Kia Soul Problems

The Kia Souls sold in Australia are 4140mm in length.

First shown at the 2008 Paris Motor Show the Kia Soul has been built in both South Korea by Kia, and Russia. To date over 1,000,000 examples have been sold, with the Soul averaging 100,000 units sold in the USA alone per-year since it was first sold. In 2014 the electric Soul EV was launched, first in Korea then Europe and the USA.

While Kia rate their Soul small car for towing 550kg of unbraked trailer, or an optimistic 1100kg of trailer equipped with brakes, these are theoretical maximum possible loads. The reality is that you will be pushing the friendship even towing a small box trailer, let alone a boat, with a Kia Soul.

The Soul ticks a lot of boxes. It's roomy, comfortable, safe and practical, with a high riding seating position and good visibility. But it's not the most economical, and it has a space-saver spare wheel. For more info check the reviews of our road testers.

The Kia Soul is a front wheel drive sub-compact car. To date there are no four-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive variants.

You have to take your key fob to Kia or a qualified locksmith who can code it to your car for you. Coding keys requires tapping into your car's computer using specialist software so it isn't a job Harry Homejob can do with basic tools.

Modern Korean cars have come a long way since they burst onto the Australian market as entry-level runabouts 30 years ago. When properly serviced and taken care of the Kia Soul shouldn't be any less reliable than a comparable Japanese vehicle, though I have heard of some issues in America (in cold states) where cabin vent tubes can become blocked leading to the demisters struggling to clear the windows quickly.

There are five colour combinations available on the Soul: Bright White, Clear Silver, Titanium Silver, Bright White with an Inferno Red roof, and Inferno Red with a Cherry Black roof.

The cost will generally depend on the variant and year. You can get more information on quick and cheap key replacments from dealers or automotive locksmiths here.

While Kia continues to make a model called the Soul, it’s not sold officially in Australia. Which means to get a 2024 model in this country, you’d be looking at a private (or`grey’) import. At which point, there’d be no factory warranty from Kia and you may have trouble finding service and replacement parts when you need them.

Kia Australia sold the Soul here from 2009 to 2020. It was a good concept, but never really seemed to resonate with Aussie buyers. It was practical and functional and probably deserved to do better. Unfortunately, it went head to head with trendier SUVs which were much more popular and, therefore, sold in bigger numbers.