Kia Soul Car Review

HerCar Rating: Model Reviewed Kia Soul 2 1.6 litre Diesel Manual $26,690* Other models priced from Soul 1.6 litre auto from $20,990* HerCar 3 word summary Time for fun!

Viewing image 1 of 5

HerCar Review

First impressions are interesting. Remember that kind of dorky looking guy that you couldn’t help look at? Not because he was ugly, just because there was something about him. Something kind of cool in a wacky kind of way. Well that’s how I describe the new Kia Soul. You can’t help but look at it. Once you jump in and have a drive, you realise that there’s also some substance here. But not deep stuff, just what you need and want. It’s super easy to drive, see out of, park and has enough power to get you where you want to go.

The unique aspect of the Soul is that you can basically create your own look with 11 colours, 3 seat trims, 3 car stickers-racing stripe, houndstooth and dragon; 30 accessories, and a choice of manual or automatic, petrol or diesel. There are also 3 different spec levels, the Soul, Soul 2 and Soul 3. Whilst choice is good, you’re going to need to spend some time creating before buying. Kia have set up a website to help you do this. You can go there now by clicking here Notwosouls.

We test drove a couple of the cars. Our review focuses on the Soul 2 1.6 litre diesel manual.

Driver Comfort & Visibility
The Soul is slightly elevated from the ground, more than a car but not as much as a SUV. This height, along with a huge front windscreen, gives you great front visibility.  All of the knobs and switches are in easy reach, with audio controls mounted on the steering wheel. The dash is a really clean and simple layout. You can adjust your seat setting as well as the steering wheel. I enjoyed driving the diesel more than the petrol due to the great pick up in each gear.

Safety
There’s a full complement of airbags with driver and front passenger front and side airbags and curtain airbags from front to rear. There’s also ESP, ABS and Electronic Brake force Distribution.

Storage
There are lots of great storage spots – a huge 2 tier glove box-that’s red on the inside, a round dash storage enclave, an in dash storage bin with lid, two good cup holders and another centre hole for a phone or coins. All 4 doors have door pockets with a bottle holder that can hold a 600ml Mount Franklin bottle. There are also pockets on the back of the front seats-good for books, mags etc
The boot space is good too-I travelled around with 2 medium sized suitcases and a brief case-and there was room for more. If you need more boot space you can fold down the rear seats completely or use the 60/40 split option.

Rear Passenger Comfort
There’s great head room throughout the car as well as great rear leg room-so no complaining from your rear passengers.

Green Factor
The Soul diesel is the go for the fuel misers (it survives on about 5.2 litres per100kms) and the petrol is good for the enviro lovers, scoring a 5 star Green Vehicle Rating (out of 5).  The diesel only scores 3.5 stars due to the air pollution that is emitted from a diesel.

Overall View
With the Soul, Kia have made it easy for you to customise your car without having to fork out huge wads of cash. It’s a good drive, with some great features like the iPod connectivity and lots of storage nooks. To get the most out of your Soul experience, take the time to jazz it up, otherwise it could look just like a Suzuki Swift on steroids, which is just not that cool!

If you’re considering buying this car you might also like to test drive the Nissan Dualis, Suzuki SX4, Fiat 500.

* Excludes on road costs

# All new vehicles sold in Australia (up to 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle mass) are tested to determine the level of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions (Greenhouse rating), which are displayed on the fuel consumption label attached to the windscreen of the car. The Green Vehicle Guide rating combines the Greenhouse Rating and Air Pollution Rating and awards a star. 5 stars is the best rating.  For more information, click here.
Information is correct at the time of the review. Please check with your local Kia dealer for the most recent information.

Review Date: April 2009

Reviewed By: Melissa Pye