{"id":"2018_kia_soul","make":"Kia","make_slug":"kia","model":"Soul","model_slug":"soul","year":2018,"url":"/kia/soul/2018/","pts":["bev","gas"],"configs":[{"id":39322,"model":"Soul Electric","pt":"bev","drive":"Front-Wheel Drive","trany":"Automatic (A1)","cyl":null,"displ":null,"eng":"","turbo":false,"super":false,"start_stop":false,"city":124,"hwy":93,"comb":108,"cityA":0,"hwyA":0,"combA":0,"kwh100":31.2261,"range":111,"range_city":125,"range_hwy":95,"erange":null,"phev_comb":null,"charge240":5.0,"charge240b":0.0,"charger":"","charger_b":"","motor":"81 kW AC PMSM","fuel":"Electricity","vclass":"Small Station Wagons","co2":0,"fe_score":10,"ghg_score":10,"fuel_cost":700,"save_spend":7750,"guzzler":false,"mfr_code":"KMX","modified":"Wed Feb 02 00:00:00 EST 2022"},{"id":38889,"model":"Soul","pt":"gas","drive":"Front-Wheel Drive","trany":"Automatic (AM7)","cyl":4,"displ":1.6,"eng":"SIDI","turbo":true,"super":false,"start_stop":false,"city":26,"hwy":31,"comb":28,"cityA":0,"hwyA":0,"combA":0,"kwh100":null,"range":null,"range_city":null,"range_hwy":null,"erange":null,"phev_comb":null,"charge240":null,"charge240b":null,"charger":"","charger_b":"","motor":"","fuel":"Regular","vclass":"Small Station Wagons","co2":320,"fe_score":6,"ghg_score":6,"fuel_cost":2250,"save_spend":0,"guzzler":false,"mfr_code":"KMX","modified":"Fri Nov 10 00:00:00 EST 2017"},{"id":38830,"model":"Soul","pt":"gas","drive":"Front-Wheel Drive","trany":"Automatic (S6)","cyl":4,"displ":2.0,"eng":"SIDI","turbo":false,"super":false,"start_stop":false,"city":25,"hwy":30,"comb":27,"cityA":0,"hwyA":0,"combA":0,"kwh100":null,"range":null,"range_city":null,"range_hwy":null,"erange":null,"phev_comb":null,"charge240":null,"charge240b":null,"charger":"","charger_b":"","motor":"","fuel":"Regular","vclass":"Small Station Wagons","co2":334,"fe_score":6,"ghg_score":6,"fuel_cost":2300,"save_spend":-250,"guzzler":false,"mfr_code":"KMX","modified":"Fri Nov 10 00:00:00 EST 2017"},{"id":38887,"model":"Soul","pt":"gas","drive":"Front-Wheel Drive","trany":"Automatic (S6)","cyl":4,"displ":1.6,"eng":"SIDI","turbo":false,"super":false,"start_stop":false,"city":25,"hwy":30,"comb":27,"cityA":0,"hwyA":0,"combA":0,"kwh100":null,"range":null,"range_city":null,"range_hwy":null,"erange":null,"phev_comb":null,"charge240":null,"charge240b":null,"charger":"","charger_b":"","motor":"","fuel":"Regular","vclass":"Small Station Wagons","co2":330,"fe_score":6,"ghg_score":6,"fuel_cost":2300,"save_spend":-250,"guzzler":false,"mfr_code":"KMX","modified":"Fri Nov 10 00:00:00 EST 2017"},{"id":38888,"model":"Soul","pt":"gas","drive":"Front-Wheel Drive","trany":"Manual 6-spd","cyl":4,"displ":1.6,"eng":"SIDI","turbo":false,"super":false,"start_stop":false,"city":24,"hwy":30,"comb":27,"cityA":0,"hwyA":0,"combA":0,"kwh100":null,"range":null,"range_city":null,"range_hwy":null,"erange":null,"phev_comb":null,"charge240":null,"charge240b":null,"charger":"","charger_b":"","motor":"","fuel":"Regular","vclass":"Small Station Wagons","co2":335,"fe_score":6,"ghg_score":6,"fuel_cost":2300,"save_spend":-250,"guzzler":false,"mfr_code":"KMX","modified":"Fri Nov 10 00:00:00 EST 2017"}],"vclass":"Small Station Wagons","segment":"Wagon","recalls":[{"campaign":"23V724000","component":"ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:SOFTWARE","mfr":"Kia America, Inc.","reported":"2023-10-26","owner_notified":"2023-12-21","units":6262,"summary":"Kia America, Inc. (KIA) is recalling certain 2015-2019 Soul EV vehicles.  The parking mechanism may be damaged, which can result in unintended vehicle movement when the gear shift lever is in the Park 'P' position and the parking brake is not applied while the vehicle is powered on.","consequence":"Unintended vehicle movement can increase the risk of a crash.","remedy":"Dealers will update the electronic control unit software, free of charge.  Owner notification letters were mailed December 21, 2023.  Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542.  Kia's number for this recall is SC287.  This recall expands and replaces recall number 20V-389.  Vehicles previously repaired under 20V-389 will need to have the new remedy completed.","notes":"Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov.","park_outside":false,"do_not_drive":false,"mfr_campaign":"SC287","initiated_by":"ODI","variants":["bev"],"severity":"minor"},{"campaign":"23V218000","component":"ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:PROPULSION SYSTEM:TRACTION BATTERY","mfr":"Kia America, Inc.","reported":"2023-03-29","owner_notified":"2023-08-18","units":2689,"summary":"Kia America, Inc. (Kia) is recalling certain 2015-2019 Soul EV vehicles equipped with an E400 battery.  The high-voltage battery pack may experience an electrical short-circuit while driving.","consequence":"A battery electrical short-circuit increases the risk of a fire.","remedy":"Dealers will update and/or replace the battery management system and software, as necessary, free of charge.  The new software will illuminate the EV warning light, limit charging capacity, and reduce vehicle power if abnormal voltage is detected.  If this occurs, the battery will be replaced, free of charge.  Owner notification letters were mailed August 18, 2023.  Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542.  Kia's number for this recall is SC267.","notes":"Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov.","park_outside":false,"do_not_drive":false,"mfr_campaign":"SC267","initiated_by":"MFR","variants":["bev"],"severity":"critical"},{"campaign":"22V031000","component":"AIR BAGS","mfr":"Kia Motors America","reported":"2022-01-25","owner_notified":"2022-03-21","units":410619,"summary":"Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Sedona, Soul, Soul EV, 2017-2018 Forte, and 2017 Forte Koup vehicles.  The Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) cover may contact a memory chip on the printed circuit board and damage the electrical circuit.  Circuit damage may result in deactivated air bags that will not deploy in a crash.","consequence":"Air bags that do not deploy as intended can increase the risk of injury in a crash.","remedy":"Dealers will inspect the ACU, and either update the software or replace the unit, as necessary.  Repairs will be performed free of charge.  Owner notification letters were mailed March 21, 2022.  Owners may contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542.  Kia's number for this recall is SC226.","notes":"Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov.","park_outside":false,"do_not_drive":false,"mfr_campaign":"SC226","initiated_by":"MFR","variants":[],"severity":"high"}],"recall_count":3,"critical_count":1,"park_outside":false,"do_not_drive":false,"score":74,"grade":"C","complaints":{"count":216,"crash":15,"fire":14,"injured":12,"deaths":1,"comps":[["Engine",136],["Power Train",32],["Unspecified",30],["Electrical System",22],["Air Bags",11],["Fuel/Propulsion System",11]],"by_year":{"2018":9,"2019":21,"2020":15,"2021":31,"2022":30,"2023":29,"2024":29,"2025":32,"2026":20},"excerpts":[["2023-11-13","Electrical System","The contact owns a 2018 Kia Soul EV. The contact stated that the electrical system had experienced power fluctuations, which reduced the charging capacity of the battery to only 8 percent. The EV warning light remained illuminated. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The contact was informed that the vehic\u2026"],["2023-08-09","Power Train","This is for 2018 Kia Soul EV. I stopped, placed the car in park and got out. Car then rolled down a hill with no one in the car. Causing an accident."],["2023-05-31","Electrical System","My 2018 kia soul EV has had a significantly decreased range, inconsistent charging, and a check EV light illuminating periodically. All of these are symptoms of the recall. Kia is not only not giving a timeline to diagnose and repair the problem, they are also charging me a \"diagnostic\" fee for the recall. I cannot jus\u2026"]]},"investigations":[{"action":"RQ23005","component":"POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:INTERNAL:PARK PAWL","opened":"2023-09-10","closed":"2024-01-16","campaign":"23V724","subject":"Vehicle Rollaway","summary":"On July 2, 2020, Kia America Inc. (Kia) filed safety recall 20V-389 for model year (MY) 2015-2016 Kia Soul EV vehicles. This recall was in response to allegations of unintended vehicle movement while in Park and provided updated electronic control unit software for the electronic parking brake logic as the remedy. The updated logic, which was included during production for MY 2017-2019 Kia Soul EV vehicles, automatically activates the electronic parking brake when the vehicle is powered off while the gear shift lever is in the Park position. On September 10, 2023, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened a Recall Query (RQ23-005) to investigate allegations of unintended vehicle movem"},{"action":"DP22005","component":"ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:PROPULSION SYSTEM","opened":"2023-01-27","closed":"2023-08-07","campaign":"22V063000","subject":"Pedestrian alert sounds","summary":"NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matt"}],"ncap":[{"desc":"SUV FWD","overall":5,"frontal":5,"side":5,"rollover":4,"rollover_risk":0.147,"seats":5,"fcw":"Optional","ldw":"Optional","aeb":"No","esc":"","backup_cam":"","variant":null}],"popularity":66,"headline":{"range":111,"mpg":28,"ncap":5,"complaints":216},"presskit_trims":[],"generated_at":"2026-09-11 05:01 UTC","sources":["EPA fueleconomy.gov","NHTSA recalls","NHTSA complaints","NHTSA NCAP","NHTSA investigations"]}