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2010 Kia Soul crossover vehicle listed in kbb.com’s Top 10 Back-to-School Cars
The highly-personalizable 2010 Kia Soul compact crossover vehicle receives yet another important citation.
For the second year in a row, Kelley Blue Book’s kbb.com named the 2010 Kia Soul as one of the year’s “Top 10 Back-to-School Cars.” Students are going back to school and if kbb.com is right, we should see more students pulling over their new Kia Souls inside America’s leading campuses.
The popular website believes that high-school and college students will find the Soul’s modern style, wide interior space and modern technology very attractive.
With its unique styling and personalization options and outstanding safety and reliability ratings, the Soul appeals to both younger buyers and their parents. The award-winning five-door urban passenger vehicle, along with the 2011 Sorento and Sportage, reflects Kia Motors’ design-led transformation and continues to attract new buyers to Kia showrooms.
Other vehicles that made it to the popular website’s list include the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze, Suzuki SX4 hatchback , Ford Crown Victoria, Saab 9-2X, Honda Fit, Pontiac Vibe, Mazda3 and Ford Fiesta.
The kbb.com editors made their choice according to these cars’ reliability, safety, affordability, practicality, and the latest safety and technology advancements. They were chosen from all new car models below $18,000 and used car models from whose retail value is under $12,000 based on the Kelley Blue Book Suggested Retail Value.
The executive editorial director and executive market analyst for kbb.com, Jack R. Nerad, talked about the list. He said, “this year’s all-new car entries offer advanced technological features and forward-looking designs to engage any student with price points that won’t disappoint parents… With so many well-equipped new cars and bargain-priced used cars on the market, we’d argue that this may be the best year yet to find a ride that will please both parents and students.”
This is the newest citation from a long list of awards that have been given to the 2010 Kia Soul crossover. The list includes a “Top Safety Pick” by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (read more about Kia Soul safety here), one of the “Best Family Cars for 2010” by Edmunds.com and Parents Magazine, “Best Hatchback of 2010” by Cars.com, one of the “2010 Top Cars for Families” by Motherproof.com, and one of the 2010 “Top 10 Coolest New Cars Under $18,000” by Kelley Blue Book’s kbb.com.
The Soul is equipped with so many features that are intended to impress the younger crowd, as well as the young-at-heart. Its audio package features speaker lights that pulse to the beat of the music. With mood lighting to boot, the Soul’s interior turns into a mobile lounge. The Soul+ trim has funky black cloth seats and glowing Soul logo; the Soul!, on the other hand, has sand-black interior with houndstooth-patterned inserts; while the Soul sport jives with a bold red-black interior trim, red-trimmed cloth seats, and metal-finish interior accents.
Inside-out, the Kia Soul is screaming with funk and modern stylish appeal.
CONGRATS Kia! 😀
Just hope Soul gets passed that NHTSA investigation without problems.
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Unrelated: As expected – Sportage ’11 top safety pick at IIHS
The Soul problem was one (1) vehicle. I think that it was nothing more than a mistake by an assembly line worker that forgot to secure a pin.
Could you imagine a mid-engined AWD Soul with the 5.0L V8? Not only would that take you back to school, you’d end up back in 1984! One can only dream…..
I’ve linked into my name a press release that tells all of Kias new models or redesigns through 2013-2014. Take a look. Publish it to the blog!
News Bit: 2012 Kia Sorento will get GDI 2.4L which will replace the regular 2.4L. Expected MPG is 23/32.
There was a link in there the first time. I’m not “Waiting for moderation”
Ok, Don’t publish the story to the blog. I will.
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Kia’s redesigned Optima sedan and the Cadenza replacement for the Amanti, both due next year, reflect an emphasis on creating a livelier and more upscale look for the once-bland brand.
Indeed, styling has been a crucial element of Kia’s new-product push in the past 18 months.
The team at Kia Design Center America near Los Angeles — part of the automaker’s global design network led by onetime Audi design chief Peter Schreyer — has helped set the new styling direction.
Designers in California created the Kue crossover concept that was the basis for the Sportage redesign. They also did the exterior styling on the Soul, Forte and Forte Koup and Sorento and the interior of the upcoming Optima. Kia’s design center in Frankfurt did the Optima’s exterior.
Look for more excitement under the hood, too, as Kia strives to be seen as a brand that delivers moderately priced vehicles that are fun to drive. For example, the new Sportage, which went on sale this month, gets a 270-hp direct- injection turbocharged engine as an option in early 2011.
Here are highlights of Kia’s U.S. plans for the 2011-13 model years.
Rio: A redesign of Kia’s small car is expected to go on sale in late 2011.
Rondo: The compact minivan may be replaced for the 2013 model year with a new five-door model based on the same platform as the Hyundai i30, which is sold in Europe.
Soul: The first reskin for the quirky, boxy subcompact since its February 2009 debut is planned for the summer of 2011, when the Soul gets a new fascia. A redesign is scheduled for the 2014 model year.
Optima: The mid-sized sedan, which shares a platform with the Hyundai Sonata, will be redesigned early next year. Styling of the 2011 Optima is sporty and streamlined. It gets the “tiger nose” grille seen on all new Kia models since the debut of the Soul. The new version will be launched with a standard 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine and an optional turbocharged version that puts out an estimated 270 hp. A hybrid version will be introduced in the first quarter of 2011.
Sorento: The crossover was redesigned in December. A restyling is planned for the 2013 model year.
Sportage: The third generation of Kia’s compact SUV debuted this month with styling cues from the 2007 Kue concept done at Kia’s California design center. A version powered by a 270-hp, turbocharged direct-injection engine arrives this year. A reskin is scheduled for the 2014 model year.
Forte: A replacement for the compact sedan is planned for the 2013 model year, with a new platform and possibly a new name.
Cadenza: The Amanti replacement — introduced in Korea last year as the K-7 — will go on sale in April as a 2012 model. The Cadenza, powered by a 3.5-liter V-6, is longer and wider than the Amanti. The wheelbase of the Korean version is about 112 inches, compared with the Amanti’s 107.1 inches. The Amanti name will disappear.
Borrego: The body-on-frame SUV will remain in Kia’s lineup through the 2013 model year with no changes planned. Kia executives are not convinced that the segment is worth additional investment, so the Borrego may be killed when its current life cycle ends after the 2013 model year.
Sedona: The minivan segment is shrinking, so Kia may not replace the Sedona after production is scheduled to end after the 2013 model year.
Hybrid: Kia is kicking around the idea of a dedicated hybrid, likely a compact car, but it is struggling with the business case in a segment dominated by the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight.