The 2016 Kia Soul Goes Electric With an EV Model
For Kia dealerships in Miami , there may be a new Soul sitting on their lot — an electric soul. The new 2016 Kia Soul EV is an electric vehicle that sits at the top with a best-in-class driving range, coupled with impressive instant torque, the Soul EV should be a good contender for the market. On top of the impressive MPGe and performance, the Soul EV also comes at a surprisingly low price for an electric vehicle, has a roomy interior with an abundance of technology, and is also the first UL validated vehicle.
All of these perks come in the same bold Kia Soul design, and it’s impossible to mistake it for any other vehicle.
The Same Bold Soul Design
While it’s impossible to mistake it for any vehicle other than a Soul, it’s possible to mistake it for the new gas-powered 2016 Kia Soul. That’s because, other than a few minor aesthetic changes, it still has the same bold Kia Soul design.
Which isn’t a bad thing, because that also makes this electric vehicle stand out much more than the competition. The vibrant colors, coupled with the sleek and square signature Soul design, make this an electric vehicle that’s eye-candy when going down the road; especially when compared to the competition. Other electric vehicles like the Chevy Spark EV can’t hold a match to the fun and electrifying (all the pun intended) design of the Soul EV.
The Spark EV isn’t the only one either. Even the electric cars offered by BMW and Volvo look like your a typical run of the mill gas-job offered by those automakers. Part of the fun with electric vehicles are the outlandish designs, and the Soul EV has a design that sets it apart from the rest.
The First UL Validated Vehicle
Speaking of setting itself apart in design, the 2016 Soul EV is the electric vehicle to earn the first and only UL environmental claim validation in the industry. What does it take to be UL validated? A thorough inspection of materials and manufacturing in order to see what’s eco friendly and what’s not. The Kia Soul EV has a total of nineteen parts composed of bio-based materials inside its total interior mass. That means it contains 10% bio-based organic carbon content, and is officially the greenest electric car on the market.
As an example of how eco-friendly the inside of the Soul EV is, Kia used a special type of BTX-free and water-borne paints on the sound system, vent, and floor console. These paints don’t contain volatile organic compounds (VOC) that are harmful to inhale, which means the inside of the Soul EV isn’t just healthier for the environment, it’s also healthier for you.
A Roomy Interior
The inside of the Soul EV is also important to note. Typically with electric vehicles, the space on the inside is sacrificed for a more compact design to increase the distance it can travel. With the 2016 Kia Soul EV, you get a surprisingly spacious interior with best-in-class driving range, which is something all the other electric vehicles are jealous about.
The interior is roomy enough to seat four people comfortably, and squeeze in a fifth if need be; thanks to having 39.6/39.5 inches of front/rear headroom, and 40.9/36 inches of front/rear legroom. If you opt to fold down the 60/40 split-folding rear seats, then you get 49.5 cubic feet of cargo volume, which is a lot for an electric vehicle. There is also a hidden luggage under tray that’s perfect for storing a charging cord or anything else you might want to bring with you.
The idea of having ample headroom, legroom, and storage space in an electric vehicle is a pleasing thought; especially since it’s still able to maintain impressive performance.
Impressive Performance
Unlike the majority of electric vehicles on the market, the Kia Soul EV is able to provide you with a thrilling ride. The Soul EV’s electric motor provides you with 109 horsepower, which is decent for an electric vehicle. However, the 210 lb-feet of instant torque is far more impressive. Combine the horsepower and torque with the lightweight design, and Kia’s unique multi-layer magnet electric engine that provides quiet, smooth-power performance, and you have an electric vehicle that plans to change what you know about driving one.
When Kia says the Soul EV has 210 lb-ft of instant torque, they mean instant. That’s because in an electric vehicle, there is no waiting for the torque to reach the wheels. As soon as you hit that gas pedal, you are greeted instantly with dynamic acceleration, even from a stand-still.
Stellar Driving Range
The same system that delivers the Soul EV its pure off-the-line punch also returns stellar MPGe, which gives the Kia Soul EV a best-in-class driving range. This efficiency is, in part, thanks to the regenerative braking system the Soul EV is equipped with. Every time the Soul decelerates or goes downhill, the system recovers kinetic energy that would otherwise be lost. Then, the trapped kinetic energy is sent to replenish the battery, in turn increasing the charge and time spent on the road.
While the regenerative braking system is nice, the real star of the show is the the Soul EV’s slim lithium-ion polymer battery. This battery is more energy-dense than most EV batteries, and is packed with 27 kWh of energy in order to maximize the driving range. The battery is placed right under the floor, which is also the reason the Soul EV has so much cabin space.
In order to truly appreciate the Soul EV’s EPA-estimated best-in-class 93 mile driving range, let’s take a look at some of the competition and see how they stack up. The 2016 Chevy Spark EV only gets a total range of 82 miles. Not only is that 11 miles less than the Soul EV, but it’s also a smaller vehicle — which means less interior space. The 2016 Volkswagen e-Golf is another electric vehicle, and is only able to get a driving range of 83 miles. Again, we see the Kia Soul EV’s best-in-class driving range isn’t even close to being touched, and again the e-Golf is much smaller than the Soul, which means it also has significantly less passenger/cargo room.
These are only two comparisons, but it’s the same situation for the rest in the class: they all have less driving range, and the Soul EV has more space. How Kia was able to make a vehicle that’s bigger than most other electric vehicles on the market while still providing stellar driving range is a statement about Kia’s engineering ingenuity.
A Surprisingly Affordable Price
You would think the 2016 Kia Soul EV comes with an expensive price tag, thanks to how overall superior it is compared to other electric vehicles in the class. But it doesn’t. The starting MSRP is surprisingly affordable for a vehicle of this quality, and comes in at $24,450 after the $7,500 federal tax credit for which it’s eligible.
This surprisingly low price gets you the ultimate electric vehicle experience, and the 2016 Kia Soul EV is going to be a tough competitor to beat on the electric car market simply because of the interior space and driving range.
__
Previous Post Kia Makes Its First Steps Toward Self-Driving Cars Next Post The Kia Cross GT Concept: The CUV of the Future