Kia’s dropped $165m to develop its funky new Soul “urban crossover” concept. In hopes of convincing the youngsters to hop on the Seoul train, the Korean brand is showing no fewer than seven versions of the Soul at the upcoming Paris Auto Show. Automotive News Europe [sub] reports that Kia is playing the Sciontology card, hoping to “drive home [sic] the message that the car is personal and customizable.” Though some may cry “gimmickry,” we say gopher it. The MINI sets the standard for small car appeal. Though pistonheads love the Anglo-German sub-compact’s handling and performance, it’s fashion statement qualities are a huge part of its appeal. If Kia can build a cheaper but equally cheerful version of the MINI, complete with the kind of OCD customization that has even non-customers “building their own” online, it will be a huge hit. It seems genuinely attractive too, showing how far the small-car styling game has come, making Chevy’s “small-big-car” approach to the Cruze look instantly dated. You also won’t have to wait until 2010; North American Soul delivery is scheduled to begin in April with hybrid and stop-start versions in the pipeline.
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Actually, it’s what I have wanted for the past twenty or so years: a car that is (hopefully) good to drive, yet has enough space for my bike and can (hopefully) be hosed out after a trek in the dreck.
An egalitarian approach to motoring — what the Citroen Berlingo and the Renault Kangoo have tried to represent with mixed success (they are too vannish, too family-oriented). The Fiat Qubo is aiming at this mindset as well.
MINI? It’s much more similar to the original Scion xB in my eyes.
You’re right on about the Cruze though, it’s another characterless compact from GM.
What I want is a subcompact with actual windows that you can actually see out of. This one doesn’t look quite as ridiculous in that front as many, but it still doesn’t stand up to the original xB.
Or, y’know, any subcompact made back before designers decided that 4-doors needed to have all the visibility problem of coupes.
Agreed – this looks much more like Kia is going after the abandoned “customizeable square car” market than MINI’s.
And why shouldn’t they? It was a lucrative market, before Scion abandonded it in favor of, uh, whatever that bloated thing is that they’re selling now.
Besides, Scion proved that performance isn’t necessarily the priority in the “cheap / fast / customizeable: pick 2” equation.
Martin: Please, please include your impressions of the Soul in your Paris report!
JuniorMint: 142 hp out of two liters sounds about right. Shouldn’t weigh too much more than the xD, but packing a little more grunt.
ctoan: Agreed. The new Matrix is a classic example of an intentionally practical design (five-door Corolla) with styling that looks good but limits visibility and usability. The Soul looks like it suffers from this to some extent, but the proof is in the road test.
I saw it in person last weekend at a show north of Toronto. It looked good and I took two real-world photos.
Also shot pics of the Tundra i-Force, Suzuki Equator and Elantra Touring.
Pics can be seen here http://picasaweb.google.ca/kbinnie/CAIAutoshow2008
It does look “cool” in the real world pictures!
It kind of looks like it’s leaning back, while at the same time leaning forward. It’s a really busy design, busy in the sense that I feel dizzy when I stare at it too long.
I imagine it would look much better passing it on the road.
Practical boxy vehicles with excellent visibility? Just put a Volvo 240 into the spin cycle.
So do I like this car, or do I like it only because the original xB is no longer available?
Anyway, kudos to Kia for filling a niche. Nuts to the intentional lack of rear visibility.
I’ve always wondered why Suzuki doesn’t bring the current Swift to North America. (The gawd-awful Swift+ doesn’t count).
If anything comes close to the MINI’s small car charm, it’d be the Swift.
It looks like it doesn’t cross the line that the xD did: Ugly = “Different”.
Though the MINI influence is apparent, it still looks like a “modern” car, with just enough shiny bits to keep it from looking like a lump of plastic (I’m lookin’ at you, xD!).
Edward: thanks, I will. Actually, I saw (and wrote about) the Soul in Geneva, March 2008. And not only about the Soul, but also its various permutations — the Soul Burner, the Country Soul, the Filet of Soul, and the Soul of Wood. (Maybe my memory is playing tricks with me and they didn’t show all of those, but I can specifically remember some of them).
Or, if it’s prone to breakdowns: “Soul of Shoe?”
Nyuk… nyuk…
I think it has lost a little too much from the original (unintentional?) prototype picture. I’ll have to see one in real life before I judge it and personally I think I’ll wait for the Nissan Cube to come state side before I choose which toaster I like best.
Blunozer, I saw a few Suzuki Swifts (Sport trim, no less) up close and personal on a trip to Guatemala last year. They are good-looking little cars and I was smitten (ex-MCS owner, current GTI owner). Though they’ll have to up the Sport’s power to Cooper S levels to make them a no-brainer purchase in the US.