Test: KIA Soul 1,6 GDI - Everything cool?

This KIA is something completely different and you can see that in the looks of other people. The SOUL gets as many looks as a sporty convertible or a fat off-road vehicle. But there is no “social envy” in the look. Attention is good for him, because the cute box is an outsider that should be put in the spotlight. A “kind of” compact, an SUV or a station wagon? A cube for sure. A driving report about a car that is different. 

Cool box or mini SUV?

Test KIA Soul 1.6 GDI

Driving Test100 KIA SOUL 2

It is the second generation of the KIA SOUL. It's hard to believe, as you rarely see the car on our roads. In the USA it's something different, where the SOUL is seen as a trendy, hip character vehicle designed for everyday urban life. For us, KIA wants the SOUL to be “somehow” understood as an SUV. Which doesn't make any sense. The SOUL has neither all-wheel drive nor much ground clearance. It has more than a simple golf-class compact, but everything about the SOUL screams street and nothing screams off-road park.

Introduced mid-2014, the SOUL plays somewhere in the league between a compact, a mini van and a station wagon. His design is extraordinary and, above all, different. The coating of the test car in rich and bright yellow is ensnared by the piano black paint panels. The otherwise matte plastic elements were wrapped in piano lacquer and look classy. At the rear, a molded bumper surrounds two rear fog lights that look as if they were originally intended for rocket propulsion. And the hatchback really deserves its name.

The shape of the sideline is dominated by the black, narrower narrower window band. Thanks to black A-pillars, the roof looks as if you had put a cap on the SOUL. Peppy, sporty and funny were the comments on the supermarket parking lot.

Driving test 84 KIA SOUL

Dröge from the quark

1.6 GDI his name. His performance: Tired. The gasoline direct injection engine has to do without the torque-enhancing effect of a turbocharger and feels accordingly mau. The fact that you have him a rather long translated 6-gearbox provided to the side, the elasticity does not help on the jumps. On the contrary.

132 PS sound not so bad. However, together with only 161 Nm (@4.850 rpm), the presentation in everyday life is not convincing. In principle, you have to turn the engine always further than you would like from the feeling. This is also associated with a strained, rough-sounding engine noise. And it does not really help. to minimize fuel consumption.

Theoretically, the KIA Soul with the 1.6 GDI should have a standard consumption of 6.7 liters. In the “most economical” case we achieved a consumption of 7.2 liters. If you consider the otherwise large deviation between the norm and “everyday life”, this is a good result. However, it comes at the price of a devastating inertia.

If you challenge the 132 hp and let the V-Max reach 185 km/h with a lot of acceleration, you'll easily see 10.7 liters on the clock. We drive all the same vehicles.”Fuel consumption laps“. The difference between minimum and maximum is manageable with the SOUL - 8.5 liters should be planned as “normal” in everyday life.

Really cool box

In addition to its extraordinary design, the SOUL scores with its first-class equipment level, the funny ideas in the interior and the surprisingly good workmanship.

Seat heating and seat ventilation!

The Spirit equipment surprises with a scope that would also suit vehicles in a class above. If you then add the “VIP package including panoramic roof” for €2.090 and the sound & navigation package for €1.390, the SOUL not only comes to the customer with heated seats and steering wheel, but also with seat ventilation.

The gigantic panoramic roof does not miss its effect. Totally dimmable in the summer sun, it lets so much light into the vehicle that you feel like you're on a patio. The driver's seat can then also be set electrically and the VIP package also includes a center armrest at the back, with cup holders.

The multimedia system and navigation impress with good graphics and fast response times, and thanks to the “sound package”, the SOUL also becomes a rolling jukebox!

The fact that you can bring the lower speakers in the front doors to life via an LED light show was no longer important in the author's age group, but other SOUL drivers might find it “cool” and “hip”.

With at least 238 liters in the trunk, the SOUL offers enough space for everyday life. The cargo area floor can be turned and changes between the classic carpet and a surface that is non-slip and makes sense for “dirty” luggage. There is an additional compartment hidden under the cargo area floor - practical for the little things of everyday automotive use. The fact that there is an “LED flashlight” in the side wall, which when plugged in serves as “trunk lighting” – elsewhere this would be called “simply clever” – here it fits with the “cool character” of the SOUL.

So the KIA SOUL drives

The engine could spoil your mood if the rest of the package wasn't so convincing. The SOUL feels stiff and confident as soon as the road surface becomes rough and bumpy. Its suspension absorbs a lot, but does not hide the desire for a certain “youthful sportiness”.

The steering wheel gives a little bit of the feeling of the road. The adjustments by button (Dynamic, Normal, Comfort) can be ignored, the differences do not make everyday life any better or worse.

The test car rolls on 18-inch light-alloy wheels with NEXEN tires. Rather unusual, we did not have that often. Whether the slightly wooden feel of cushioning comes from the tires, we can not conclusively judge it.

Overconfident corner-stealing ends in mild understeer. However, the large wheels and the overall good chassis set-up create a limit that is far away from what the engine can achieve. Only the really nasty “speed gamblers” come there in everyday life.

Driving Test86 KIA SOUL 2

And finally ...

The SOUL is definitely not an SUV. Even if KIA wants to attribute this talent to the cute cube. In addition, this “lifestyle attribute” is completely unnecessary, the KIA SOUL is cool, without any SUV nonsense or posturing. A car with character. And despite the tired engine, the SOUL is fun again every day

And the fact that KIA offers a seven-year warranty in the series shows the “cool” character of the SOUL in an even better light!

 

KIA SOUL 1.6 GDI - 6 speed 

Manufacturer:  KIA
Type: SOUL 1.6 GDI 6 gear
Cashbox:  C-segment
Engine:  R4
Transmission:  Six-speed manual transmission
Drive:  front-wheel drive
displacement:  1.600 cc
Power:  97 kw / 132 hp @ 6.300 rpm
torque:  161 Nm @ 4.850 rpm.
Weight ready to drive:  1.275 - 1.417 kg
From 0 of 100:  11.0 s
Top speed .:  185 km / h
Consumption (NEDC):  6.7 liters (18 ″ tires)
CO2 output (NEDC)  156 g / km (18 ″ tires)
Emission class  EU 6
efficiency  D
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Photos in the article and cover picture: Bjoern Habegger
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