"conversions" are EV for strange bedfellows when it comes to competition. There is no gasoline Kia Soul which was even slightly with Mercedes or BMW. Curiously though, when you electrify one of the cheapest cars in America, you end up with a Kia on the same list as cross-shop i3 and B-Class Electric. Obviously, a Kia Soul EV vs i3 vs comparative table of class B is at the end, but Im surprised how many people wanted to hear that comparison. There is not the luxury cross-shops that become possible, however, comparisons normally considered "monistic" and "one level down" become more reasonable. For example, the soul of the essence are not a direct competitor of the Fiat 500 and the Ford Focus, but as EV they are face to face.
Exterior
boxy profile of the soul causes buyers often overestimate its size. at 163 inches long, the soul is 16 inches shorter a Honda Civic and only three inches longer than a Honda Fit. the relative size and low 1510 $ starting price (in gas form) are the key to understanding the soul in general terms. You should also keep the low starting price in mind when thinking of the soul EV.
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Although the boxy Kia is not very long, it is wide enough. At 70.9 inches wide, the soul is three inches wider than a critical Honda Fit. This extra width keeps the soul to look too vertical (like the Honda Fit) and, from a practical standpoint, it allows rear passengers a wider seat that many compact cars on the market.
To set the EV apart, Kia designed unique paint options that include the model with two blue / white tones that we tested. Apart from the desire to differentiate the product, the white roof effectively reduces the thermal loads in warmer climates. Kia is a brand known for cutting corners. Last century, Kia famous cut all b ad corners, but lately they have started cutting all right those. To keep the price of the EV, Kia low skipped fancy LED or HID headlamps and used the money to provide the level top trim front and rear parking sensors and electrically folding mirrors. It is a profession worthy in my book since many electric vehicles end up being the suburban city cars where parallel parking is a lifestyle.
I must admit that I find the square of the attractive soul. Maybe its my love station wagons, but the practice profile made me smile. The front end bent who ditches a true grid due to reduced cooling requirements makes the soul more elegant look than as basic as well. Although I would not say a luxury look, the EV soul is certainly better than the Spark EV or LEAF, and it is a more traditional alternative to the BMW i3.
inside
I found within the soul to be more polarizing than the exterior, but the style and not quality is where people were mixed in opinion. With the latest redesign, all Soul models get a soft-touch instrument injection molded edge but the cabin of sensation changes from the base gasoline model at the beginning of the end fittings. The difference seems to be that rather than swapping bit nicer in premium cabins, Kia has designed a $ 25,000 cabin and then subtracted to create the basic models. Things like cloth headliner, sewn co ver of the instrument cluster, somehow touching door panels and leather steering wheel is wrapped swapped for rent lower parts in this base model $ 15,10. The result is a high-range inner soul that seems consistent, low inner core end where the interior parts seem irrelevant. Surprised? Then you have not driven midrange or upper levels of the last generation Soul finish. Kia box cheeky particular premium in this generation and all models use EV inner parts more enjoyable.
For the duty of the soul EV is available in two versions with virtually no options to choose from. The model "base" is $ 33,700 (before tax incentives) and "+" is $ 35,700. You should know that both versions really match the hierarchy of the soul between gasoline and +! models in terms of functionality. The bump of $ 2,000 buys you leather seats that are heated / ventilated front and heated rear, heated steering wheel, parking sensors front and rear fog lamps, electrically folding mirrors, auto-dimming rea rview mirror and inserts Leatherette in the doors. The ventilated seats are unique to the EV segment and they are more practical than you might think. Weve all heard it consumes less energy to heat the seats and steering wheel that heat the air, but same warm weather: seat ventilation consumes less energy than cooling the cabin at a lower temperature. Having EV soul back to back with the VW e-Golf is more obvious than I had expected. Although the soul EV is not as aerodynamic as e-Golf I was able to get similar figures road Economic using ventilated seats instead of the A / C
talking air conditioning, Kia decided to use a more expensive pump heat into the EV soul instead of a standard air conditioning and configuration resistive heating that you find in most electric vehicles. Heat pumps are becoming more common because they significantly reduce the energy consumed in heating the cabin. If you live in a colder climate, reduced energy consumption can potentially mean 5-10 miles more range EV.
front seat of the soul are upright and comfortable, but not as adjustable as the soul of the essence! which has an electric seat and 10-way adjustable lumbar support. This is a shame because it would have made the cabin of the soul more welcoming than any other electric vehicle on the market unless new seat design for Tesla. Headroom and legs are surprisingly generous thanks to vertical seats and large roof. With the front seat adjusted for a 6 feet 5 inches friend, I had no problem sitting in the back seat. Because the soul is wider than your average sub-compact, it has three cozy seats in the back, one more than you will find in the 500th, Spark EV or i3. Because most electric vehicles are weight conscious (read: lots of hard plastics), only Tesla and Mercedes offer interiors that feel openly higher rent. The interior of the i3 is difficult to compare as parts are high quality, but kneaf / plastic door panels and dashboard mixed do not feel particularly expensive
infotainment
Perhaps the most attractive feature in the soul, apart ventilated seats, is the UVO infotainment 8 inches a navigation system which is standard on the two versions. Kia built on their easy to use software with EV perhaps the most accurate information available in a car this side of a Model S. In addition to the standard range of the price, charge stations nearby, the software UVO will allow you to see where your will power, mark your conduct, you say how much more you could go if you turned off the AC, and give you charge time estimates. None of these features are unique to the soul, but not all EV out there gives you all this information in one unit. Additionally Kia has a connected smartphone application that will do much of this from afar.
On the dow nside, UVO still missing voice control of your media library as you will find in most competitive mass-market Chrysler, GM, Toyota, Ford, and to some extent Honda, but is the only serious omission in this software. Again though, the EV comparisons are difficult since even this contrast electric vehicles of these companies do not include this feature either. UVO interface is eye-catching, supports scrolling movements / dragging with your finger, includes a cellular modem integrated connectivity features and voice recognition software is intuitive. The display is large and easy to read in strong daylight and the user interface is sleek and modern. BMW iDrive is still the most elegant entrance, but only in the top end fittings as basic i3 gets a less elegant implementation iDrive. Mercedes COMAND is pretty, but lack of playing features UVO. Sadly EV owners can not get the sound system level Infiniti-up of Kia with a center speaker, subwoofer and speaker grilles changing colors that bea t in time with the music. Rocking hamsters do not apply.
Training
Powering the electrified Soul is a 109 horsepower AC electric motor capable of 210 lb- ft of torque. The engine sends power to the front wheels via a single-speed automatic transmission. ( Many of you have asked why we call it a "transmission" when it is a bit of a reduction gear set with a differential. I do not have a good answer for you, I l is called a transmission because the company that is called a transmission. ) Although the curb weight of the EV soul is a hair lower than the e-Golf (3286 vs 3391) and the motor not really much more powerful, 0-60 performance was inexplicably best 10.03 seconds against 8.5 seconds. Puzzled by the rapid sprint at highway speeds? Too many publications have merely cited vague 10-11 second range of Kia for drag racing, but we have tested several times with the same accelerometer based 20Hz GPS and have the same numbers. The difference is probably due to the gear and we hope that we will be able to get 0-60 comparisons to other models soon to confirm it, or not.
BMW i3 is one of the lightest electric vehicles, tipping the scales 751lbs lighter than the soul. However, the weight difference is explained in carbon fiber and aluminum ultra-modern BMW building, soul EV carries a battery which is a huge 44% increase in usable capacity. A 27kWh battery of the soul is (currently) only outclassed by the B-Class and S model Unfortunately, the laws of physics do not allow Kia to have 44% larger than the i3 with a lot of wider tires, the heftier curb weight and less aerodynamic profile. In 2015, the EPA said the soul will cover 93 miles depending on your driving style, about 12 more than the i3. BMWs numbers were about right, move 83 milesin my tests, but the soul EV is estimated conservatively (probably due to the aerodynamic as a brick) but I averaged 4.2 miles per kWh which resulting in a range of 113 miles on my daily commute. I do not want to push things, I managed a 0 mile trip with about 16% of the battery left.
balancing act between Kia characteristics and failed maintenance costs can be seen in the transmission as well. The compromise for the heavy battery capacity is a standard 6.6kW charger that soon, but it is slower than the 7.2 kilowatts in the e-Golf, 7.4kW and 10kW in the i3 in Mercedes. Fortunately all Soul models come standard with the CHAdeMO DC fast charging connector on the front (the large connector on the right in the above image). The new SAE (aka CCS) connector can be thinner and more recent but CHAdeMO latest large stations by more than 4: 1 in the SF Bay area and the charge rate is essentially the same. Load 0V take you more than 24 hours at 240V 6.6kW falling to 4 hours and the little blue box will r un from 5% to 80% in less than 30 minutes at a café with a CHAdeMO station.
player
The soul was never a drivers car. The main reason is Kias decision to use a semi-independent rear suspension for improved cargo space and load capacity. This means that the rear of the soul of gasoline gets angry strongly broken pavement when driving straight ahead and the rough pavement turns le aves open. 500lbs adding to the vehicle and to change the balance of the weight closer to 50/50 rear, soul EV offers better feel without major mechanical changes. Because the wheelbase of the soul is still quite short the ride can feel a little rough on the freeway expansion joints, but the extra weight brings with it added Polish and actually helps settle back into corners .
There are no EV on it excels in handling (same model tests on the skidpad assigns numbers less than the essence of competition) and the Soul is no different. The Soul EV has undoubtedly better balance as the petrol model, and this is evident on winding roads, but the 205 width tires with low rolling resistance and extra weight means that handling is just above the base of the core model (who wears tires, even skinnier.) I find the Kia more engaging than the Nissan Leaf, but less engaging than the electric focus and e-Golf. Dressed in pure road numbersm soul and i3 are fairly close in terms o f independent parameters, but the layout of the RWD i3 makes it more fun. The wheel of the soul gives some valuable feedback, but the effort level is adjustable in three levels and the direction of EV is a "team player" anyway.
Driving dynamics are not With the soul (see what I did there?) But again, EV on the market today is terribly well in this area either. Instead, the soul EV checks all the practicality and usability boxes a large and convenient cargo space to energy saving features as standard heat pump and available leather seating as broken you are not on the same i3 or B-Class. Give up the ghost EV perhaps most compelling is long standard warranty of Kia and the bottom line. If you qualify for the maximum incentive, the EV soul ends up being only $ 1,000 more than a comparable gasoline soul while costing $ 800 less to operate annually. It may be a low bar, but the soul EV EV is easily the best around in the market today. Take the most surp rising dishes, however, is how the soul actually stacks up competition facing the end despite being based on an econo-box $ 15,10.
Kia provide the vehicle, insurance and one charge for this magazine. Nissan has provided free treatment by one of Nissan CHAdeMO charging stations in Redwood City
Specifications as tested :.
0-30: 3.3 seconds
0-60: 8.5 seconds
1/4 Mile: 16.8 seconds @ 82 mph
