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By
EWAN KENNEDY
7 July 2009
From Kia in South Korea comes a special car designed to challenge
the European and American machines in the ultra-trendy arena. New
for 2009, Kia Soul is aimed at those who would like to own a MINI
or a Chrysler PT Cruiser, but who are about $15,000 short of their
dream. Or, perhaps Soul may even sell to those who can afford one
of these interesting machines from the UK or US, but who prefer
the shape of the Soul.
Soul isn't a case of style and no substance. Buyers of large
family cars will find there’s room for teenagers in the back
seat. And a reasonably sized boot, though probably not enough to
cart a lot of gear on an extended holiday trip.
Trendy families who want a compact people mover with oodles of
visual oomph will love it. And, God bless its soul, Soul comes
with a starting price of just $20,990 (plus the usual on-road
charges by the government and dealers).
The options list for the Kia Soul is simply staggering. Naturally
there's a big choice of colours, mostly very bright colours, and
alloy wheels in several sizes. You can also add a body kit and/or
various decals, some of them way out. Or how about a two-tone
dashboard, fancy seat trims, stereo speakers that pulse with the
music?
Our road test Kia Soul was powered by a turbo-diesel displacing
just 1.6 litres and producing 94 kW, and 260 Nm between 1900 and
2750 revs. We found it to be relatively quiet in its operation,
other than for the first few minutes after a cold start where it
had the typical diesel clatter. It pulled well and didn’t have
overmuch lag before giving its best. That broad spread of torque
really works nicely and many owners will find themselves using the
engine to its best effect almost all of the time.
Fuel consumption is the chief reason for paying $3500 extra for
the turbo-diesel compared with the 1.6-litre petrol unit that's
also on offer, this powerplant has 91 kW of power, and 156 Nm of
torque at 4200 rpm, the latter well below the diesel’s torque.
Most owners of the Kia Soul diesel will find it using about six to
seven litres per hundred kilometres on the open road if there
aren’t too many hills about, it should be possible to get the
figure under six litres per hundred on motorways. Around town the
consumption is likely to be in the seven to eight litre bracket.
At just 48 litres the fuel tank is relatively small so the overall
range isn't as good as many other turbo-diesel cars. The small
tank is probably justified to provide all that extra space within
the Soul.
Kia Australia opted for the European rather than American
suspension setup, but this could create some hassles if you drive
on roughish roads. Our road test Soul had the 18-inch alloy wheel
option and we found the ride to be rather too firm for our tastes.
There are smaller wheels in the price list and these may be a
better bet on the comfort side of things. Of course, these things
are always a matter of personal preference. May we suggest an
extended visit to you Kia dealership to test drive a few different
cars. And at the same time you will be able to salivate over the
huge list of options.
Handling is competent enough, but nowhere near in the same class
as the MINI we mentioned early in the story. Soul holds the road
well enough and isn't to cranky if asked to change direction
suddenly part way through a corner. But it's certainly not
sporting.
While on the subject of handling, we weren’t keen on the feel
through the electrically-assisted power steering, finding it a bit
on the dead side and not giving us as much feedback as we like.
Kia Soul is something special. Not only is it visually stunning,
it's also a practical car at a modest price. Such is the nature of
owners of funky cars that we feel it won't be long before we see
Soul car clubs, and trendy souls driving their Souls on cruises
with one another.
AT A GLANCE
MODEL RANGE
Soul 1.6-litre petrol: $20,990 (manual), $22,990 (automatic)
Soul2 1.6-litre petrol: $23,190 (manual), $25,190 (automatic)
Soul2 1.6-litre turbo-diesel: $26,690 (manual), $28,690
(automatic)
Soul3 1.6-litre petrol: $27,390 (automatic)
Soul3 1.6-litre turbo-diesel: $30,890 (automatic)
FEATURES
ABS Brakes: Standard on all models
Air Conditioning: Standard on all models
Automatic Transmission: $2000 option on Soul and Soul2, standard
on Soul3
CD Player: Standard on all models
Central Locking: Standard on all models
Cruise Control: Standard on all models
Dual Front Airbags: Standard on all models
Front Side Airbags: Standard on all models
Stability Control: Not offered on Soul, standard on Soul2 and
Soul3
Traction Control: Not offered on Soul, standard on Soul2 and Soul3
SPECIFICATIONS (Kia Soul 1.6-litre petrol five-door hatch)
ENGINE:
Capacity: 1.591 litres
Configuration: Transverse, four cylinders in line
Head Design: DOHC, four valves per cylinder
Compression Ratio: 10.5:1
Bore/Stroke: 77.0 mm x 85.0 mm
Maximum Power: 91 kW @ 6300 rpm
Maximum Torque: 156 Nm @ 4200 rpm
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: Front
Manual Transmission: Five-speed
Automatic Transmission: Five-speed
Final Drive Ratio: NA
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4105 mm
Wheelbase: 2550 mm
Width: 1785 mm
Height: 1610 mm
Turning Circle: 10.5 metres
Kerb Mass: 1179 kg
Fuel Tank Capacity: 48 litres
Towing Ability: 450 kg
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: Independent, MacPherson struts, coil springs,
anti-roll bar
Rear Suspension: Semi-independent, torsion beam, coil springs,
anti-roll bar
Front Brakes: Ventilated disc
Rear Brakes: Disc
FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Type:
Petrol 91RON
Combined
Cycle (ADR 81/01): 6.5 L/100km
GREEN VEHICLE GUIDE RATINGS:
Greenhouse Rating: 7.5/10
Air Pollution Rating: 8.5/10
STANDARD WARRANTY:
Five years/unlimited km
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
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