Yahoo Finance 2020 Kia Soul Gets a Unilight and a Center-Exit Exhaust
What It Is: Kia Soul, take three. Since going on sale nearly a decade ago, the Soul has become a staple of Kia’s model line. A redesign for the 2014 model year infused the funky hatchback with additional maturity and paved the way for the more powerful Kia Soul Turbo in 2017. While the changes helped the Soul secure a spot on our 2017 and 2018 10Best Trucks and SUVs list as the best subcompact SUV, its evolutionary styling makes it less of a head turner than it once was. Now that we have this first good look at the mug of the third-generation Soul, it’s clear to us that Kia wants to reinject some funk into the design of its little box.
Although the roofline of the 2020 Soul appears to largely mirror that of today’s car, everything else looks to be significantly altered. Up front, the Soul ditches today’s large headlamps for a pair of low-mounted units that could pass for fog lights. Combination turn signals and LED daytime running lamps sit above the grille and meet with the shut-line of the hood. Meanwhile, the Soul’s traditional D-pillar-mounted taillights gain a three-dimensional appearance and now merge into the liftgate. In short, it appears that the 2020 Kia Soul successfully maintains its easily identifiable style without looking like a clone of the current model.
Why It Matters: Besides being a strong seller for Kia, the Soul is also one of the brand’s most visible products. Known for its strong value, high-quality interior, versatility, and good-natured quirkiness, the Soul serves as an important ambassador for the Kia brand as it continues to introduce higher-priced and more dynamically engaging models such as the upcoming Telluride large SUV and the Stinger sports sedan.
Platform: The Soul is slated to share its platform with the Hyundai Kona. This bodes well for the Soul, as we’ve been impressed with the Kona’s stiff structure and its sophisticated ride quality.
Powertrain: Look for the Soul’s engine offerings to largely mirror those of the Kona. A 2.0-liter inline-four is expected to serve as the entry-level engine, with a turbocharged 1.6-liter being offered as an upgrade. As in the Kona, the 2.0-liter engine is expected to produce 147 horses. The optional turbocharged engine, however, will likely exceed the Kona’s 175-hp rating for something closer to the 201 horsepower in today’s Soul Turbo. While the base engine is slated to offer either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission, the more powerful Soul Turbo will be paired exclusively with the brand’s seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. Turbo models will offer visually distinguishing features, including the mesh-style grille and center-mounted exhaust outlets seen on this camo’d car.
Mechanically, the biggest change from the current model is that the next-generation Soul is expected to offer optional all-wheel drive. Kia may utilize a rear-mounted electric motor to power the Soul’s rear wheels, as previewed by the Trail’ster concept, or, perhaps more likely, port over the mechanical all-wheel-drive system utilized by the Kona.
Either way, electrification is expected to remain part of the program, with the Soul EV earmarked to return. Look for the electric box to crib its 201-hp electric motor and 64.0-kWh battery pack from the Hyundai Kona Electric, and for that version to offer a driving range of more than 200 miles when it arrives shortly after its gas-powered siblings.
Competition: Ford EcoSport, Honda HR-V, Hyundai Kona, Nissan Kicks, Toyota C-HR.
Estimated Arrival and Price: We expect Kia to take the wraps off the new Soul this fall at the Los Angeles auto show, with sales starting early in 2019. The Soul is all but certain to start at well under $20,000.
('You Might Also Like',)
