What kind of car is the 2022 Kia Soul? What does it compare to?
The Soul’s a roomy five-seat hatchback, though you might see it pitched as a crossover—even though it’s front-wheel-drive only. Stylish, efficient, and affordable, it’s a rival for the Toyota C-HR, Nissan Kicks, and Hyundai Venue.
Is the 2022 Kia Soul a good car?
Review continues below
We give the 2022 Soul a TCC Rating of 6.0 out of 10, with offsetting scores in styling (good) and safety (spotty). (Read more about how we rate cars.)
What’s new for the 2022 Kia Soul?
The manual transmission has been dropped, but base Soul LX hatchbacks get a standard 8.0-inch touchscreen. A Technology package bundles automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitors, and active lane control for the Soul LX, but it’s not standard. Other models get a 10.3-inch touchscreen, keyless start, and wireless smartphone charging.
Kia sells the Soul in LX, S, EX, and GT-Line trims. All of them walk the line between cute and kitsch, and land on the right side of funky. We like the Soul’s angular, jaunty shape even better than we like its fuss-free, spacious cabin.
Most Souls tap a 2.0-liter inline-4 for 147 hp, and send it frontward through a CVT. So saddled it’s competent at economy-car chores, though hardly fast, and gets up to 31 mpg combined. The 201-hp turbo-4 comes with a wayward 7-speed dual-clutch automatic that judders at low speeds, too much for our liking. The Soul’s cut-above-economy calm ride and meaty steering deserve better than it.
Five people can fit in the Soul if you need them to. All of them will have good head and leg room; it’s shoulder room that will limit the size of back-seat passengers. With up to 62.1 cubic feet of cargo space, the Soul’s often used (rightly so) as a highly useful two-seater—a Millennial Pack ‘N Play, anecdotally.
In the loss column, the NHTSA gives the Soul four stars for crash protection, and Soul LX hatchbacks don’t come with automatic emergency braking unless you spend more.
How much does the 2022 Kia Soul cost?
The $20,365 Soul LX has power features and an 8.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, but you’ll have to pay for automatic emergency braking. We’d skip to the $22,665 Soul S, which gets that active safety feature as well as nicer cloth seats, a 10.3-inch touchscreen, and wireless smartphone charging.
Where is the 2022 Kia Soul made?
In South Korea.