1.5 turbo-GDi petrol engines, and the D1.5 diesel engine. Brar said that 42% sales in the Carens come from diesel.
Since its debut in 2022, Kia has sold more than 200,000 units of the Carens.