[SoleSoulMate]

Hey all,

I'm in the market for a car and the Soul has been my favorite test drive and want to hear some pros and cons from people who drive it full time before I pull the trigger. What trim, options you like, potential trouble spots to look out for, that sort of thing

Weve had a 2011, 2015 and now 2020 Soul. Have loved them all. We have a red LX and it just turned 3 years old and has about 20,000 miles on it. Very comfortable ride. We get 33-34 mpg. Appreciate the on off engine feature a lot now. We've moved a lot and the Soul comes in handy. Tempted to buy another one😎

 

[Ajh]

Hey all,

I'm in the market for a car and the Soul has been my favorite test drive and want to hear some pros and cons from people who drive it full time before I pull the trigger. What trim, options you like, potential trouble spots to look out for, that sort of thing

I have a 2020 LX...and think it's a solid car. Some trans issue and engine recall...but a small number actually had the issue....it's roomy ( 2 adults in the rear sea) rides well. I was actually thinking of another KIA but having just driven one as a rental and I thought ok I'll drive it...solid car..

 

[Dragonfly_Jo]

Hey all,

I'm in the market for a car and the Soul has been my favorite test drive and want to hear some pros and cons from people who drive it full time before I pull the trigger. What trim, options you like, potential trouble spots to look out for, that sort of thing

I love my Kia Soul. I bought my first one a basic model in 2014. I decided to upgrade this year and bought an XL 2022 and absolutely love it. I have seven children who live in six different states plus one in Canada so I put a lot of highway miles on my car. The only problem I had was the catalytic converter was going out in my 2014 Soul in March of 2022. I highly recommend the Kia Soul ☺

 

[GeoSoul]

I understand the 90/10 ratio, but I have to respectfully disagree in the Kia/Hyundai engine case. There have been many recalls, and the Kia dealer in the Bay Area I talked to said they have new engines stacked up in the back ready to be installed. Kia has a “SWAT team” to go out to dealers to help with replacements when the dealers get backed up. I also heard about the stacked up engines from another source I trust too and this was in the mid-West. This is not normal. That said, my 2018 has been reliable, just having to go in for two recalls.

YMMV

I wouldn't believe everything you hear. Word of mouth can be distorted and sensationalized into "the sky is falling." Has Hyundai & Kia somehow managed to trick millions of people into buying crap cars, year after year?

Most people might not believe that GM & Ford had the most recalls of any automaker last year. And the year before (gasp) was actually Toyota.

 

[jim reader]

if you are buying used, no warranty, stay away from the 2.0L. I bought a 2017 used and the engine blew up. put in a second one, used. it's using oil at 1 qt/tank of gas. dealer says no help from kia. now oil light is flickering at low rpm. other than that the car is fine. (can't get the audio system to connect to android phone like it should. dealer was no help. no big deal)
my next car will probably be a ford. jim

 

[Fallini]

Hey all,

I'm in the market for a car and the Soul has been my favorite test drive and want to hear some pros and cons from people who drive it full time before I pull the trigger. What trim, options you like, potential trouble spots to look out for, that sort of thing

I currently drive a '21 LX after trading in my beloved 2016+ . So far 19k trouble free miles. My daughter is also on her 2nd Soul, is disabled, and loves the ease of entry/exit of these cars. I'll probably never get a sedan again. Two minor things that bug me. The LX does NOT have factory installed SiriusXM, so I purchased the portable player and have it affixed to the air vent. THe other thing is the idle/stop feature. But I fixed that by depressing the button which disengages it, then pushing in a toothpick along the side of the button, keeping the button depressed at all times. 33 mpg, comfortable, and this Gen 3 has a deeper trunk capacity behind the back seats than the other previous generations.

 

[Ferdy]

if you are buying used, no warranty, stay away from the 2.0L. I bought a 2017 used and the engine blew up. put in a second one, used. it's using oil at 1 qt/tank of gas. dealer says no help from kia. now oil light is flickering at low rpm. other than that the car is fine. (can't get the audio system to connect to android phone like it should. dealer was no help. no big deal)
my next car will probably be a ford. jim

If you plan on buying a new Ford car, you'd better like Mustangs. It is now the only car they make.

 

[mrothy]

What I'm taking away from this is that there is a serious risk of a major issue within 15k miles, whether it's the engine or the iCVT. And this is for all Gen 3 models.

 

[Regina Brown]

Hey all,

I'm in the market for a car and the Soul has been my favorite test drive and want to hear some pros and cons from people who drive it full time before I pull the trigger. What trim, options you like, potential trouble spots to look out for, that sort of thing

I have a 2016 and have had problems with my Catalytic converter and it burns to much oil.

 

[rhysoul]

What I'm taking away from this is that there is a serious risk of a major issue within 15k miles, whether it's the engine or the iCVT. And this is for all Gen 3 models.

Not for the 2022.

The recalls were for the 2020 and some 2021 Soul and Seltos. I believe the date was cars made before 10/2020 and it affected 1%.

Whatever make and model you decide to buy, give their forum a visit, you’ll find happy and unhappy people there too. But there’s more people that are enjoying their car and don’t participate on car forums than people posting their complaints.

 

[4thKiaOwner]

We have a 2021 LX that we bought new 14 months ago. Just turned over 25,000 miles and no problems whatsoever. We change oil and filter and rotate tires regularly. Have hauled bags of mulch and soil, taken several long trips, including one with 4 people and luggage. I don't pay close attention to mpg around town, but it's about 28-32. On the highway, pleased with 33-38 mpg, depending on speed and terrain (flat or mountains). We like the way it looks, drives, and rides. This is our fourth Kia and had great experiences with the first three (Rio, Spectra, Forte). All were 100,000 plus miles when sold.

 

[Joseph Mansir]

Hey all,

I'm in the market for a car and the Soul has been my favorite test drive and want to hear some pros and cons from people who drive it full time before I pull the trigger. What trim, options you like, potential trouble spots to look out for, that sort of thing

 

[Joseph Mansir]

Hey all,

I'm in the market for a car and the Soul has been my favorite test drive and want to hear some pros and cons from people who drive it full time before I pull the trigger. What trim, options you like, potential trouble spots to look out for, that sort of thing

I have a 2021 kia soul ex model, and the transmission went out at a little over 6000 miles. It is at the dealers right now waiting on a new transmission. There were some problems with the 2020 and 2021 soul engines and transmissions. Do some research before you decide.

 

[Tree 44]

I have a 2021 kia soul ex model, and the transmission went out at a little over 6000 miles. It is at the dealers right now waiting on a new transmission. There were some problems with the 2020 and 2021 soul engines and transmissions. Do some research before you decide.

What was the build date of your 2021 EX? The month/year is on the builders plate on the driver’s door post. If it was built before July 2020 it could have had the faulty ECU that had to be reprogrameD, and the dealer never did it when prepped for deliver.y.

 

[Joseph Mansir]

What was the build date of your 2021 EX? The month/year is on the builders plate on the driver’s door post. If it was built before July 2020 it could have had the faulty ECU that had to be reprogrameD, and the dealer never did it when prepped for deliver.y.

The vehicle was built in April of 2020. They have finally ordered a new transmission for it.

 

[LarryB]

It’s not hearsay. It’s 1. Directly from the service department at my Bay Area dealer, and 2. from
my brother talking to the parts manager/friend at a Midwest dealer. Since then, I talked to an independent Kia/Hyundai mechanic who was a master (?) Kia mechanic at a dealer who confirmed it. Maybe that would be hearsay in a court of law, but it’s way more than “I read it on the internet”. But of course the internet backs it up.