[Joovel00]

I just received my soul today from the dealer and when I reached 40 miles on the odm, my soul would not exceed 3 rpms. When I am going up a hill the power cuts dramatically. I have to shift down to 2nd gear to make it up a steep hill after fighting with any higher gear, its a manual. (I have driven manual for over 3 years so I know what I am doing as well.) I am going the dealer today to tell them about the issue. When I am driving and push all the way down on the accelerator it will still accelerate slow (slower than usual) and top out at 3 rpms in all gears. If anyone with a 2012 manual soul has experienced the same problems please say so so I know its not my soul alone.
If you know what the problem could be that would be great.

I will let you what the dealer tells.

 

[Joovel00]

Woke up this morning and as I began to drive my soul the dealers it was acting totally normal. Gonna wait to see when it does it again.

 

[CaliforniaSoul]

You may try waiting it out for awhile as the engine has a break-in period.

It's like a horse. You try to make it run really fast after its been doing nothing and the performance isn't that great. It has to build up slowly. Not sure if that analogy will quite work but I tried!

 

[sightland]

Woke up this morning and as I began to drive my soul the dealers it was acting totally normal. Gonna wait to see when it does it again.

i wonder if the "problem" you experienced occur while engine was cold [have not reached normal operating temperature]. computer may be programmed to prevent exceeding 3000/RPM while engine is still "cold". My Lexus doesn't shift to 6th when engine has not reached the normal operating temperature. I was told by my dealer that vehicle is programmed to prevent excessive emission during cold operation. all returns to normal as soon as it "hit" the normal operating temperature "mark".

 

[QLENFG]

OK -- I have never seen this issue with a gasoline-powered vehicle, but...

On the diesel Dodge (Mercedes) Sprinter, if certain things occur, like the front and rear wheels going different speeds (different diameter tires), the transmission slipping, turbo hose blown, intake air temperature too high, etc... it puts the computer in "Limp Home" mode which limits boost / power / RPM so you hopefully can't blow up the motor if you keep going. Not saying this is your issue, but as cars get more complicated, more manufacturers are building in these safeguards to avoid warranty claims.

 

[Joovel00]

i wonder if the "problem" you experienced occur while engine was cold [have not reached normal operating temperature]. computer may be programmed to prevent exceeding 3000/RPM while engine is still "cold". My Lexus doesn't shift to 6th when engine has not reached the normal operating temperature. I was told by my dealer that vehicle is programmed to prevent excessive emission during cold operation. all returns to normal as soon as it "hit" the normal operating temperature "mark".

That is interesting to know, but I am in Missouri and it was a 85 degree night. From what you and QLENFG said it does sound like it could have been a computer problem. It has been doing just fine though since that night, haven't had any other issue (at 500 miles odo now). I will ask them at the dealer if they know about any safe guards that they might have installed.

Thank you for all the help and advice.

 

[Sinabu]

Not a Soul but my 09 Malibu had this issue. It was an automatic v6 but it basically wouldn't leave first gear and you couldn't get the rpms up. When you stop/restart the vehicle it would be fine again. It had something to do with the computer messing up. They ended up replacing that and it was fixes.

So maybe a similar situation?

 

[tempest]

it does sound like a "limp" home mode issue. The cars computer should record any instances like that for the dealer to address.... take it back and have them read the codes.

 

[cmcolfax]

it does sound like a "limp" home mode issue. The cars computer should record any instances like that for the dealer to address.... take it back and have them read the codes.

Dealer... or most any of the chain auto parts stores... can pull the OBDII codes.

If it was an ECU (computer) issue; and it sounds like one it will be recorded.

There are multiple fixes. Everything from simply clearing the codes to re-flashing the ECU to replacing the ECU.

On a car this new, I would go dealer.

And insist on seeing the report and getting an explanation for every code and how it was fixed / cleared.

FWIW, have had similar "Limp Mode" issues in a Mercedes-powered Dodge/Sprinter Ambulance, an F350 SuperDuty with the 5.4L Triton gas V8 and a 4.0L Jeep Granbd Cherokee.

The automakers build a default in to the programming to help the vehicle "save itself".

Good luck.

-cmc-

 

[pedident]

We had a similar issue with our 2012 Soul today, engine would not rev above 2000-2500 rpm, car would not accelerate, very sluggish, this is the small GDI engine with automatic, had vehicle towed to dealership today! Vehicle has maybe 300 miles on it maximum.
Waiting to hear from dealer.....
I hope this is not a serious problem, but might be an issue with the new 2012???

 

[Hino]

havent seen this issue with my 2012 yet.This sounds like one of 4 things.

1)Engine Timing got fubared. In all modern cars this is handled by the computer.
2)bad fuel
3) material built up on the spark plugs and not all cylinders were firing (can be caused by bad fuel).
4) Computer mis-calibrated the 02 sensor. The computer will normally recalibrate after the car has been off for while.

Either way I would report this to your dealer and have them investigate. The most likely candidates are 3 and 4

 

[pedident]

Issue solved?

Called dealer today. They said they had to reflash the fuel pressure sensor in the common rail? Said after that car ran fine. I'll pick it up this afternoon and we will see.

 

[MWatson]

I am glad to know there are others who are having a similar problem. I purchased my 2012 Soul in August. It has never really had much pick-up when accelerating, and I've had to floor-it to get out into highway traffic. This past weekend, I had driven my Soul for about 100 miles on the highway and after it had been sitting for about 6-7 hours, I had the very frightening experience of my Soul barely accelerating at all! I had to travel on the interstate and up hills and the car just wouldn't pick up, although it did accelerate very, very , very gradually. Nevertheless, it was unsafe.

I called emergency road assistance to tow the car to the nearest dealership. At first the service dept. said there was nothing wrong with it. Then, they said they had found greater than 10% ethanol in the tank and the tank would have to be removed, drained, and the engine flushed and checked for damage, all to the tune of $450.00, which was not covered by warranty! I had been told by my dealer (in another city) to put regular gas in the car, which I had been doing. I even went back to the last place I got gas to check out the pumps for postings of greater than 10% ethanol and found no evidence.

Something is very wrong here! If the car is, indeed so sensitive to ethanol (if that is, indeed the case) that it is rendered unsafe to drive, I would think it a design flaw and that I should have some recourse. As it is, everyone is presently playing the "not my problem" game. I still don't have my car and I'm really frustrated!

 

[Hino]

I am glad to know there are others who are having a similar problem. I purchased my 2012 Soul in August. It has never really had much pick-up when accelerating, and I've had to floor-it to get out into highway traffic. This past weekend, I had driven my Soul for about 100 miles on the highway and after it had been sitting for about 6-7 hours, I had the very frightening experience of my Soul barely accelerating at all! I had to travel on the interstate and up hills and the car just wouldn't pick up, although it did accelerate very, very , very gradually. Nevertheless, it was unsafe.

I called emergency road assistance to tow the car to the nearest dealership. At first the service dept. said there was nothing wrong with it. Then, they said they had found greater than 10% ethanol in the tank and the tank would have to be removed, drained, and the engine flushed and checked for damage, all to the tune of $450.00, which was not covered by warranty! I had been told by my dealer (in another city) to put regular gas in the car, which I had been doing. I even went back to the last place I got gas to check out the pumps for postings of greater than 10% ethanol and found no evidence.

Something is very wrong here! If the car is, indeed so sensitive to ethanol (if that is, indeed the case) that it is rendered unsafe to drive, I would think it a design flaw and that I should have some recourse. As it is, everyone is presently playing the "not my problem" game. I still don't have my car and I'm really frustrated!

I think your being lied to. Most dealers DO NOT have any means to test the ethanol content of fuel. I would tell them to re-flash the fuel pressure sensor first and see if that fixes it. What they suggest will likely fix the issue because they would recalibrate the sensor as part of the flush.

 

[MWatson]

I definitely think they are lying to me! It has been 2 1/2 weeks and they still have my car! They've done the flush and are now saying that the "bad gas" must have damaged something in the engine, and that they're having to send checks back and forth to Kia to pinpoint the problem. My husband is contacting an attorney today.

 

[Heelsfan]

I definitely think they are lying to me! It has been 2 1/2 weeks and they still have my car! They've done the flush and are now saying that the "bad gas" must have damaged something in the engine, and that they're having to send checks back and forth to Kia to pinpoint the problem. My husband is contacting an attorney today.

What motor do you have MWatson?

 

[papaac]

it does sound like a "limp" home mode issue. The cars computer should record any instances like that for the dealer to address.... take it back and have them read the codes.

In my experience, the computer will tell tales on O2 sensors and other things, but it will not rat itself out.

 

[Vision Promotions]

Couple things...

1) You cannot REFLASH a fuel pressure sensor. It is a mechanical device that is not computer controlled, but rather pressure sensitive. As you press the throttle harder, you reduce the vacuum pressure against the diaphragm allowing more fuel pressure and fuel to reach the engine. I have no doubt that is what the guy said, but only because telling you they replaced something on a new car sounds worse. I know...I've done his job (see one of my other posts for work experience with cars LOL).

2) I have NEVER seen a car that was hyper-sensitive to < 10% ethanol fuel that wasn't a pure out race car with a custom tuned computer. All cars sold in the USA MUST be designed to run on our fuels, which are almost all 10-15% ethanol these days, the exception normally being premium grade (91 octane +) fuels. Unless you used E85 by accident, that dealership was BSing you and you should report them to the BBB and Kia North America ASAP.

3) As a part of the OBD2 system, any issue that causes a malfunction code to trigger, or a limp home mode to activate, MUST also trigger the computer to snapshot the sensor information to allow for better diagnosis.

 

[klas]

2) All cars sold in the USA MUST be designed to run on our fuels, which are almost all 10-15% ethanol these days

had a question here for you yesterday that i canceled about kia warning against ethanol but after posting wasn't sure whether it was ethanol or methanol, but either way, using no more than 10% ethanol raised some concerns for me b/c don't really know or trust gas station labels... also believe epa testing is done with straight gas and after significant drop in mpg soon after purchase along with not having a pure gas station around my parts, i set out to try and locate something that might counter the effects of the ethanol.... went through all my bookmarks and just finally located a product that some folks have been using to counter ethanol in other (new) cars so do you know anything about star tron? Star Tron Enzyme Fuel Treatment - Star Tron Story

 

[Vision Promotions]

All manufactures warn against using fuels with high levels of ethanol, unless they are designated as FLEXFUEL vehicles, for a few reasons....

1) Ethanol (E85) is hygroscopic (absorbs water like crazy, think brake fluid).

2) Ethanol (E85) contains large amounts of alcohol, which makes it a great solvent. It especially loves normal rubber fuel lines.

3) Ethanol fuel (E85) DOES NOT contain as much energy as petroleum gasoline (E10). Your MPG on E85 will average 15% lower, although the EPA admits some cars are up to 25% lower on E85 vs. E10.

And just because I feel like mentioning it....
4) Ethanol is mostly made from corn right now, raising the price of corn for everyone.


EPA fuel mileage testing is done on a COMPUTER CONTROLLED DRIVE CYCLE DYNAMOMETER (you can't accelerate or decelerate like it does) using either 100% petroleum fuel (E0) or 10% ethanol fuel (E10) depending on the manufacturer, with most choosing E0. It is also done with other non-factory conditions, like DRLs turned off in GMs case after getting a special exemption. It truly is a best case scenario test.