Page 17 - ElectriCar Magazine

MSRP: $37,500
Motor: 201 hp,160kwh
Battery Capacity: 64kWh LithiumIon Range: 243
Curb Weight: 3,375
will be available on the Electric Vehicle+ adding a sunroof, lighted speakers, and interior lighting kit. Other minor changes and colors were introduced in the 2016 model year.
Global sales passed the 5,000 unit mark in 2015, of which, 1,177 were sold in South Korea. The 10,000
unit milestone was reached in 2016, with Europe as the leading market with 6,770 units sold, followed by South Korea with 1,580, and the United States with 1,411. In 2015,
the leading European markets were Germany with 3,853 units sold,
and Norway with 1,637 units.
By the early fourth quarter of 2015 the Kia Soul Electric Vehicle was ranked as the top selling Plug-In Electric car in Germany with 2,459 units sold and almost 1,000 registered. There were actually only a few of
them on German roads. At the time, about 1,400 Soul Electric Vehicles had been shipped to Norway and sold as used cars, where availability of new Soul Electric Vehicles were limited. This strategy allows the carmaker to comply with European Union regulations that mandate 4.6 ounces of CO2 emission per mile
in 2015, and so they avoid to pay a fine of $75.6 (€70) million per year for each gram above the established average limit. According to German authorities this loophole is legal.
This Kia seats five people. The seats feel comfortable, and they provide a good amount of support. No matter where you sit, you’ll enjoy plenty of head and legroom. Drivers enjoy a commanding road view thanks to the high seating position.
Automotive progress from
one model generation to next comes in small increments. This mainstream car’s replacement brought almost 40 percent more torque, almost 85 percent more power, and a whole new Electric Vehicle range. It doesn’t happen. This is one of the most popular Electric Vehicles on the market.
The Kia Soul has always been a quirky, wagon like crossover with a lot of character; it’s impossible to
mistake it for any other vehicle. And that is still very much the case with the third-generation Soul, which provides the basis for this new Electric Vehicle variant. The Electric Vehicle Soul has become slightly bigger, and the moderately Electric Vehicle appearance is thoroughly uncluttered, carrying the emblematic Soul design into the next decade. The modernized appearance is underscored by the Electric Vehicle’s thin, futuristic headlights and a C-pillar featuring a shark-fin motif.
The Electric Vehicle version, which we took for an extended drive on its Korean home turf, is more differentiated from the gasoline- powered version than before, set apart visually from the regular Soul by a painted plastic insert instead of a front grille, its own lower set
of LED lighting units, and restyled fascias at both ends. As before,
the Electric Vehicle sports distinct aero-style wheels, now 17 inches in diameter, up one inch from 2019.
Compared to the ultraclean exterior, the interior falls somewhat flat. We would like to see some of
the funkiness of the exterior, or at least of the first-gen Soul, which had a quirky yet ergonomic dashboard that set it apart from most other cars. We find this interior to be a bit too conventional, but there are interesting color and lighting effects and an Electric Vehicle-specific, futuristic shift-by-wire knob to select Drive, Electric Vehicle, or Neutral positions.
The Electric Vehicle gets its own version of Kia’s Uvo infotainment system and a 10.3-inch touchscreen. It combines a plethora of important functions and information pertaining to the charging and battery status, charging station updates, scheduled charging functions, and the ability to plan a trip outside the car and send the information, including waypoints, to the car’s navigation system.
The Soul rides smoothly and it feels poised around turns. This Electric Vehicles’ steering leaves it behind it’s athletic rivals.
a fifty percent government subsidy. Kia set a global sales target of 5,000 units for 2014. Deliveries began in South Korea in 2014.
Kia began production of the
Soul Electric Vehicle for export
in 2014. First vehicles off the production line was headed to select European countries. European
retail deliveries began in 2014.
Sales also started in the U.S. in 2014 as 2015 model year. Initially it was sold only in California, but in 2015,
Kia Motors North America announced the Soul Electric Vehicle would be available in Georgia in the second quarter of 2015, and Washington, Oregon, Hawaii and Texas would receive the Electric Vehicle later in
the year. The Soul Electric Vehicle is available in two trims, with pricing starting at $33,700 US before any applicable government incentives.
Kia announced the 2016 Soul Electric Vehicle would come in
three trims: Electric Vehicle, Electric Vehicle, and Electric Vehicle+. The Electric Vehicle will only be available in California. A Sun & Fun package
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