KIA Soul EV 2022 electric car owner review

Laurence Tippett drives a KIA Soul EV Maxx 64kWh 2022.

This is Laurence’s first electric car, he’s owned the KIA Soul EV from new and drives 20,000-30,000 miles annually. The current mileage of the car is between 10,000-20,000 miles and he achieves 250 miles from a full charge.

Why did you choose the KIA Soul EV?

We looked at many different EVs before deciding on the KIA. We were in a fortunate position of not having to rush into a new purchase, so spent many, many weekends, test driving various different EVs. After narrowing the choice down to a MG ZS EV, a Hyundai IONIQ 5, a Vauxhall Mokka-e and the Kia Soul EV, our choice was easy. The Soul EV is extremely well equipped as standard and had everything we wanted on it.

The range was important to us. We travel a lot and do around 25,000 miles a year. Although I was not afraid to use public charge points, I wanted something where we wouldn’t be stopping every 5 minutes. We tried a Soul EV and at 285 (claimed) mile range, it sounded perfect. We test drove one in the Summer of 2022 and it did indeed, get that range, quite happily. The quality level inside was only matched by the IONIQ 5, whereas the others I have mentioned, felt a bit cheap and nasty. Not what we wanted when spending around £35,000 on a car. The KIA Soul EV drove great and in Sport mode, it was fabulous!

Positives

The very ‘mean’ looking front styling
the great range
the level of equipment as standard.

Negatives

The rear end design is not to everyone’s taste
the range drops a fair bit in winter, partly down to no heat pump.

Have you experienced any faults with the car? If so, what have they been?

The front door seal has perished. This is being replaced under warranty. No other faults in 12,500 miles

What are the standout technological features of the car?

From my point of view, it’s best features are the cruise/lane assist/lane keep. I can happily sit on the motorway (which I do for around 50 miles a day) and the car basically drives itself. Obviously, I am in full control still but it has the ability to stay at speed, brake, accelerate and turn corners by itself. A big step towards full automation. I work for JLR and we have only just got this technology.

The other part I absolutely love is the sound system. The sound is always on point and uses Harman Kardon technology. The kids love the ‘audience’ and ‘on stage’ modes, which really do make you feel like you are in one or the on other!

Tell us something people wouldn’t readily know about this electric car

There is a clever storage space under the floor of the boot. We didn’t realise it was there until it was pointed out and it really does make the space in the boot a lot more usable. As mentioned before, the other features we were unaware of, was the audience and stage modes on the sound system. They really transform the experience and I can quite often get lost in the music when driving along. It is very much my ‘happy place’ at times.

What electric car(s) are you interested in next and why?

Volkswagen ID. Buzz – purely because we want the camper van style car. We are yet to look around one but from initial thoughts, this is where we would go. Failing that, hopefully there will be a full EV KIA Sportage by then. We love the Sportage look and that would be a great option.

Home charging unit

We have an Ohme charge point installed. It was put in as part of the deal with the KIA. So far, I cannot fault it. It has an app so you can control it all remotely. It has a lock so we have to authorise any plug-ins. It stops people using it when we are not around. It fully charges the KIA (64kW) in around 9 hours. There isn’t much more to say on it really.

The only downside I could see, would be the cost of putting it in if you were to pay for the unit (around £1,000 including fitting). We have done 12,500 miles so far and I would say 80% of that has been charged from home. We couldn’t do without it.

Electricity supplier & tariff

Our supplier is UW. We are on the Gold package and electricity is currently costing around 31p/kWh. There are much cheaper tariffs out there if you wish to charge at night (around 12p/kWh or less) but we need the tariff we are on for other uses.

What public charging networks would you recommend to others and why?

InstaVolt are fantastic. They are usually working and we have no issues. It will charge the KIA to 80% in around 50 minutes. The cost can be quite high, particularly in cities but still less than the equivalent in fuel. There are free charge points still that we use from time to time. We do sometimes struggle with these being ‘out of service’ and obviously, they are quite slow. That said, if we are going for a coffee or a bite to eat, then they can easily add 40-50 miles range in that time.

Please itemise where you’re saving money (or not) owning & running a KIA Soul EV

So this question is easier if I put it into some context. Preciously, we have never owned a new car, let alone an EV. So we went from a 2016 Renault Grand Scenic (1.5 Diesel) that was brought second-hand to the KIA Soul EV. Fuel wise, we were spending around 450 a month on the Renault. The KIA is costing around £150-£200, depending where we charge, for the exact same distance. The lease on the KIA is slightly more expensive but it has a maintenance plan and service plan on it. So overall, we are saving around £250 a month over a 2016 player Renault. I know which option I would choose!