Compare the2022 Kia SoulVS 2022 MINI Countryman

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Kia Soul are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The MINI Countryman doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Soul are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Countryman doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety tests front crash prevention systems. With a score of 6 points, IIHS rates the Forward Collision Avoidance Assist optional in the Soul as “Superior.” The Countryman scores only 3 points and is rated only “Advanced.”

The Soul’s optional blind spot warning system uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. The Countryman doesn’t offer a system to reveal objects in the driver’s blind spots.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Soul’s optional cross-path warning system uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. The Countryman doesn’t offer a cross-path warning system.

Both the Soul and the Countryman have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available lane departure warning systems and driver alert monitors.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, with its optional vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, with its optional vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Soul the rating of “Top Pick” for 2021, a rating granted to only 121 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Countryman last would have qualified as a “Top Pick” in 2017.

The Soul comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Countryman’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Soul 6 years and 50,000 miles longer than MINI covers the Countryman. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Countryman ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 7 times as many Kia dealers as there are MINI dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Soul’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Soul first among small suvs in their 2020 Initial Quality Study. The Countryman isn’t in the top three.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2020 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than MINI vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in initial quality, above the industry average. With 38 more problems per 100 vehicles, MINI is ranked 16th, below the industry average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than MINI vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia third in reliability, above the industry average. With 28 more problems per 100 vehicles, MINI is ranked 17th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Kia vehicles are more reliable than MINI vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Kia 8 places higher in reliability than MINI.

As tested in Motor Trend the Kia Soul is faster than the MINI Countryman:

On the EPA test cycle the Soul gets better fuel mileage than the Countryman FWD:

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Kia Soul higher (5 to 7 out of 10) than the MINI Countryman (3 to 7). This means the Soul produces up to 24.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Countryman every 15,000 miles.

The Soul has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Countryman doesn’t offer a CVT.

The Soul stops much shorter than the Countryman:

For better traction, the Soul X-Line/GT-Line/Turbo’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Countryman (235/45R18 vs. 225/55R17).

The Soul X-Line handles at .91 G’s, while the Countryman S pulls only .88 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Soul Turbo executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.5 seconds quicker than the Countryman ALL4 (26.8 seconds @ .66 average G’s vs. 28.3 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Soul’s turning circle is 2.6 feet tighter than the Countryman’s (34.8 feet vs. 37.4 feet).

The Kia Soul may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 500 to 750 pounds less than the MINI Countryman.

The Soul is 4.5 inches shorter than the Countryman, making the Soul easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Soul has 5.3 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Countryman (102.2 vs. 96.9).

The Soul has .7 inches more front legroom, 3.6 inches more front shoulder room, 1.2 inches more rear headroom, 1.2 inches more rear legroom and 9.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the Countryman.

The Soul has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Countryman with its rear seat up (24.2 vs. 17.6 cubic feet). The Soul has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Countryman with its rear seat folded (62.1 vs. 47.6 cubic feet).

The Soul offers a remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The Countryman doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Soul has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Countryman only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Soul’s available headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Countryman’s headlights are rated “Marginal” to “Poor.”

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Soul has standard extendable sun visors. The Countryman doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Insurance will cost less for the Soul owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Soul will cost $425 less than the Countryman over a five-year period.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Soul is less expensive to operate than the Countryman because typical repairs cost less on the Soul than the Countryman, including $106 less for a water pump, $193 less for a muffler, $41 less for front brake pads, $92 less for a starter, $112 less for a fuel pump, $192 less for front struts and $83 less for a timing belt/chain.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Kia Soul will be $9490 to $11700 less than for the MINI Countryman.