Kia Soul EV review

• Overview
• What is it?
• OK, but what actually is it?
• Hmm. What’s the range like on the Soul EV?
• It looks quite big, doesn’t it?
• Does it drive well? 
• What's the verdict?
• Kia Niro EV
• MG Motor UK MG4
• MG Motor UK ZS EV
• Driving
• What is it like to drive?
• What’s the handling like?
• What’s the efficiency like on the Soul?
• Road Test: Kia Soul 1.6 CRDi 2 5dr
• First Drive: Kia Soul 1.6 CRDi Connect 5dr
• First Drive: Kia Soul EV 5dr Auto
• Interior
• What is it like on the inside?
• Is the Soul EV practical?
• What about the infotainment? 
• Buying
• What should I be paying?
• What are the trims like? 
• Which version should I go for? 

Overview

What is it?

This is the third generation of Kia Soul EV, the quirky middle child of the Korean carmaker’s range. In Europe the Soul is only available with an electric powertrain, but in the rest of the world you get a nice selection of petrol engines to go with the car.

We’ve not been shortchanged, though, it’s the same powertrain from the previous versions of the Niro EV and Hyundai Kona Electric (both have been updated since the Soul EV was launched in 2020). It goes up against the likes of the MG4 and ZS EV, or perhaps the Mazda CX-30.

OK, but what actually is it?

That’s a very good question, and we’re not sure that anyone would be able to give us an answer. It’s got SUV vibes, but it definitely isn’t one of those. It has a hatchback, but it isn’t really one of those either. Maybe it’s a bit like an old school MPV, but it doesn’t have the practicality of one of those.

No one at Kia would thank us for drawing the link, but it does also have an air of the early 2000s Chrysler PT Cruiser about it, but much better looking. It’s distinctive, though, which is definitely the point. And we think that this third version of the car is the best looking one yet, much less like a hearse than the previous two.

Hmm. What’s the range like on the Soul EV?

Now we’re talking. The electric Soul comes with two flavours of battery – a 39kWh car costing just under £32k and a 64kWh car costing £39k, with official ranges of 171 miles and 280 miles. We’ve driven both, and Kia’s got a good track record of building economical electric powertrains – both of those figures are easily achievable with mild temperatures and sensible driving.

The 64kWh car’s figure is especially impressive: it all but does away with range anxiety when you can manage 280 miles between plugging in, and one of the cheapest ways to get that distance from a charge.

The one thing that lets the car down is that it will only charge at a peak of 77kW, which means it’ll get from 10–80 per cent in around 45 minuntes on a 100kW charger; note the MG4 costs £29k for the long range SE version which charges faster and has an official range of 281 miles…

The bigger batteried car gets a slightly more powerful 201bhp motor for a 0–62mph run in 7.9 seconds, while the entry model makes do with 134bhp and 9.9s. You don’t notice the difference too much on the move, ultimate range aside.

It looks quite big, doesn’t it?

This is the other issue with the Soul EV – it looks big, and feels big on the road (it’s very wide when you’re driving it), but definitely doesn’t feel like anything has been made of that extra size. It doesn’t feel especially roomy inside, there’s nothing particularly clever about the interior, even if it looks stylish enough, and it’ll only carry five people. If you want a clever, versatile MPV/SUV/crossover/whatever, this isn’t it.

Does it drive well? 

The Soul drives surprisingly well: it has a sharp turn-in, typically perky EV acceleration (the Sport mode is basically unusable, unless you’re deliberately trying to upset your passengers) and it rides smoothly. There is a touch of lean, though, which makes keen driving less fun – this is mostly a zip around town sort of car, but it does sit well on the motorway at the same time.

The Soul EV is a very good car, which is chiefly down to its impressively efficient drivetrain. Go for the larger battery and the 280 miles of range will mean that you won’t miss the petrol engine options offered in other parts of the world.

When we criticise lots of new cars for being a bit samey and dull, we have to celebrate the ones that come along with a bit of personality and offer something different. The Soul EV doesn’t bring any new tricks to the table and isn’t particularly innovative, but it’s an alternative to the SUV crowd that looks pretty sharp.

That said, Kia’s latest version of the Niro EV also looks pretty sharp, has an equally impressive powertrain and is a more practical day to day proposition. But it does cost slightly more. Whether you go for the Soul EV ultimately comes down to how much you do or don’t want to be seen in an SUV.

Continue reading: Driving

Driving

What is it like to drive?

The Soul EV has no pretensions towards being a sporty car, but it drives very smoothly and with a decent ride. It comes with Sport, Normal, Eco and Eco+ drive modes to vary the accelerator and e-motor response. Sport weights up the steering too, but it’s largely a pointless endeavour because the car gets skittish and nervy as the power swamps the front wheels.

The 64kWh car has a 201bhp motor that makes 0–62mph in 7.9 seconds and goes on to 104mph, while the 39kWh entry car makes do with 134bhp for 0-62mph in 9.9s and top speed of 97mph.

What’s the handling like?

It’s decent enough: the steering feels sharp geared, which means the Soul EV turns into corners quickly enough and feels wieldy around town. The smaller batteried car does feel noticeably lighter on the move, but there’s not enough else that it brings to the table to make that a definitive point of recommendation.

There’s also a little too much lean and not enough steering feel to make it a satisfying car to hustle along a B-road, but that would be missing the point of Kia’s usefully efficient powertrain.

What’s the efficiency like on the Soul?

We drove both versions of the car in warm spring conditions and found that the official range figures for the car were surprisingly attainable. Obviously this will be different in extreme heat or the usual relentless chilliness of a British winter, but it’s a good start. It’s not too hard to get 4mi/kWh or above from the Soul EV. Official range for the 64kWh model is 280 miles, while the 39kWh car is rated at 171 miles.

There’s predictive regen available on the Kia, but we don’t really like that sort of thing on EVs, it makes the car ironically unpredictable to drive. The steering wheel paddles are pretty useful, though, with three levels of adjustment that offer flexibility. The Soul is missing a B mode for steep hills and the like, though.

Previous: Overview

Continue reading: Interior

Interior

What is it like on the inside?

You sit high in the Soul EV – almost SUV-like, some might say. The seats in the 64kWh car are electrically adjustable, heated and leather trimmed, while in the 39kWh car you have to make do with fabric-covered manually adjustable numbers and a cold back.

These differences highlight the Upstairs, Downstairs nature of the two Soul options: the more expensive car is plushly decked out, well equipped and thoroughly pleasant to be in, while the entry car with the smaller battery has cheap, scratchy plastics and feels like a different car entirely.

Is the Soul EV practical?

The passenger space in the Soul is decent enough, and there are some useful (but small) storage areas around the front of the cabin, but the luggage space is not particularly good. We like the split level boot floor, which gives you somewhere to hide your charge cables, but at just 315 litres with all the seats up, the shallow load bay just isn’t big enough. You get 1,339 litres with the seats down.

To contrast, you get 380/1,190 litres out of a Skoda Fabia supermini, or more pertinently Kia’s Niro EV nets you 475/1,392 litres of bootspace.

What about the infotainment? 

The Soul’s dashboard is at least more interesting than the Niro’s. Easy to use, too, with a 10.25in touchscreen infotainment system (it’s a mere 8.0in effort in the 39kWh car, though) that looks good, does much and responds quickly to your inputs.

Happily Kia has resisted the temptation to integrate everything into said touchscreen, so there are still physical climate controls and lots of buttons giving direct access to most functions.

The fancy 10.25in infotainment grants access to Kia’s UVO Connect telematics system. The car’s built-in eSim means it’s always online, so it can do normal stuff like live traffic and weather updates, but also tell you where public chargers are, whether they’re compatible with your car and whether they’re being used. If you’ve got the 39kWh car you’ll just have to pull over and look them up on your phone.

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Continue reading: Buying

Buying

What should I be paying?

It’s an easy choice when it comes to deciding which Soul EV to go for – there are just the two trims with on-the-nose names, considering that Urban is the entry-level, short-range option and Explore will travel a hundred miles further with its bigger battery.

The Urban model costs £32,845 and the Explore version costs £39,045. That’s against a Niro EV range that spans £37k-43k or the MG4 that costs £27k-32k.

What are the trims like? 

The Urban model comes with a reasonable spec as standard: you get Apple/Android connectivity, USB and USB-C plugs, 8.0in touchscreen infotainment, keyless entry, adaptive cruise control and a reversing camera as standard.

You just need to remember that the reversing camera on the Urban car doesn’t have any parking sensors as you cheerfully reverse into a nicely framed lamppost. Both versions of the car also come with a speed limit alert system that’s so annoying to listen to (and such a pain to turn off) that we’d be tempted to try and find the fuse for it. Or something.

The Explore model feels much swankier inside, with leather trim, heated front seats and steering wheel, electrically adjustable driver’s seat, auto wipers and lights, a 10.25in touchscreen infotainment and rear parking sensors.

Which version should I go for? 

We would definitely recommend you go for the 64kWh car if budget allows. It’s a different experience, both in terms of owning an electric vehicle, but also in terms of enjoying the Soul EV. The cabin is nicer, and having 280 miles of range to play with all but eliminates range anxiety.

Charging the 64kWh car on a home charging point will take just over nine hours, while rapid charging on a 100kW plug will get you from 10 to 80 per cent of charge in around 45 minutes. Conversely, the 39kWh takes six hours to charge on a home plug, and around 45 minutes on a rapid charger (it has fewer cells to fill, but does it at a slightly slower rate). Either way, you get a handy seven-year/100,000-mile warranty for peace of mind.

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Continue reading: Specs & Prices

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