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The Kia Soul has served as a master class in how to create an affordable, versatile, yet distinctive small car—a class that Detroit automakers especially seem to have slept through. Since 2009, Kia has sold its Soul more than 1 million times around the world, and it’s easy to see why. This third-generation 2020 model continues the Soul’s evolution into a more grown-up quasi-crossover without screwing up its successful formula: an appealing, rectilinear shape that maximizes space for people and cargo; designers that lavish attention on even tiny details; and plenty of value, even if that gets murky on the highest-priced Turbo version.
The Good: The Soul starts at just $17,490, and while it’s boxy, there’s nothing “econobox” about it, aside from some basic plastics that are unavoidable at these prices. Slim new headlamps perch below a blunt, faux-clamshell hood that’s like a homage — or maybe a “screw you” — to Range Rover. Striking LED taillamps boomerang around nearly the entire back hatch glass and the sheetmetal “island” that’s a Soul design signature. Inside, deep etchings on genuine metal front-door trim catch and reflect natural light, making them appear illuminated from below—a design touch that Audi or Lexus would be proud to claim.
Headroom remains vast in both rows, and there’s a respective 24- and 62-cubic-feet of storage with rear seats raised or folded flat, respectively, dwarfing conventional subcompact crossovers with similar exterior dimensions. (The Soul doubles the Mazda CX-3’s cargo space behind the second row, and has nearly 50 percent more overall capacity, despite being 3.1 inches shorter than the Mazda). Ground clearance rises to a campground-friendly 6.7 inches, up from 5.9 before.
Who It’s For: Budget buyers who’d rather not draw too much attention to that fact. The children of parents who are only too cognizant of budgets, or tuition prices. City dwellers, for sure, or anyone who wants unmatched interior volume relative to a tiny exterior footprint.
