[Lohwriter]

We had a 2013 Soul Base 1.6 Automatic (bought new). After 6-1/2 years and 95K trouble-free miles, we traded it last year for a 2020 Soul LX (base) with IVT. The new Soul is quieter, more solid-feeling, smoother riding, and has more comfortable seats. The 2.0 provides more than enough power for us, even here in the mountains of West Virginia. The IVT has been flawless so far, and I personally think it's very smooth and seems to always be in the right "gear". Because of COVID-19, and since we have 2 cars, we only have about 5,500 miles on it, but we have averaged 32 MPG in mixed city/highway. On one trip to Wisconsin, we averaged 42MPG on one tank on 2-lane backroads at 60 MPH.

We bought this model because it did not have all of the safety nannies like lane assist, blind-spot warning, and auto braking. I know how to use my mirrors, and I don't need a computer steering or stopping my car. I also don't want to listen to the endless cacophony of "dings and bells" going off as I drive. All models except the base have most of these nannies standard. We also have a 2019 Subaru Forester (and it has some of the nannies), and I much prefer driving the Soul.

The 2.0 reverted back to multi-port fuel injection (MPFI). Even though our '13 still ran like new at 95K miles, there were concerns about carbon build up with GDI (gasoline direct injection). No worries now. The 1.6 Turbo still uses GDI as well as the Dual-Clutch transmission, which has mixed reviews for smoothness and reliability. Either way, you still get the 10/100K powertrain warranty.

I've used Sea Foam before on older cars and had good results. Found this article about using it on GDI motors if anyone has any concerns: SEA FOAM CASE STUDIES – GDI REVIVAL

 

[jshillin]

I've had a 2010 !, 2014 Base, my wife has a 2016 ! Whole Shebang, & I'm now driving a 2020 GT-Line Turbo. My complaint w/ my other Souls has been the headlights. Upgraded my base w/ LED & was real happy. The current Gen 3's also seem to have pretty poor headlights. Before I bought my Gen 3, I took out the X-line and theEX for test drives at night.
The primary reason I ended up with the turbo was the LED headlights are just so much brighter, and my eyes aren't as good as they used to be. now that I have it I absolutely love all of the features including the perky off the line pep that it has, the increased size on the navigation / radio screen, the smart cruise control, and of course above all else the ass warmers in the seats!

There was things I loved about each one of the packages, the EX being closest to my perfect car (love those grey wheels), but the dismal headlights just didn't make it really doable for me.

I like the 7 speed tranny w/ the floppy paddle shifters. Still early on, but @ 8000 miles Imy getting about 26 mph in town & about 35 on the highway.... That's assuming I don't put my foot into the turbo. :C)

Don't know about the ivt transmission, but I do know I'm really pleased with the one I got!

Very nice looking ride!! Are the LED's that big of an upgrade on the soul?

I bought a used truck for some work around the house, and I used the Soul primarily for Uber duty. The used truck I bought, it got the job done, but I got bit by the truck bug, and as I stopped doing Uber due to the liability of Covid, figured I'd better go ahead and sell the Soul and upgrade to a new truck.

I actually find myself missing the Soul from time to time as it was a good value and didn't kill me at the gas pumps. If Kia offered the Soul Turbo with a manual transmission fully loaded, I can see it being a big seller.

That makes sense.... I prefer to drive my truck also, but the wife just needs a small commuter and the Soul makes perfect sense and also fits in my garage in front of the WRX in the winter so I can keep 3 of our 4 vehicles out of the cold and bad weather. The wife does part outside in the summer though.

 

[RevScott]

Very nice looking ride!! Are the LED's that big of an upgrade on the soul?



That makes sense.... I prefer to drive my truck also, but the wife just needs a small commuter and the Soul makes perfect sense and also fits in my garage in front of the WRX in the winter so I can keep 3 of our 4 vehicles out of the cold and bad weather. The wife does part outside in the summer though.

generation 1 and 2 wasn't that big of a deal to replace them... The new one you pretty much have to remove the whole front clip and part of the bumper to get to the lights. For the difference in price plus the other upgrades, for me it was worth it. Again I like features on x line and the ex as well as the turbo

 

[TXSSSoul]

Very nice looking ride!! Are the LED's that big of an upgrade on the soul?



That makes sense.... I prefer to drive my truck also, but the wife just needs a small commuter and the Soul makes perfect sense and also fits in my garage in front of the WRX in the winter so I can keep 3 of our 4 vehicles out of the cold and bad weather. The wife does part outside in the summer though.

Would be nice if Kia offered the Pano roof from the prior models on the new one. I think that would be the final option that I'd love to see on the new souls, despite the fact that I rarely use any of the sunroofs I've had on any cars in the past.

 

[RevScott]

Would be nice if Kia offered the Pano roof from the prior models on the new one. I think that would be the final option that I'd love to see on the new souls, despite the fact that I rarely use any of the sunroofs I've had on any cars in the past.

Yeah... Seems like it's 2 steps forward, one back for the options. Too bad the turbo & ex don't come in yellow too.

 

[Alma2020]

Well, I have 2020 EX Eco. I picked it up last March a week before things shut down and only have 4000 miles on it. I really like it. I’ve had zero problems with the IVT. It has plenty of get up and go and handles well. I find it quite comfortable and the ride is fine.I’m getting about 32 mph with local driving And get about 36 in the summer with the A/C running.

@Tree 44 A point of curiosity on your fuel economy. When I check mine (2020 base w/IVT) against its 'computer', there's a significant difference. This has been the case in 3 cars I've had with gas mileage computers. I attribute this in large part to their inability to account for lost fuel when first starting up, and if you use the engine kill feature at red lights as well. When all my miles are highway, such as on a trip, the computer shows only a bit more than my manual calculation. But otherwise I've had up to a 4mpg difference, where my calculation shows less. Do you use the onboard computer or calculate manually?

 

[RevScott]

A point of curiosity on your fuel economy. When I check mine (2020 base w/IVT) against its 'computer', there's a significant difference. This has been the case in 3 cars I've had with gas mileage computers. I attribute this in large part to their inability to account for lost fuel when first starting up, and if you use the engine kill feature at red lights as well. When all my miles are highway, such as on a trip, the computer shows only a bit more than my manual calculation. But otherwise I've had up to a 4mpg difference, where my calculation shows less. Do you use the onboard computer or calculate manually?

4mpg + or - ?

 

[Alma2020]

We had a 2013 Soul Base 1.6 Automatic (bought new). After 6-1/2 years and 95K trouble-free miles, we traded it last year for a 2020 Soul LX (base) with IVT. The new Soul is quieter, more solid-feeling, smoother riding, and has more comfortable seats. The 2.0 provides more than enough power for us, even here in the mountains of West Virginia. The IVT has been flawless so far, and I personally think it's very smooth and seems to always be in the right "gear". Because of COVID-19, and since we have 2 cars, we only have about 5,500 miles on it, but we have averaged 32 MPG in mixed city/highway. On one trip to Wisconsin, we averaged 42MPG on one tank on 2-lane backroads at 60 MPH.

We bought this model because it did not have all of the safety nannies like lane assist, blind-spot warning, and auto braking. I know how to use my mirrors, and I don't need a computer steering or stopping my car. I also don't want to listen to the endless cacophony of "dings and bells" going off as I drive. All models except the base have most of these nannies standard. We also have a 2019 Subaru Forester (and it has some of the nannies), and I much prefer driving the Soul.

The 2.0 reverted back to multi-port fuel injection (MPFI). Even though our '13 still ran like new at 95K miles, there were concerns about carbon build up with GDI (gasoline direct injection). No worries now. The 1.6 Turbo still uses GDI as well as the Dual-Clutch transmission, which has mixed reviews for smoothness and reliability. Either way, you still get the 10/100K powertrain warranty.

@pnoman I bought the same model as you and have the same experience. While this is my first Soul (I used to drive a Nissan Cube) I've been following the Soul since the beginning, and rented each of the first 2 versions which didn't quite meet my needs. But the 2020 hit the sweet spot, my favorite car ever. Are you gas mileage numbers based on its onboard computer or manual check? When I do a manual check my mileage is less, more noticeable when I do a lot of short trips and use the engine kill at stop lights.

 

[RevScott]

My mileage is based on the on board computer. The "trend" is more important for me than the exact #. My '20 Turbo mileage is pretty consistently better than w/ my '14 base of around town & a little lower on the interstate... Which is kinda the inverse of what I expected.

 

[pnoman]

@Alma2020 I haven't updated my Fuelly.com log for several months, but at 4,567 miles, I had averaged 31.4 MPG, and the highest tank was 43.4 MPG. We do about a 50/50 mix of city driving (university town with a gazillion stop lights) and interstate with lots of hills. The high tank was a 150-mile stretch of 55-MPH backroad through Ohio and Indiana. BTW - our dash computer shows the average at 32.5, so it's fairly accurate.

 

[TXSSSoul]

Yeah... Seems like it's 2 steps forward, one back for the options. Too bad the turbo & ex don't come in yellow too.

I'd also like to see some accent lighting throughout the car, the way that Mini Cooper does on their minis. Even though it's been 9 months since I got rid of my soul, I still like reading the Motor Trend long term review. I find myself agreeing with most of their points. The key fob with the unlock button on the corner to give you a better tactile feel, genius!

 

[LoneStarSoul]

I’ve never had a mileage computer over-read by more than 2mpg over the course of a tank and most of the time it’s less than 1mpg difference.

 

[Alma2020]

I’ve never had a mileage computer over-read by more than 2mpg over the course of a tank and most of the time it’s less than 1mpg difference.

I may have bad luck with those meters, or maybe just that I do a lot of short trips. A tank lasts me at least a month!
While yes, on trips where I'm most on the hwy its pretty accurate.