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Auto-news.de Gets The New Soul On A Test Drive
Kia’s brand-new Soul crossover vehicle has not been driven only by the British automotive media as I first thought, but also by German speaking journalists.
Proving that is this report here that I just found on the web and includes some really nice and high-quality Soul pictures.
The fellows from Auto-news.de joined their English friends and put together their short “first impressions” review of the Kia’s funky little crossover vehicle.
So far, most of the reviews were quite positive and the general consensus seems to be that Kia did a great job with their new design.
I’m not that good at German, but my modest knowledge enabled me to sum up a few words on their Soul test drive.
In general, Auto-news.de says that the new Kia Soul has a very unique exterior design and comes available with lots of options that will enable customers to personalize the vehicle as they want.
The cabin offers above average room and in the trunk there is the same amount of space as in the five-door cee’d (340L). Thanks to generous wheelbase (255cm) you can comfortably seat in the second row of seats.
We have heard before that center stack console and other parts inside the Soul are made from poor quality plastic, but they don’t point that out. So perhaps it’s not that bad at all and other editors were just a bit picky, if you know what I mean.
How about ride? Surprisingly, they don’t complain about the ride, like all English magazines did. They say the ride has a GO-kart feel and is more oriented towards younger buyers who prefer sportier handling over comfort.
Well, there might be some other good (or bad) things that I didn’t include here due to my poor understanding of German language.
I must admit that this makes me want to sit behind the table and start learning German again! 🙂 …
Find more pictures at Auto-news.de
Soul Image Gallery
now, thats a true review. the other journs were just picky and just looking for the slightest imperfection cuz of it being Kia!
I am from Germany. So I will try to translate some things. They are writing, that the interior materials are not the right ones for the european tastes. But they are also writing, that it looks very solid, without any rattling or creaking while driving. The seats are not the best and the suspension is too stiff for the older drivers. In their mind its a car for the younger people, especially because of the design, but also its a desirable car for the older drivers on the basis of the huge space in the hole car.
Thanks for your translation slger and welcome to the KIA-WORLD!
How would you rate Auto-news.de’s review? Is it good for a new-coming car or not?
They list the weight with the diesel engine to be 1270kg which comes out to about 2800 lbs. The gas variants should be a little lighter then. I’m glad they didn’t make it too fat like the Scion xB. The Scion xB is 6″ longer, but more than 300 lbs heavier than even the diesel version of the Soul.
It is a very good result for the soul. 4 out of 5 Stars in the rating for a non-german car in a german car magazine is really good. In my memory the most kias in germany only get 3 stars out of five, except the cee´d. Such an article will push the sales of soul. Lets see what the next articles will bring.
There´s a video from autobild with a test, if you follow the link: http://www.autobild.de/autobild-tv/?clip_id=933
Unfortunately in german, but also a very good report.
go-cart like handling. SWEET!
slger: Thank you very much for this video. They don’t say anything against the Soul. It looks good, especially with those shiney dragon vinyls.
P.S. The Soul looks good on the pics, but in this video, you can really notice how attractively designed it realy is.
Hey, guys…what say we all buy Kia Soul’s in our favorite colors and then set up a racing circuit for them? What would be the best U.S. location for us to race at? I have a ’08 Lancer GTS right now, but, I’d buy a Soul if we set up this race circuit(or one location). Any other takers? Or, how about a Kia Museum to be set in Manistee, MI? Am I just dreaming, or who else wants to do this? It would be a Koup for Kia(pardon the pun, I meant a coup for Kia!!)because of the publicity generated by it. OK, Kia Motors of S.Korea, I’ll accept a free Kia Soul in Tomato Red for my racing Kia…ta generate you some more publicity for this car. I got it! We’ll have the museum located on the same site as the racetrack! Mario Andretti ain’t got nothin’ on this, partners! Saddle up! I get 100mpg on this hog!
I don’t know about location, but Kevin is working on his fourth Soul rendering, that will be a sporty model, with lotts of attractive adds on, such as wider body, different bumpers, larger air intakes and other stuff. His Soul could be used on the racing events you Bryan suggest…
🙂
Bring it on! This new Kia Soul is a great looking, unique crossover that is really the most creative looking new vehicle to come along in years. When you buy a Kia now you are buying a good vehicle quality-wise. These new methods of determining the best manufacturers for quality-build bring along a lot more tightly-spun results than they ever have. The separation between the best manufacturer and the 10th-best is not all that different. The Long-Haul Warranty picks up any defects or problems you might have with your new Kia. I remember when I bought my ’99 Kia Sephia. Kia was advertising the hell out of the Sephia, saying that it couldn’t be brought down even by tough college kids. Well, my Sephia did hold together marvelously. After I slapped 70,000 mile Yokohama radials and some Konig Diva wheels the small car handled much better than before, and it looked great doing it. I couldn’t have asked for more from my ’99 Sephia or my ’01 Kia Sportage 4X4. Kia really does have a passion for building motorcars. I am so proud of them!
For those who haven’t had the chance to actually experience this car. We rented this for a long road trip and I was so surprised by it that it has inspired me to purchase one myself. For long trips the seats can be slightly uncomfortable at least with standard seating. That would be honestly my only complaint. Not only was it excellent on gas milliage but it made the trip so much fun. It handles wonderfully and has a nice standard stereo system. Space was definitely not an issue as we had plenty of room for everything including the extras from our shopping spree! It does have some get up and go which was also surprising. All in all I would give this vehicle a 4.7/5!