Kia Syros Diesel Variants Explained - Which One To Buy?

What Are The Pros And Cons Of Kia Syros Diesel?

The pros or advantages of 2025 Kia Syros diesel are:

• Stronger road presence than a typical sub-4m SUV because of the unique design and a wide body
• Sliding and reclining rear seats make it quite a spacious car despite its compact dimensions
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• Fully-loaded top variant exceeds the features we typically see in the top variants of small SUVs
• A unique car, which is suitable not only for self-driving but also for chauffeur-driven customers and the small footprint makes it easy to maneuver in the city even for people who aren’t accustomed to driving often
• The option of a diesel engine automatically gives it an upper hand for buyers who have high usage as it delivers superior real-world mileage and significantly lower fuel costs

The 2025 Kia Syros diesel has the following shortcomings or problems:

• If you’re interested in buying one of the higher variants, the on-road prices will be much higher than the larger Hyundai Creta Electric and possibly the Maruti EVitara; not to mention, the fuel and maintenance costs savings that will come from owning an EV
• The eVitara will also get sliding and reclining rear seats and a 150mm longer wheelbase with a potentially comparable starting price tag
• Speaking of price again, if you are considering the Syros, it means you don’t mind an oddball design; in that case, you should also consider the much bigger MG Windsor for a whole lot less and save a bunch more cash during the ownership (the Windsor also gets reclining rear seats but no sliding option)
• Heavy product overlap with the Sonet, Seltos and Carens (and the high price of higher variants) makes this a car specifically designed for a small bunch of buyers who want a small SUV with good back seat space but also want to occasionally drive the car themselves
• Sliding and reclining rear seats, which is the USP of the Syros, isn’t even available in the lower 2 variants
• Automatic transmission isn’t available in the lower four variants while manual transmission isn’t available in the top two variants; in fact, the diesel engine option itself is not available in the base trim and starts at a fairly high Rs. 11.0 lakh ex-sh price
• Diesel engines carry a substantial premium over the 1.0L turbo petrol compared to other Hyundai and Kia cars with similar engine options (typical petrol-diesel price gap is 60-70k)
• Torque converter automatics have a tremendous fuel efficiency disadvantage in stop-and-go traffic because of their fluid coupling

Also Read: Kia Sonet Diesel Variants Explained - Which One To Buy?

Mahindra XUV3XO Variants Explained — Best Diesel Variant To Buy

Note: Check your Car EMI with our - Car EMI Calculator

What Is The Price Of 2025 Kia Syros Diesel Variants?

The diesel variants of the Kia Syros 2025 are available with 2 powertrain options:

• 1.5L diesel-manual (6-speed MT)
• 1.5L diesel-automatic (6-speed TC)

The 1.5L diesel-manual powertrain is available only in the lower 3 variants with prices starting from Rs. 11.0 lakh and going up to Rs. 14.30 lakh. The diesel-automatic powertrain is available in the higher 2 variants, HTX Plus and HTX Plus (O) and they cost Rs. 17.0 lakh and Rs. 17.80 lakh, respectively. Kia Syros diesel doesn’t get both transmission options with any variant.

Kia Syros HTK (O) — Diesel Base Model Standard Features

The base HTK (O) variant of the Kia Syros diesel only comes with a manual transmission. It costs Rs. 11.0 lakh. It gets the following standard features:

This variant misses out on the following features:

• LED headlamps
• LED DRLs
• Auto AC
• Split-folding rear seats
• Rear parcel tray
• Rear armrest
• Cruise control
• Slide and reclining rear seats (which is essentially the USP of this car)

The Syros diesel base model gets a decent number of features. What hurts here is that you can get an aftermarket parcel tray but you can’t get features like split rear seats. These are quite important for some buyers. But, this variant comes across as a decent deal and worth buying for budget-conscious buyers.

2025 Kia Syros Diesel HTK (O) vs HTK Plus Variant — Price, Feature Comparison

The HTK Plus variant of the Syros also gets the same powertrain option as the lower HTK (O) trim and it costs Rs. 12.50 lakh which is Rs. 1.50 lakh more expensive than the base variant.

This variant adds some good-to-have and some must-have features like:

You may miss the following features in the HTK Plus variant:

• Rear washer wiper
• LED headlamps
• LED DRLs
• Auto AC
• 360 camera
• Keyless entry and button start/stop

According to our algorithm, the additional features in this variant do not fully justify the Rs. 1.50 lakh price increase, as they are not must-have features and won’t significantly enhance the ownership experience. However, for chauffeur-driven customers, it’s better to buy this variant and enjoy rear seat features even though it comes with a slight compromise in value for money.

New Kia Syros Diesel HTK Plus vs HTX Variant — Price, Feature Comparison

The HTX variant also gets the same powertrain option as the lower HTK Plus variant. The HTX turbo diesel-manual costs Rs. 14.30 lakh (ex-showroom), which is Rs. 1.80 lakh more than the HTK Plus.

It adds the following notable features over the HTK Plus trim:

You may miss the following features in the HTX variant:

• Auto AC
• 360 camera

The HTX variant doesn’t even come close to justifying the incremental cost of Rs. 1.80 lakh over the lower HTK Plus variant. Because of the lower variant being fairly feature-loaded and offering better value for money, we will suggest you buy that one or consider stretching your budget for the higher variant with the automatic. 

2025 Kia Syros Diesel HTX vs HTX Plus Variant — Price, Feature Comparison

With the HTX Plus variant onwards, the Syros diesel only offers the automatic transmission option. The price gap between the lower HTX variant with a manual transmission and HTX Plus with the automatic is Rs. 2.70 lakh.

In the HTX Plus variant of the Kia Syros, you will get the following additional features:

Even in this variant, you may miss features like:

• 360 degree camera
• Some ADAS features
• Like lane watch camera or auto braking

The HTX Plus variant comes across as a fantastic option for Syros buyers, especially if you want to stay away from ADAS features. However, if you prefer to buy a more future-proof vehicle and get superior value for money, then the Syros top model, HTX Plus (O), is also worth a look.

According to our algorithm, the incremental cost of Rs. 2.70 lakh for these features and the automatic transmission is justifiable. This variant offers almost the same value as the HTK Plus variant.

2025 Kia Syros Diesel HTX Plus vs HTX Plus (O) Variant — Price, Feature Comparison

The top variant HTX Plus (O) of the Syros also gets the same powertrain option as the lower HTX Plus trim. The top variant of the Syros costs Rs. 17.80 lakh which is Rs. 80,000 costlier than the HTX Plus trim.

The Syros HTX Plus (O) offers the following notable features over the HTX Plus variant:

The HTX Plus (O) variant justifies the incremental cost of Rs. 80,000 and offers a slightly better value than the HTX Plus variant. The top model of the Syros diesel variants delivers about 90% of value over the base model with the additional features. It’s only a shade better than the HTX Plus and if you want to better future-proof your car, then this is the variant to consider.

So, if you're buying the Syros diesel-automatic for personal use, you can choose between the HTX Plus and HTX Plus (O) variants, depending on whether you want ADAS tech or not.

Which Variant Of The Kia Syros Diesel Should You Buy?

The recommendation for Syros diesel buyers is straightforward. For budget-conscious buyers, the base HTK (O) variant of the Syros diesel is the best choice, as higher variants compromise on value. However, you will have to sacrifice some basic features.

If you're buying the Syros for its rear seat experience and it will be primarily a chauffeur-driven car for you, then the HTK Plus manual variant is a good option. It offers rear seat adjustments and adjustable rear headrests, though it provides less value for money than the HTK (O). If you are interested in the HTX variant, it's better to spend a little more and go for the HTX Plus automatic variant, which offers better value along with many feel-good features. The automatic transmission will also make it suitable for your personal use.

For Syros automatic buyers, the only other option is the HTX Plus (O) variant, which mainly adds ADAS tech. You can choose this if you want the ADAS features.

Note: It’s worth noting that none of the Syros diesel variants manage to earn our top recommendation as they compromise in terms of value over the base trim and/or feature distribution for a car at that price point.

What Are The Engine Specifications Of The Kia Syros Diesel?

Among the B2-segment SUVs with a diesel engine, only the XUV 3XO offers the best power and torque whereas the Syros’s engine offers equivalent power and torque output figures just like other cars in the segment. The Syros also offers the option of a manual and an automatic transmission. The Syros’ automatic is a 6-speed torque converter unit. In terms of mileage figures, the Nexon offers the best mileage figures in the segment. 

This is the first time Kia are offering the 1.5L diesel engine with a full-manual transmission. The Sonet, since its launch in late 2020, has continued to offer the diesel with the auto-clutch manual transmission until last year. Now, Kia also reshuffled some variants of the Sonet and introduced the 6-speed full manual transmission with the diesel engine.

*estimated

You can use our Fuel Cost Calculator to see how much any petrol, diesel or CNG car will cost to run based on the latest fuel price in your city.

Fuel Cost Calculator in India

What Are The Dimensions Of The 2025 Kia Syros?

In terms of dimensions, the 2025 Syros has the best boot space but that’s with the rear seats in the foremost position. In the rear-most position, the Syros boot space is 325 litres. For variants without the slide and recline function, the cargo volume is 390 litres. This figure too is better than all other diesel cars in the segment.

Find out how you can get the best mileage or fuel efficiency from your car:

10 Tips To Get Better Mileage From Your Petrol, Diesel Or CNG Car

What Are The Colour Options Of The Kia Syros?

The 2025 Kia Syros will be available in the following 8 monotone exterior colour options:

• White
• Silver
• Blue
• Grey
• Red
• Black
• Green
• Light blue

To learn more about the variant-wise colour options of the 2025 Syros, you can visit the following link:

2025 Kia Syros Variant-wise Colour Options

Note: Here is a quick look at our length-based segmentation of cars to give you an idea of how we are classifying cars based on their size.

You can read more about vehicle segmentation at the following link:

Car Segments Explained - With Body Styles And Examples