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Kia Soul Review
The Kia Soul range...
List Price
£39,075 - £39,075
Acceleration (0-62mph)
7.9 - 7.9 seconds
Top speed
104 - 104 mph
Engine Power
201 - 201 bhp
CO2 Emissions
0 - 0 g/km
Fuel Economy (Combined)
- mpg
Pros
Looks good; spacious; comes with a long warranty.
Cons
The petrol engine is lacking in power; the interior feels a bit cheap; poor economy.
The Kia Soul is a crossover car straddling the hatchback and SUV market. Kia have made some big strides forward in the design area in the last few years and the Soul is a stylish looking car. It also has plenty of space inside and comes with Kia’s 7 year or 100,000 mile warranty. The Kia Soul is let down though by a rather poor petrol engine, some cheap feeling interior materials and struggles over bumpy road surfaces.
Performance
There are two engine choices on offer giving a very limited range of Kia Soul performance options. There is a 1.6 GDi petrol engine and a 1.6 CRDi diesel engine available. On the surface a 1.6 petrol engine should be more than enough for a car this size, but for some reason it feels underpowered and lacking in grunt. The diesel is a better option providing a pretty refined ride and more power when called upon.
Handling
The Kia Soul’s handling feels light enough around town but get it out on the open road and the body roll starts to become a bit unnerving. Kia have made the suspension pretty firm but this means that once you get onto road surfaces that aren’t perfectly smooth you will get a fairly bumpy ride. It’s definitely worth avoiding the upgrade to 18” wheels as they just help to undermine the Kia Soul’s handling.
Exterior
Kia are working very hard to change their reputation for making, well how do I put this, boring, looking cars. The Soul is a much better looking car than the Kias of old, its hatchback/SUV crossover styling gives it a unique look, and some nice angular styling makes it a really rather good looking car.
Interior
The Kia Soul’s interior can’t be criticised for its lack of space, there is plenty of head and leg room for both front and rear passengers and the back has enough space to seat 3 comfortably. The boot is a little lacking in height but is decently sized. Unfortunately the materials Kia have picked for the Soul’s interior are a bit on the tacky side, they feel cheap and plasticy, and they let down the Soul’s exterior style.
Equipment
The Kia Soul is available in 1, 2, Shaker, Quantum and Inferno trims. The 1 comes with remote central locking, air conditioning, radio/CD player, electric windows, a USB aux socket but is only available with the petrol engine. The 2 adds 16” alloys, iPod connectivity and steering wheel mounted audio controls. The Shaker, Quantum and Inferno trims add various extra bits of Kia Soul equipment and styling touches including various combinations of LED daytime running lights, automatic air conditioning, 18” alloy wheels, parking sensors and a rear view camera.
Safety
The Kia Soul was awarded 5 stars in its Euro NCAP crash test. It comes with 6 airbags, electronic stability programme (ESP) and ABS as standard as well as a nifty little system that detects if one side of the car suddenly finds itself lacking in grip and corrects accordingly. So, all in all, the Kia Soul’s safety package is rather impressive.
Buying & Owning
Kias are traditionally reliable and to reassure you further the Soul comes with Kia’s exceptional 7 year or 100,000 mile warranty. The Soul’s economy is not particularly impressive, managing to achieve 44 mpg for the petrol model and 57 mpg for the diesel. Initial prices are competitive but if you want one of the special edition models you can find yourself spending a surprisingly large amount.
Reviewed by cars2buy