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The Kia Soul Experience

56K views 250 replies 93 participants last post by  ImpeccableNEW 
#1 · (Edited)


Purchased- Dec 10th 2011

Current ODO- 14434 miles (as of June 11th)

Fuel cost - $1347.91

Repairs / Maint to date- $73.38

Feb 26th- Oil, filter, bottle of Techron = $29.36
Jun 10th- Oil, filter, bottle of Techron = $44.02

Best tank of gas mileage- 39.6mpg

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


The purpose of this thread will be to document the entire existence of a Kia Soul from purchase till it's final mile hopefully many years from now. I'll let you guys know of any thoughts, problems, etc.

I drive a lot of miles for work. I typically drive anywhere from 150-200+ miles a day. Therefore, I need something that is reliable and cheap to own and operate both in purchase price and fuel cost. I also carry a lot of parts so I need some space, but the parts are light so I do not need to worry about weight capacity.

After weighing all the options, I decided on a 2012 Kia Soul, base model with a manual trans. I don't need any options as this is strictly an A-B work vehicle. Also decided on white as that makes it look like a little service van type vehicle.

Turns out that trying to find a 2012 base model with a stick is next to impossible. I contacted 8 different dealers and nobody had one or knew when they would get one. It was actually quite frustrating as several of the dealers seemed like they weren't hearing a word I said. Several of them tried to sell me loaded models, automatics, or used ones from 2010-2011. When I expressed that I wasn't interested in those, they lost interest in speaking with me.

I understand there is no money to be made on the cheapest model, especially with my USAA discount, but I hope to be able to add some value back to the dealer & brand with future repairs and service as well as referrals to friends and family who may need a new car in the future.

Being that it is a funky looking vehicle and I see a LOT of customers (around 1700 customers a year)..I'm sure I'll have plenty of time to relate my experience of the vehicle to them as well.


As of today, one of the dealers I have been in contact with has located a 2012 base Soul, manual, in white. They are going to try to have it for me in the next week or 2.

The dealership is Global Kia in North Plainfield NJ.

The sales rep is T.J.

Although all our correspondence to this point has been via email, everything has been prompt and attentive to my needs. Better service in fact then several of the other dealers were even face to face.


I'll update as things progress. :thumbup::thumbup:
 
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#9 ·
Im waiting on our Soul ! to arrive at port this weekend hopefully. We're buying the exact opposite model as you, ever single option! Base models and Exclaims are hard to come by and seem to be sold before they even come off the truck. Good luck with yours.
 
#13 ·
In for updates.

As an aside, with 200 miles per day in the car, I'd want some creature comforts, sat-radio, etc. I don't necessarily understand the idea of wanting a stripper for something I'm spending that much time in, it's like penalizing yourself. Good choice on the manual though, I'd be for that as well.

Just my 2 cents.
 
#25 ·
As an aside, with 200 miles per day in the car, I'd want some creature comforts, sat-radio, etc. I don't necessarily understand the idea of wanting a stripper for something I'm spending that much time in, it's like penalizing yourself.
The base 2012 Kia Soul is hardly a penalty box. It does have your desired satellite radio as standard equipment, for example. There are also standard AUX and USB stereo inputs, so the music base is well-covered. In addition, this base model also has A/C, power windows and locks, tilt wheel, and so on. It's not a bad place to spend time, based on my experience with my own 2011 base model.
 
#15 ·
This is awesome. I'll be very interested to see how you like it and how reliable it is. I bought a new 2001 Hyundai Accent GS, manual and had no problems for well over 100K miles in 5 years of ownership. Loved the practicality and light-weight of that car. Just didn't like not having ABS in a place full of craptastic "drivers".
 
#16 · (Edited)
I'll weigh in with a Soul purchase from a couple years ago.

The variations in Soul models present some interesting driving experiences.



My girlfriend chose this model with the big wheels and the nice tint package which keeps her dog comfy and at ease in the back, plus provides privacy from prying eyes.

I don't think the seats are very comfortable (no lumbar support and very straight backs): 1st generation car, not the latest.

But the side to side motions on bumps and uneven roads really is very jarring (at least to me as a passenger)

So I'd probably not get the big wheels and tires package unless you have glass smooth surfaces to drive on.

On the other hand, the car corners flat and sticks well








They are definitely different and a close coupled interior experience. She chose the Soul because it looked different and it was high enough off the ground so that her aged parents could get into and out of it with relative ease (instead of the lower car she had previously)



MPG is nothing to write home about in the 1st generation (one too few gears in the auto trans) (low 20's)

I know OP is going for the manual trans and perhaps that helps





14,000 miles and absolutely no problems
 
#17 ·
MPG is nothing to write home about in the 1st generation (one too few gears in the auto trans) (low 20's)

I know OP is going for the manual trans and perhaps that helps
We have touched over 35mpg on ours but average 33-34mpg so far. Lots of stop-and-go driving will drop the average mpg down to 29 or 30. The 6 speed manual and 2.0 litre engine really gets great fuel economy.

obin :thumbup::thumbup:
 
#20 ·
Congrats on your choice! Lots of TCLers picking up Souls these days.

"Sure, it's a Soul...but does it have 'soul' ???"

Definitely interested to see how the car holds up.
 
#24 ·
My wife just bought a 2012 Soul. It's a 4U, in Misty Green. The first time I saw the colour, I didn't like it at all. But it has since grown on me very much. The car is really great - it has the backup camera, "mood" speakers, etc... She loves it, and I really like it as well. We test-drove the new Rio as well, but I found the back seat to be pretty cramped. The Soul really feels a lot bigger and nicer. We are completely satisfied with ours!
 
#26 ·
Nice!

FWIW, My current car is a 2008 Rio. It's base model w/ 5 speed.

So far it's been dead reliable, but has had a few small problems here and there. It hasn't been as trouble free as the dental assistant I talked to the other day who has a 2007 Toyota Yaris. So in anecdotal speak I don't think it's up to Yaris quality.

But the warranty is great and the service is excellent. I expect many more miles out of the little bugger :thumbup:
 
#27 ·
Very interested to hear your experiences with the soul. A friend of mine recently bought a base model xb with the manual transmission for basically the same purpose. He drives around 150 miles a day and is very pleased with his choice. He has however fabricated a custom mounting bracket for a Lexus es seat and uses that instead of stock drivers seat.

Sent from my HTC Inspire using Tapatalk.
 
#28 ·
My mom drives a 2010 Soul with the sport package and manual transmission. I think she's nearing 30,000 miles now and it's still flawless.

The only complaints I have about it are creature comforts. It offers a lot of options for the price of the vehicle, but you can definitely tell where they had to cut costs in other places to keep the price low.

Having taken it on a three hour drive, it's definitely not something that I would be comfortable driving for long distances in, the seats just are not comfortable. As far as being fun to drive, it's certainly not exhilarating, but offers enough spunk to keep me entertained going through the corners. It's a mechanically sound vehicle, but the road noise and seats, it's just not for me.

Prior to the Soul she had a 2006 Element, 2WD, with the nicer package, and 5spd manual. I'd say it was a more comfortable vehicle in every way.
 
#29 ·
Subscribed! Looking very much to updates! :thumbup:

I wish some Hyundai/Kia threads like these were created a few years ago so we could see how they hold up. When I bought my Elantra I felt like I was going in blind. The only person I seemed to have to go on was adrew, and he started not to like his Hyundai toward the end so I got a little scared. :laugh:
 
#31 · (Edited)
Bizarre. I blame that on the doggomatic and the 1.6. We have yet to drop below 27mpg on the 2.0/6MT and that's in city stop-and-go traffic.

edit: We just returned from voting in the local elections. It was a short trip and nothing but stop-and-go traffic. We averaged 32.4mpg and that's with my heavy right foot on the gas pedal.

obin :beer::beer:
 
#32 ·
The Soul is on my list for a future cheap DD, I have a 08' Xb so i adore the small box for commuting purposes, combines small SUV utility with a vehicle that is reasonably fun and fuel efficient.

What is killing me is that it appears that cruise control is not available on the Soul + manual. Noticed Kia has been screwing manual fans...the Rio 5 is only available in the bottom trim with a manual, once again with no cruise, etc... Don't see why they can't just allow someone to order up a higher trim with a manual if it is already offered in a lower trim (heck make it a non-refundable deposit if need be).

The Soul got a nice powertrain upgrade, but got a touch de-contented. The projector headlights, LED tails, leather/heated and other neat stuff are only available on the auto-only top model at 20k...was hoping that stuff would at least be optional on a manual version...plus i loved the two tone beige-black interior, which went away.

Thank god they ditched wagon wheels at least (I hate 18s and on a small wheelbase low powered vehicle they are particularly stupid).

I guess i could look into aftermarket cruise control, but i hate the idea of cutting into a new car's wiring harness and installing something of dubious quality....same goes for crap like remote start.
 
#33 ·
My mom's Soul is the + I think she ended up walking out of the dealership at around $16,800 for it. It's got a 2.0L but her's has the 5spd manual, not the 6. Really doesn't matter though. And it also has cruise control.
 
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