Kia Soul, US version
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The US models will all come with a 2.0 Liter good for 142hp.
5 speed manual is standard while a 4 speed auto is an option.
4 speed?!?!?! Really???
That is just too bad. That thing looks so modern. And you know the 4 speed auto will be the most popular model.
Don’t expect amazing MPG numbers with that…
But still . It was design by the “guy who did the TT”….
Its a clown car for weaklings.
Looks kinda good. I’m saying that… and I cannot stand Kias. But it actually looks very cool. The person buying this will not care if the automatic is a 4spd or a 5spd as long as the fuel economy is good.
AWD would have sold me on this one.
if youre lookin for small and cheap AWD, have you considered Suzuki SX4. Its a cool car (for the segment).
Vince,
What is so terrible about a 4 speed auto? Sure a 5 speed auto would be better, but look at this things class. As far as I know, no Scion offers a 5 speed auto. Yaris is equipped with a 4 speed, as is the Suzuki SX4, and many other small cars. It is more of a travesty when vehicles such as the forrester, outback, and Malibu are equipped with one.
Not a big deal to me anyway, any small car of this nature that I would buy would have to have a manual. Small 4 bangers + autos are a bag of hurt in my mind.
I think that this is going to sell incredibly well, and is just what the public needs.
I personally don’t think it will matter to the average buyer that it has a 4 speed AT. Not at all.
This looks beautiful. I am having a hard time deciding between this an an Elantra Touring now. In the end I may still go with the Elantra because it has that extra bit of cargo room I need and a look that won’t go stale as fast. But this thing looks like a pretty promising Scion killer.
Wow, same guy who penned the TT? I wouldn’t have guessed. The TT is so ovoid while this one is so square.
The sad part is that this car is forever compared to the Scion xB no matter how good it is.
Scion’s sales are already slipping because they decided to abandon they philosophy of different, small, and economical. This vehicle may signal an end to Toyota’s once youth division.
It’s going to be a great car! It is built with durability and content that’s reminiscent of late-eighties/ early-nineties Mercedes Benz cars- They’re spending a lot of money to make this car a success.. To see this car in person is really something special- it has a charm and character that is lacking in ANY car sold in the U.S. right now.
gorgeous, gorgeous, this is artful!
I am highly skeptical that this car “is built with durability and content that’s reminiscent of late eighties/early nineties benzes” because this car is probably going to be priced under $15k to be competitive. Benzes in the early eighties were made for the riches and not for the plebes like today’s.
I still owned an ’88 300E and it is still as solid as when it was new. Sure, just like any car that old, things were replaced but the doors still closed with a bank vault sound and the body is still strong (no rust yet) and quiet doing 80-90mph.
A 5-speed auto in a small car? Try the Honda Fit. I just got an ’09 about two weeks ago and on my first tank of gas (about 90% stop-and-go city driving with the engine brand new) it got 31MPG (33 indicated on the MPG meter). I am confident it will get over 40 MPG on the highway.
Furthermore, with the engine run-in a bit, these #’s will get even better.
Good car. I love it.
It’s going to be a great car! It is built with durability and content that’s reminiscent of late-eighties/ early-nineties Mercedes Benz cars- They’re spending a lot of money to make this car a success.
I am from http://hollywoodfamousstar.blogspot.com
It’s a sad day in the world of automobile styling when we just accept that a tiny shoebox like this little green snot looks “good”. I’ll stay with the 300HEMI LWB, thank-you.
if toyota really wanted to get competitve, it would sell the rush (also known as the daihatsu terios) in america as a scion.
i am still unconvinced of the quality of this vehicle (especially the multicolored clown-car interior). go to http://www.whatcar.co.uk and read the british magazine’s review of it, then read what they have to say about the terios
I rented a Daihatsu/Toyota Terios in Costa Rica a couple weeks ago…Toyota should offer that here…Excellent little SUV…Agreed.
This Kia thing looks like a little kids car.
Vince, That is the MAIN REASON why Subaru’s are goin got fade away!!! 1980’s transmissions just can’t cut it today when it comes to economy and smoothness!