Video Summary
Here is the summary of the YouTube car review.The Kia Soul EV comes only in all-electric form. The brand's EV technology has hugely improved. EV batteries are able to offer up to around 180 miles on a good day, or for around twice the money, the more sophisticated battery technology which luxury models use can offer a driving range of around 300 miles
In 2018 the Hyundai Kia conglomerate turned up on the market with a couple of EV models offering the kind of range that you get in a luxury EV for the kind of price that you pay for a more affordable one, namely the Hyundai Kona Electric and the Kia e-Niro
The driving range of the EV derivative is considerably lengthier than the previous generation full electric Soul model could offer, from 132 to 280 miles
It shares its 64-kilowatt-hour battery pack, electric motor, and drivetrain with the Kia e-Niro and with Hyundai's Kona electric
Unlike those models, you don't get the option of a lesser 39.2-kilowatt hour variant with a lower driving range and a commensurately lower price
The suspension has been worked on to try to deal with the effects of this car's 1757-kilo curb weight. However, it's not enough to make this car feel satisfying through the bends, and vague steering doesn't help
The adjustments made in the powertrain provide a couple of different driving modes, Normal, Eco, Eco Plus, and Sport, and the ability to change the amount of regenerative charging that the car develops under braking. The regenerative setup can be controlled through steering column mounted paddle shifters
A standard of spec includes Black leather upholstery. This is a black leather upholstery, heated and electrically adjustable front seats. At the time of this test in mid-2020, the only version of this Soul EV available was the plushly specified First Edition version that has all the extras and costs just over £34,000 after the government's £3000 plug-in car grant has been deducted
You get power folding mirrors and rain sensing wipers, with the windows tapered toward the rear of the car with a fussy C and D pillar arrangement. This mark 3 model is a bit bigger than before, 4.2 meters in length which is 80 mils longer than its predecessor
At the front this Soul's urban crossover design theme has been enhanced with sharp full LED headlamps integrated into this upper brow, which extends across the front
Instead of the usual grill there's now a solid central panel, and the charging socket just below
There's a trapezoidal lower grill section, and strake style LED fog lamps beneath the headlights replace the cute round lamps found on the previous Soul EV.
Inside, you get a 7-inch TFT LCD supervision instrument cluster. The customizable data section includes trip computer data, driving style readouts, and an animated energy flow diagram
The 10-speaker Harman Kardon premium audio system is a high standard of spec
Anything that this can't tell you will probably be found on the 10.25-inch UVO centre-dash touchscreen, with entertainment display, the usual functions, Apple CarPlay, Android auto. Its split screen functionality allows you to monitor different features at the same time, say navigation, audio settings and the EV preferences.
The rear seats benefit from this mark 3 model's 30 millimeter increase in wheelbase length, and the boxy dimensions means the rear bench is spacious with a low center of transmission tunnel so a third adult can just about fit.
On a 100-kilowatt charging station the battery can reach 80% of charge in only 54 minutes. With a 7.2-kilowatt home wall box you can recharge completely in 9 hours 35 minutes and that would use around 9-pounds worth of electricity at current rates. The usual airbags, traction, stability and braking are a standard feature.
