2017 Kia Soul ! Turbo – All Photos by Randy Stern

A Victory & Reseda review of the 2017 Kia Soul…with a turbocharger!

From the onset, the Kia Soul was designed to be a cool car.

Consider the familiar box shape behind the engine compartment. Also, consider the quirks in the design that has attracted an average of 10,000 customers each month. It was once the best selling Kia model in its lineup, yet it maintains being one of the top sellers of the brand. After seven-plus years of it being in the market, we can certainly call this a success.

What makes the Kia Soul a success? It is simply because it is cool, hip and quirky? That certainly helps. Is it because it is practical and fun? That helps, also.

Maybe it’s the Hamstars? Those adult-sized hamsters that have been selling the Kia Soul in its commercials might be a huge factor, but I can certainly imagine that they helped in drawing consumers to this subcompact crossover.

No matter which factor is key in the Soul’s success, there are measurements that confirm its popularity among its diverse group of owners.

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2010 Kia Soul +. All photos by Randy Stern

A Victory & Reseda “Throwback Review” of the 2010 Kia Soul

So, what is “cool?”

It’s an objective definition that pervades actual agreement amongst us. It’s not at all absolute as the concept of “cool” is fluid. What was cool ten or so years ago isn’t cool now. And, so forth…

I attempted to ask the question on Facebook to some limited responses. Again, the question went nowhere – just like arguing over one’s coolness over another.

Then, we add the word “hip.” What is “hip?” It was a Ska song from about 30 years ago, but that’s not the right answer for this purpose. Would it be better if I asked whether “hip” is another level of “cool?” That would confuse everyone reading this blog…

“Hip” and “cool” are two objective words being tossed around the automotive world to find a way to sell automobiles to the younger crowd. Think “Scion” for a moment. That’s Toyota’s great idea to sell its most non-mainstream vehicles through a different brand while still sharing space at the local Toyota dealer. The Honda Element was once considered “cool” and “hip” before it became the darlings of the urban home rehabber set.

One thing I’ve noticed about these “cool” and “hip” conveyances: Not a lot of people aged 18-30 are driving them. Owners of these vehicles tend to be older – much older. So, how do you sell these “cool” and “hip” automobiles to the younger, undergraduate or working-straight-out-of-high-school set?

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