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PEOPLES DAILY, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18, 2012
By Nuel Shepherd
Kia’s Soul: Endearing performer
K
ia's well-designed and wellequipped Soul has made a lot of friends. Now, two years after the boxy hatch's launch, Kia is showing off a mid-cycle refresh for the 2012 model. The Kia Soul is an endearing performer, w i t h spirited acceleration a n d steering. Maybe it is the friendly, k i c k y s h e e t metal or t h e hamsterdriven marketing campaign, but the S o u l colours your driving impressions before you even start it. Once you kick it to life, there is a little more to enjoy, with a pair of new drivetrains that boost power and quiet down the Soul's old raucous inside voice. The base Soul has a 1.6-litre four-cylinder, good for 135 horsepower and 121 pound-feet of torque, coupled to either a sixspeed manual or automatic transmission. Fuel economy perks up owing to the smooth-shifting automatic and a new Eco package with stop-start technology. However, the larger 2.0-litre four wheel drive, which is not that much less economical, and grunts out 164 horse power is much more preferable. With the extra power, the Soul is a cruiser with good urban grunt, particularly helped out by the new automatic transmission, which has two more gears than the outgoing box. The manual transmission is not so much preferable because though it shifts fine, it has long throws and long pedal movement, and runs counter to the Soul's city-scooter mission. In most versions the Soul rides smoothly, though it can get a bit bouncy on some freeway surfaces, where road noise gets to be an issue. You should think twice about the big 18-inch wheel and tire package, for those reasons. Steering is electric and quicker than the norm in the hatchback class (except for the Ford Focus), and with a 2800-pound curb weight, the Soul feels eager to corner on its strut front and torsion-beam rear suspension. It is one of the few compacts that feels more adept than the sum of its parts, something the Honda Civic has all but given up. Quality With its tall roof and its boxy shape, the Kia Soul promises a roomy, versatile, almost minivanlike cabin. It delivers, too--the Soul has enough room for five passengers or, when the back
seats are folded down, a sizable amount of cargo. Overall, the 2012 Soul is 161.6 inches long, 70.3 inches wide, 63.4 inches high, and it rides on a 100.4-inch wheelbase. The compact dimensions cloak excellent interior space, especially head room. Front-seat passengers get comfortable bucket seats with a half-foot of head room above, and just a little knee room trimmed out for the wide center console and its knobby, easy-to-use controls. Even the Scion xB can't seem to match the Soul's spacious, airy feel. The space for second-row passengers is just as good, and the same high seating position is applied to the back bench. It is wide enough for two adults and one child, or a couple of car seats, and in front and back, the Soul's
tall roof and doors make entry and exit considerably easier than in competitive hatchbacks. The Soul's rear seats flip forward to boost cargo area to more than 53 cubic feet. The cargo floor also has a lift-up panel that hides a small amount of precious cargo, and Kia also offers an optional cargo organiser that's pretty handy for weekend errands. The Soul also has a double-decker glove box than can stow a 15-inch laptop, to go with armrest storage in the center console, and an iPodsized bin atop its center stack, not to mention lots of cup-holders and molded-in bottle holders. The Soul has fit and finish far above what you would expect. Even the hard plastics are nicely surfaced, and trim and panels all fit tightly. Safety Kia has not changed the
standard safety equipment on its 2012 Soul, and it did not need to. The compact hatchback already had six airbags, anti-lock brakes and stability control, and in the past those features earned it top scores from safety agencies. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in the United States still rates the Soul as one of its Top Safety Picks, but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has not yet updated its Soul ratings since it changed its criteria for the 2011 model year. It has assigned a rollover-protection rating of four stars, which it gets from numeric formulas. The Soul has improved safety for the new year, though it applies only to models with the navigation system. On the costlier versions, Kia fits a rearview camera, which we consider a great safety feature.
However, it is not as essential on the Soul as on bigger crossovers and SUVs, since tall glass areas and a high driving position give the driver excellent outward visibility. Fuel economy For its first two years on sale, the Kia Soul's fuel economy was not especially good, compared to other compact hatchbacks. That has changed for the 2012 version with new powertrains and with a new Eco stop-start feature available as an option on either model. The base 1.6-litre Soul now makes 135 horsepower, up 11 per cent, and comes with a six-speed m a n u a l transmission, with an automatic available. The EPA rates it at 2 7 / 3 5 mpg - an improvement if still a bit shy of cars like the latest Hyundai Elantra or Ford Focus. The Eco package adds on stop-start technology, which shuts off the engine at longer pauses in traffic, automatically restarting with a step on the gas pedal. The speedier Soul has a 2.0litre four with 164 horsepower. With either the six-speed manual or a six-speed automatic, it earns an EPA rating of 26/34 mpg. The same Eco package is offered and here, it pushes gas mileage back up to 27/35 mpg. The Eco package lurches a bit when it re-engages the throttle, not objectionably, but noticeably. It does not offer a dramatic fuel economy improvement, but you may believe - as Kia does -that every little bit helps. Exterior/interior In a class of quirky, boxlike cars, the Kia Soul stands out because the quirks work in its favor, and give it a funky flair that is pretty absent in the Scion xB, Nissan Cube, and the like. The urban-wagon concept wins on styling, hands-down. The bullnosed front end wears Kia's new corporate theme between big, alert headlamps (LED-lit on the top model). The angular roofline starts high, and boomerangs down the rear end in a way that reminds us equally of European hatchbacks and the In-N-Out logo. It is a rakish, crisp shape that does not depend on a lot of dazzling details to sell it, though it has a lot of detail across the front. Over time, the rear end has started to look thicker, especially in lighter colors such as green, but the square tail-lamps frame a nearly vertically aligned hatchback that draws the shape to a tight close. The interior is not quite as groundbreaking, but it is wellorganised and not 'over-dressed'. The blend of round shapes and embossed plastics gives the Soul refinement. Kia even lets owners customise the cabin with color and texture, from red plastic dash trim to hounds tooth-check upholstery for the seats.