FIRSTDRIVE: KIA SOUL:The Kia Soul has a cool, utilitarian sort of vibe, and is aiming to take its twentysomething target market by storm with a range of customisation options, writes Mark Nichol
LET'S GET the name issue out of the way first: Kia has called its latest hatch the Soul, which is a tabloid headline writer's dream - think of it as Kia's gift to the disoriented motoring press after the morphological nightmare that was the Cee'd. Or was it the C'eed?
Whatever you think of the name - or of Kia for that matter - the fledgling Korean maker is getting harder and harder to ignore. The cee'd hatchback proved that Kia could mix with European brands for quality, if not quite for excitement.
Kia still churns out its fair share of blandness, but some of its recent motor-show exhibits have been pretty stunning. Think of the Kee coupé concept, or the open-topped ex_cee'd.
Thank Peter Schreyer for that (the cars, not the names). He spent 25 years in design at Audi and gave us, among others, the original TT. Kia nabbed him in 2006 to inject some necessary flair into its cars.
So here we have the Soul. It's no Audi TT, but it is different and it's affordable too. And that's exactly the type of thing that sells in today's marketplace.
But look at it: it's hardly a symphony of sleek lines and lithe sportiness. In fact, in profile the Soul could well be Postman Pat's van. Pictures don't really do justice to the new car, though, because its proportions somehow make it look like a toy car on paper. On the road it's much better, with details such as flared wheel arches, a massive black front apron, black A-pillars and a shallow rear screen giving it a cool, utilitarian sort of vibe.
Kia took us all the way to Korea to drive the Soul, and while we were there someone mentioned that, as a nation, the Koreans seem to combine the ruthless efficiency of the Japanese with a sort of Latin spirit. That pretty well sums up the Soul.
On one hand, its tall roof, spacious interior, high driving position and economical engines make it perfect fodder for sensible, practical, relatively cheap urban transport. On the other, you can ask the Kia dealer to slap a huge "tribal dragon" sticker on the side, add some 18-inch black alloys and paint the front grille bright red - and all of a sudden you've got one very outgoing little runabout.
Really, the Soul should be thought of as melding attributes of the Honda Jazz and Nissan Qashqai, but with a bit of Mini thrown in for good measure.
Only two engines will be available globally when the car launches in March: a 1.6-litre petrol and a diesel unit of the same capacity. The petrol version is disappointing, to be frank: it's gutless, coarse and unrefined. The diesel is miles better, with plenty of punch from about 1,500rpm and all the associated economy, emissions and tax benefits of an oil burner. At launch, Irish buyers will only have the option of the diesel model, with the possibility of a 1.4-litre petrol unit down the line.
It's a mixed bag behind the wheel. The cabin is well ordered and smart-looking, especially if you plump for a contrasting red or beige dash, but the plastics are not up to scratch. The textured dash is well screwed together, but the entire cabin is fashioned from hard materials - particularly the door handles and stereo surround.
The driving position is high and commanding, and even the tallest driver should be satisfied with the amount of headroom on offer. The wheel doesn't adjust for reach, though, which irks. The steering is, by modern standards, more than adequate. Predictably, it has no real feel but it turns in as sharply as you'd want for such a high-set car, and the suspension gets the balance of ride and handling just right too. It's soft enough to be comfy - even on 18-inch wheels - yet firm enough to cope with enthusiastic driving when the conditions allow.
The only real disappointment is the gearbox, which is spongy and prone to slipping into the wrong gear unless guided with a really firm hand. This could prove annoying around the urban sprawl on which the Soul will spend most of its time.
Because the Soul is aimed at twentysomethings, Kia has seen fit to take a leaf out of the Mini book of customisation (and marketing) by encouraging buyers to personalise their Soul with a few options. Some of them, such as an eight-speaker stereo with iPod and USB connectivity, will probably be essential; others, such as the aforementioned "dragon tattoo body graphics" and "hound's tooth check" decals for the bonnet and tailgate, are downright garish.
But then, these are the things that will make the Soul stand out, and that generally makes it a more enticing ownership prospect. Kia hopes to shift 3,000 per year and wants its new baby to become an icon like the Beetle or, you've guessed it, the Mini. Its status, however, will ultimately depend very much on how the buyers choose to specify their cars: if most end up on the road in silver with grey interiors and base specs, an icon it certainly will not be.
But in the right colour, in the right spec and with the right options, the Soul's actually a very cool car, and it should be quite cheap; it's practical, efficient and even has some personality.
Factfile Kia Soul 1.6 CRDi
• Engine: 1.6-litre CRDi turbodiesel
• Peak power: 124bhp
• Peak torque: 255Nm
• Transmission: five-speed manual front-wheel drive
• Performance: 0-100km/h in 10.7 seconds
• CO2 emissions: 137g/km
• Combined cycle fuel economy: 5.1 litres/100km
• Price: estimated to start at €19,000