Kia Soul (09 on) - Review

Review by Simon Harris on
Last Updated: 05 January 2010
The Kia Soul is a practical small car. It's not much longer or wider than a Vauxhall Corsa, but it's usefully spacious and stands out for people who'd rather choose something more distinctive than a run-of-the-mill small hatchback. There is a choice of a petrol or diesel engine and sitting above the normal trim levels, the Soul launched with three different limited editions: Samba, Shaker and Burner - reflecting its youthful image. Plenty of rear passenger space, a decent boot plus a well put together interior make the Soul a great small family car, while a smooth ride and light steering make it ideal for town and city driving. In January 2010 the standard warranty on new models was upped from three years to seven years, making it even better value.
4 out of 5

Other Kia reviews

4.5 out of 5

Safety

The Soul was crash tested in 2009 under Euro NCAP's more stringent criteria. This is one overall rating (from one to five stars) that covers adult occupant protection, child occupant protection, pedestrian protection and a new area of assessment - safety assist. It scored the maximum five stars and was particularly impressive in terms of child safety. All cars come with six airbags as standard as well as an electronic stability programme.

NCAP Test

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  • Adult Occupant Rating

    5 out of 5
4 out of 5

Reliability

Kias tend to be mechanically strong, but the Soul was originally backed up by a five-year/unlimited mileage warranty, which offers extra reassurance. This was made even better in January 2010 when the scheme was upped to seven-years/100,000 miles.

Car check problem points

Body

No problems reported.

Engine/Gearbox

No problems reported.

Other

No problems reported.