Compare the2025 Kia SeltosVS 2024 Lincoln Corsair

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Seltos are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Corsair doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Seltos’ standard Downhill Brake Control allows you to creep down safely. The Corsair doesn’t offer Downhill Brake Control.

Both the Seltos and the Corsair have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Kia Seltos is safer than the Lincoln Corsair:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The Seltos comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Corsair’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Seltos 4 years and 30,000 miles longer than Lincoln covers the Corsair. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Corsair ends after only 6 years or 70,000 miles.

There are over 47 percent more Kia dealers than there are Lincoln dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Seltos’ warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Seltos second among small suvs in their 2024 Initial Quality Study. The Corsair isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Lincoln vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 61 more problems per 100 vehicles, Lincoln is ranked 25th, below the industry average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Lincoln vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in long-term dependability. With 3 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Lincoln is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Lincoln vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Kia 13 places higher in reliability than Lincoln.

As tested in Motor Trend the Seltos X-Line/SX 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Lincoln Corsair turbo 4 cyl.:

On the EPA test cycle the Seltos gets better mileage than the Corsair running its gasoline engine:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Seltos uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Corsair with the 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder engine requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Seltos has 2.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the Corsair Grand Touring’s standard fuel tank (13.2 vs. 11.1 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Seltos has a standard locking fuel door. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Corsair. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

The Seltos stops much shorter than the Corsair:

The Seltos’ standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Corsair Premiere’s standard 60 series tires.

The Seltos SX handles at .84 G’s, while the Corsair Reserve AWD pulls only .83 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Seltos S AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1 seconds quicker than the Corsair Premiere AWD (26.7 seconds @ .65 average G’s vs. 27.7 seconds @ .67 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Seltos’ turning circle is 2.3 feet tighter than the Corsair’s (34.8 feet vs. 37.1 feet).

The Kia Seltos may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 750 to 1150 pounds less than the Lincoln Corsair.

The Seltos is 8.8 inches shorter than the Corsair, making the Seltos easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Seltos has .5 inches more front headroom and 2 inches more rear hip room than the Corsair.

The Seltos has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Corsair with its rear seat folded (62.8 vs. 57.6 cubic feet).

The Seltos will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Seltos will retain 57.1% to 64.07% of its original price after five years, while the Corsair only retains 47.93% to 52.69%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Kia Seltos will be $14801 to $19614 less than for the Lincoln Corsair.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Kia Seltos and the Lincoln Corsair, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Kia Seltos outsold the Lincoln Corsair by over two to one during 2023.