IN 2009, when the Kia Soul was introduced, it was roundly criticized as a blatant copy of the square-shaped Scion xB. At the time, Toyota’s youth brand had sold an average of 46,000 xBs annually over six years to coveted younger buyers, a good reason for Kia to go to the square-shaped well.
The combination of practicality, affordability and hipster-hamster marketing has made the Soul so successful it’s often neck and neck with the Optima as Kia’s best-selling car. On track to sell more than 150,000 copies in North America for 2016, the Soul has outlived other boxes such as the Nissan Cube, the Honda Element and, of course, the xB (R.I.P. Scion).
How do you improve a sales powerhouse? Well, add power of course.
That is what Kia has done with the 2017 Exclaim model (or “!” in Kia-speak), dropping in a 1.6-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine. This motor runs exclusively with a sure-shifting 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. The lower-rung Plus (or “+”) model has a standard 6-speed automatic.
At 201 horsepower and 195 pound-feet of torque, the Exclaim increases the Plus’s 2-liter 4-cylinder by 40 horsepower and 45 pound-feet of torque. Consider it your hamster on speed.
This is not, though, South Korea’s answer to the vaunted Volkswagen GTI. The German GTI is built of not just metal, glass and plastic, but a dash of magic as well. The Soul is quick (0 to 60 miles an hour in about 7.7 seconds), but its taller stance and numb steering keep it from being quite as nimble.
Still, the Soul turbo is fun enough to fling about town. Its size is perfect for urban skirmishes, and the slightly retuned suspension keeps comfort up and body movements buttoned down. Enthusiasts will demand more road feel through the steering wheel, a sporty D-shaped version that lacks transmission paddle shifters. Hello? Marketing department?
There is also lag when the pedal hits the carpet hard. That can be reduced by switching to sport mode, but it still remains to a degree. Torque steer, that tugging of the steering wheel that powerful front-drive cars can exhibit, is commendably low. All-wheel drive is not available. At speed, there is plenty of passing power.
The Soul’s shape is as aerodynamic as a house, so freeway speeds bring some wind noise, but the vehicle is otherwise moderately quiet. Its form factor scrubs off fuel economy, too. Still, the turbo engine is the most fuel-efficient way to move a Soul. The Environmental Protection Agency rates its mileage at 26 city and 31 highway, about a mile per gallon better than the other two available engines. I saw 27 m.p.g. on specified standard grade gas in a week’s worth of spirited driving.
The cabin is constructed of quality soft-touch materials and rich-looking piano-black trim. A penalty box this is not. Well-bolstered and wide leather-trimmed seats have cloth inserts with a fashion-forward houndstooth pattern. Tall people looking for a small car will appreciate the lofty headroom.
Fully loaded with the $3,000 tech and $1,000 sunroof packages, the Exclaim sells for $27,500. Seem steep? Some luxury cars lack this car’s kit. There is navigation, a heated steering wheel, heated seats front and back, blind-spot warning, cross-path detection, a loud (if not overly accurate) Harman Kardon sound system with LED pulsing speaker grilles and a full glass roof that makes the Soul a rolling greenhouse. A mercifully simple touch-screen user interface that rodents could master features Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.
Oddly, this top Exclaim model cannot be equipped with forward collision warning, an increasingly common safety feature, the way the Plus models can.
Passengers in back get seats that support thighs well and a USB port to charge phones. There’s ample room for two people, and it is not bad for three, considering the Soul’s size.
That means the cargo area, as tall as it is, is somewhat shallow. But drop the 60/40 split seat backs and it opens up a box so large, Pandora might lure those evil spirits she freed back for roomy residence. The rest of us will comfortably stash bikes and Ikea furniture.
A base Soul equipped with a 6-speed manual transmission and a 130-horsepower 4-cylinder engine retails for $16,840 if all you need is an affordable way to haul people and cargo. The Exclaim’s turbo power earns its “!” designation. The design might be polarizing, but Soul shapes up as a decent deal.
No comments:
Post a Comment