The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) gives the Soul top marks for crash protection plus a "Basic" rating for crash prevention and an "Acceptable" rating for headlight performance. In federal government crash tests, it earns 5 stars in every assessment except for two 4-star ratings. If you were to get into a collision, the 3,232-pound Soul Exclaim does a good job of protecting you. The windshield is huge, the side mirrors are large enough that you can easily view your blind spot, and because the Soul is so dang stubby, you won't reverse very far out of your parking space before you can see clearly in both directions. What I can say is that outward visibility is excellent. My test car didn't have that, either, so I can't comment on its effectiveness. What you can get for the Soul Exclaim, as a part of the Technology Package, is a blind spot warning system with rear cross-traffic alert. That means you need to choose between adequate, even speedy, acceleration, and features including adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, and lane departure warning. Unfortunately, most of them are unavailable for the turbocharged Exclaim trim level. Kia offers a long list of driver assistance and collision avoidance technologies for the Soul. But, given the great crash-test ratings, we vote in favor of the Exclaim’s turbo engine! (Speedy Daddy Media, Inc.) Kia limits some of its most important and effective safety systems to the mid-grade Soul Plus trim level. For, like, ever.Īlso worth noting is that the automatic climate control system includes a Clean Air ionizer, a feature that remains to this day a bragging point in vehicles that cost two or three times as much as the Soul does. Kia's UVO eServices system was also aboard the test car, offering 911 Connect automatic collision notification and emergency services, a smartphone app that helps you find where the Soul is parked, and the ability to program curfew, speed, and geographic boundary alerts for when younger drivers are using the Soul. On the other hand, well, pulsing speaker lights. On the one hand, this simplified the Soul, and since the smaller 7-inch display system comes standard with Apple CarPlay, I didn't miss having a navigation system. My test car did not have the optional Technology Package, which means it did not include a larger 8-inch infotainment system display, a navigation system, extra USB charging ports, or a premium sound system with pulsing speaker lights. That means 911 Connect, programmable safe teen driver technologies, a Find My Car app, and more won’t cost you extra. Kia provides its UVO eServices technology for free, for the lifetime of the car. Otherwise, I genuinely enjoyed my test car's refreshing simplicity. With that said, though, the only component of it that I truly missed was the Harman Kardan premium sound system. My test car did not have the optional Technology Package, which at $3,000 is a bona fide bargain given its contents. But, to my aging eyes, Kia's selection makes it harder to find what I need. At night, secondary controls feature reddish orange illumination, which matches the Exclaim version's contrast stitching in a soothingly low-key manner. White instrumentation and control markings lend clarity to the cabin, and red gauge needles add a racy look. The only exception might be the engine start button, mounted on the center console near the transmission shifter, but I quickly acclimated to it. (Speedy Daddy Media, Inc.)Ĭonventionally laid out within an expressively rendered interior, the Soul's controls are easy to find and use. Tweeter speaker towers, bulging control centers, and optional speaker lighting add flair to the Soul’s interior, but the controls are conventional in terms of layout and operation.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |