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Kia Soul

208 messages,  Last post on Apr 21, 2013 at 4:09 PM

You are in the Kia Soul Forum.

What is this discussion about? Kia Soul, Hatchback

Messages Page 21 of 21

#199 of 208 2014 Kia Soul by conwelpic

Mar 17, 2013 (2:09 pm)

the 2014 model will be introduced at the New York Auto show on March 27th (press day)

#200 of 208 2013 Soul Purchase by chevy3400

Mar 21, 2013 (9:44 am)

We'll after much consideration, bought a 2013 Base MT on March 1st. The hold out was my trade in, but they finally gave in; NOT. The vehicle is very fun to drive. It has put pleasure back into driving. On the 3rd tankfull of gas, averaging 28.7 MPG, around town, using the old fill up, mileage method. I'm very happy with that, considering Kia rating of 27 MPG. Didn't come with keyless entry, as previous mention. Dealer installed that to make the deal. Now I'm working on the fog- running light installation.

#202 of 208 2014 Kia Soul by conwelpic

Mar 27, 2013 (12:28 pm)

just announced this morning at the NY Auto Show
 

 

 

#203 of 208 What's under the skin on the 2014 Soul: by conwelpic

Mar 29, 2013 (9:36 am)

- 2.4” wider opening of the lift gate
- will be available in 7 new exterior hues including the two at NY Solar yellow and Inferno Red
- ideas taken from the Track'ster – large trapezoidal lower air intake and fog light location and the and the “floating” body color panel inset into the lift gate and also lifting as many of the Track'ster's circular interior reference points as possible
- liberal use of expansion foam thoroughly fills body cavities, reducing outside wind and road noise
- reinforced isolation pad in the cargo area and poly-urethane-layered carpet helps reduce overall interior noise levels by approximately 3 decibels.
- Built on a all-new chassis that is nearly 29% stiffer than before
strengthening the body at key connection points along the cowl, upper and lower B-pillars, cross members and at the C-pillars
- fully 66% of the chassis utilizes either Ultra High Strength Steel (35%) or high strength Steel (31%)
- A-pillar is 0.8” narrower for improved outward visibility
- application of structural adhesive around the door openings and along the roof also helps improve torsional rigidity
- heavily revised front and rear suspension, the front sub-frame utilizes four bushings to reduce ride harshness and impact booms over rough pavement
- the stabilizer bar has been moved rearward on the McPherson strut front suspension, while the steering box has been moved forward, lending better balance and subsequently improved handling and benefits to on-center feel
- one-piece steering gear housing is stronger (current two piece), improving steering response and reducing impacts felt through the wheel
- optional Flex Steer, allow the driver to select 3 distinct steering settings – comfort, normal and Sport
- shocks on the rear torsion bar suspension have been turned vertically and lengthened allowing for more suspension travel and improving ride comfort
- 2.0L NU power plant is updated with GDI technology
- both engines have been tuned to provide more low-end torque (9% more torque at 1500 rpm on the 2.0L and 5% more on the 1.6L)

#204 of 208 A Real Beauty by sandman_6472

Mar 30, 2013 (8:13 pm)

These new pics look great and it seems the Soul is aging very nicely especially the nicer interior, a major improvement over the current model. Drove one the other night from West Palm to Miami airport and it was just o k...a bit loud but hopefully they have addressed that issue with the new 2014 model. The seat fabric was just o k and hopefully this will be addressed to. The whole vehicle needs to be updated so it is competitive with other vehicles in this econocar segment. I really like the higher roof line and bet Kia could sell so much more once they "mature" this vehicle and make it more mainstream so more will put it on their short lists. I definitely would if they put some more lux into it and smooth out the ride. They really should check our the Chrysler 200, yes, the Chrysler 200 to see how smooth a car can ride...this vehicle is a real sleeper as it does everything well. Sure it's very bland looking but it rides so nicely and everything in it just "works"!
 
The Sandman

#205 of 208 thread movement by conwelpic

Mar 30, 2013 (8:33 pm)

Attention HOST: - why is my threads getting relocated to one main thread, just makes it that much harder to find anything when everything is group under one heading, doesn't happen on your other threads - why just on the Soul?

#206 of 208 Re: thread movement [conwelpic] by pf_flyer HOST

Mar 31, 2013 (9:35 am)

Replying to: conwelpic (Mar 30, 2013 8:33 pm)
We've never broken down a make/model by model years. This comes from long experience. For example, if someone is looking for information about tire and wheel issues with a certain model, we have no need for separate discussions for 2011, 2012, etc. when one general tire and wheel discussion will suffice. We wind up WAY too many discussions and it makes things much harder for users to wade through. It happens on all makes and models, not just here.
 
Your pics of the 2014 are great, but certainly belong as part of the the general Kia Soul discussion. The Soul group is relatively new and hasn't developed a lot of issue/problem discussions yet, but I'm certain it will.

#207 of 208 Re: A Real Beauty [sandman_6472] by conwelpic

Apr 05, 2013 (3:41 pm)

Replying to: sandman_6472 (Mar 30, 2013 8:13 pm)
not really a fair comparison when you consider the size of the 200, with a 8" longer wheelbase and 28" longer overall length and 600-800 lbs heavier, I think the ride would be different. (wonder how the ride on the 200 compares to the Optima, which is the more comparable model in the KIA lineup)
But it will be interesting to see the improvements in this regard when the model arrives at dealerships - I will be test driving one to see how it compare to my 2012 model

#208 of 208 2014 Soul vs the 2013 by conwelpic

Apr 21, 2013 (4:09 pm)


 

Messages Page 21 of 21

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