For their first two decades in America, Korean cars have generally been perceived as, at best, inexpensive appliances. But Hyundai and Kia are no longer satisfied with this role. So Hyundai has given us the premium Genesis. And Kia about a year ago introduced the brazenly-named Soul. Perhaps a play on the capital of South Korea, the car's very name asserts that it is no appliance. But does the Soul have what it takes to justify such a name?

Kia Soul Styling

The Kia Soul is Korea's response to the Scion xB. It answers the question: what happens if you keep the basic box, but do more with it than add wheels? What if you actually put serious thought into the design? In the case of the Soul, an upward angled beltline, downward angled roofline, flared wheel openings, and various other details perfectly meld to form a much more attractive box. This is the sort of innovative yet cohesive design Honda used to be capable of, but somehow forgot how to do. The Soul hasn't repulsed people the way the xB has, and I'd personally feel much more comfortable driving one.

But perhaps this is a sign that Kia hasn't pushed the envelope hard enough. While attractive, the Soul doesn't challenge aesthetic conventions the way the xB and Nissan cube have. It doesn't seem as quirky, and doesn't stand out as much in a sea of other cars. So it doesn't appeal as much to people who want something clearly different from the mainstream. Those macho fender flares and angles might also be a factor: there's more sport and less cute in this exterior design than in the cube's.

Inside, color provides Kia's Soul with much of its soul. Well, not in the lower two trim levels-their interiors are un-fun solid black. But the !'s interior (yes, ! is a trim level, as is +) is a combination of beige and black, while the sport's (lowercase intended) is red and black. Opt for the red only if you really like red. There's a lot of it, including nearly the entire instrument panel, and hard plastic is clearly hard plastic in this particular shade. You'll want to wear your shades. Beige veers too far in the other direction, but houndstooth seat inserts save the !'s interior from appearing mundane.

The Kia Soul's most unexpected feature: speaker lights. The great-sounding 315-watt, eight-speaker audio system has lights in its two front door speakers. And, no, that's not the end of it. These lights have four settings: off, on, mood, and music. In "mood," you set the frequency with which they blink. In "music," they beat to the music. An excellent way to entertain the kiddies-except that the rear door speakers are not similarly endowed. Why not?

Another problem with the speaker lights: responses to TrueDelta's Car Reliability Survey suggest that they often failed to work as design. Kia has a fix for this problem, though, so it shouldn't affect recently produced cars.

Kia Soul Accommodations

Sitting in the Kia Soul feels much like sitting in a regular compact, just with your rear a half-foot further from the ground. While a protruding center stack benefits ergonomics, it also reduces the perceived roominess of the interior. Similarly, the large, modestly raked windshield provides a familiar view from the driver's seat, but cuts into perceived roominess more than an upright windshield would.
All of these tall boxes provide more rear legroom and headroom than in the typical small car, and the Soul is no exception. Two adults will fit in back, no problem. Cargo space with the second row up is limited, but simply fold the rear seat to more than double it. The Soul could carry even more stuff if the front passenger seat also folded, as in the PT Cruiser. Alas, it does not.

Unlike in the Nissan cube, the cargo floor is flat when the rear seat is folded. The trick: a false floor behind the rear seat. Useful storage compartments occupy the space between this false floor and the floor over the spare. Up front, storage areas include a huge bi-level glove compartment and a storage box atop the IP. So there's plenty of space for four people or stuff, if not four people AND their stuff.

Kia Soul Performance

The Kia Soul looks like fun, and it has those nifty speaker lights. But it is fun to drive? A 2.0-liter four good for 142 horsepower motivates 2,800 pounds, not a bad ratio. Problem is, the automatic transmission has only four speeds, and upshifts much more readily than it downshifts. So, at least with this transmission, the Soul feels much more sluggish than the numbers suggest it should. An additional ratio or two would also permit more relaxed and economical highway driving.

The Kia Soul sport has a sport-tuned suspension. The most obvious difference between it and the !: the sport's heavier steering feels less natural and makes the vehicle feel less agile. With either suspension, body roll is fairly well controlled for a 63-inch-tall vehicle and there are none of the fore-aft bibbly-bobblies found in some tall boxes. The Soul generally feels tighter and firmer than key competitors do. But for truly fun handling you'll want something with a lower center of gravity.

The Kia Soul's handling advantage vis-à-vis direct competitors comes at the evident expense of ride quality. On subpar pavement the busy ride borders on punishing, for the ears even more than the seat of the pants. While the base Soul has 15-inch steelies, and the + has 16-inch alloys, both the ! and the sport are shod with 18s. The Soul's bold fender flares certainly pair best with the large wheels, but the attendant low-profile tires thump loudly across every bump and divot. This sort of ride might be worth paying for sports car handling. But many sports cars these days ride much better, and the Soul certainly doesn't handle like a sports car.

Kia Soul Price Comparisons and Pricing

A Kia Soul sport or ! with automatic transmission lists for $18,595. Unless you're into the sport's barely there body kit and rear spoiler, or really dig the red interior, the ! is the better deal, since it trades these features for a standard sunroof. Either is about $500 less than a Nissan cube SL with Preferred Package. Adjusting for feature differences cuts the !'s price advantage to about $500 and the sport's to about $200-at which point price isn't going to be the deciding factor between the Soul and the cube.

The Scion xB can't be optioned up like the Soul and cube, so here the + trim level is the closest match. Compared to the xB with optional alloy wheels, the Soul + lists for $1,440 less. Feature levels are very similar, so no adjustment.

Prices change frequently, and differences will vary based on feature level. To quickly generate these and other comparisons with the specific features you want, visit my Web site, TrueDelta.com. (It's the only site that provides true "apples-to-apples" price comparisons.)

TrueDelta's page for the Kia Soul:

http://www.truedelta.com/models/Soul.php

Last Words

In the final assessment, the Kia Soul is certainly not an appliance. But it's also not as fun to drive as it is to look at. (Though the larger the vehicle you're used to driving, the more fun the Soul or just about any other compact will seem.) It's an attractively styled, functional box with some rough edges. Perhaps Kia will add some needed refinement in coming years. The powertrain from the Forte SX and more polished suspension tuning would be a good start. Even as-is the Soul will appeal to those who prefer sporty to cute and quirky. But car buyers seeking cute and quirky in conjunction with a more relaxed driving experience (e.g. my wife) will probably be more satisfied with a Nissan cube.

A Note on Kia Soul Reliability

I cannot practically cover reliability within the context of this review. However, many people are interested in such information, so I've been collecting my own data. Results are posted to TrueDelta.com, with updates every three months. Unlike other sources, TrueDelta clearly identifies what difference it will make if you buy a Kia Soul rather than another vehicle by providing "times in the shop" stats.

To report results, TrueDelta needs reliability data on all cars--not just the Soul--from people like you. To encourage participation, those who help provide the data will receive free access to the site's reliability information. Non-participants pay an access fee.

Details here:

http://www.truedelta.com/reliability.php

Alphabetized links to my other vehicle reviews can be found on my profile page.
Amount Paid (US$): 18,595