In a new video I reviewed the 2020 Kia Soul (embedded below). In it, I compare it heavily against the Honda Civic, a car that I see as the “go to” commuter car option. A commenter complained that the Civic and the Soul don’t compete. I disagree. But I was curious what other enthusiasts thought. Kia Soul owners I personally know bought them as commuter cars, so I see the comparison as appropriate and the price is also comparable in mid and upper trims.
Here’s my take: For the exact same price as the 2020 Kia Soul X-Line I tested, you can get a 2019 Honda Civic Sport 4-door Hatchback with 180hp (more), 40mpg (better), Honda Sensing (forward collision, which the X-Line doesn’t have) and rear independent suspension (Soul has torsion beam.) The Soul is smaller, I will give it that.
Technically, because of size and weird-factor, the Soul competes with other odd cars like the CH-R (anyone buying those?), Honda Fit/HRV, etc. But once you move out of the bargain basement $17,000 models, and up to the $22,500 X-Line — especially if you’re buying it as a commuter car — why wouldn’t someone cross-shop the Soul with Civic?
Thoughts?