Compare the2023 Hyundai KonaVS 2023 Kia Soul

Safety
Warranty
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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The Kona offers all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Soul doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The Kona’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the Soul.

The Kona has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Soul’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Kona has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Rear cross-path warning costs extra on the Soul.

Compared to metal, the Kona’s plastic fuel tank can withstand harder, more intrusive impacts without leaking; this decreases the possibility of fire. The Kia Soul has a metal gas tank.

The Kona SEL/N Line/Limited has standard Blue Link, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to get turn-by-turn driving directions, remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Soul doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the Kona and the Soul have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors and available rear parking sensors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Hyundai Kona is safer than the Kia Soul:

	Kona	Soul
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	205	253
Neck Injury Risk	20%	26%
Leg Forces (l/r)	29/232 lbs.	49/286 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	217	324
Chest Compression	.6 inches	2 inches
Neck Injury Risk	37%	39%
Neck Compression	70 lbs.	86 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	59/27 lbs.	237/154 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Hyundai Kona is safer than the Kia Soul:

	Kona	Soul
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	109	142
Chest Movement	.8 inches	1 inches
Abdominal Force	246 lbs.	259 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	326	422
Spine Acceleration	66 G’s	73 G’s
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	3 Stars
HIC	196	322
Spine Acceleration	34 G’s	46 G’s
Hip Force	744 lbs.	1090 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

The Kona’s corrosion warranty is 2 years and unlimited miles longer than the Soul’s (7/unlimited vs. 5/100,000).

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Kona for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Hyundai will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Soul.

Engine

The Kona N Line/Limited’s standard 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder produces 48 more horsepower (195 vs. 147) and 63 lbs.-ft. more torque (195 vs. 132) than the Soul’s 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Car and Driver the Kona N Line/Limited 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Kia Soul:

	Kona	Soul
Zero to 60 MPH	7.3 sec	8 sec
Zero to 100 MPH	19.7 sec	24.7 sec
5 to 60 MPH Rolling Start	7.6 sec	8.2 sec
Quarter Mile	15.7 sec	16.4 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	90 MPH	86 MPH
Top Speed	130 MPH	120 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Kona gets better mileage than the Soul:

			MPG
Kona
	FWD	2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	30 city/35 hwy
		1.6 turbo 4-cyl.	29 city/35 hwy
Soul
	FWD	EX 2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	29 city/35 hwy
		2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	28 city/33 hwy

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Kona AWD/1.6T’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Soul:

	Kona AWD/1.6T	Soul
Front Rotors	12 inches	11 inches
Rear Rotors	11.2 inches	10.3 inches

Suspension and Handling

For superior ride and handling, the Kona AWD has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Kia Soul has a solid rear axle, with a non-independent rear suspension.

The Kona AWD has front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Kona AWD flat and controlled during cornering. The Soul’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The Kona has variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Soul doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Kona SEL AWD handles at .88 G’s, while the Soul GT-Line pulls only .85 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Kona executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Soul (26.9 seconds @ .65 average G’s vs. 27.5 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

Passenger Space

The Kona has .2 inches more front headroom and .4 inches more front legroom than the Soul.

The front step up height for the Kona is .2 inches lower than the Soul (16” vs. 16.2”). The Kona’s rear step up height is 1.3 inches lower than the Soul’s (16.1” vs. 17.4”).

Cargo Capacity

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Kona easier. The Kona’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 27.5 inches, while the Soul’s liftover is 29.8 inches.

The Kona’s cargo area is larger than the Soul’s in almost every dimension:

	Kona	Soul
Length to seat (2nd/1st)	28.6”/61”	26”/59”
Max Width	48”	45.6”
Min Width	40”	41.5”
Height	30”	33”

Ergonomics

The Kona SEL/N Line/Limted’s front power windows open fully with one touch of the switches, and the driver’s window also automatically closes, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Soul’s power window switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully. Only its driver’s window opens automatically.

The Kona Limited’s standard wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically according to the amount of rainfall on the windshield. The Soul’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

In addition to a parabolic reflector, optical-grade lenses in the Kona’s standard projector headlights precisely focus the beam, providing more even illumination of the road for better visibility and a sharp cut-off that prevents blinding oncoming drivers. The sharp cutoff allows the use of a stronger light. The Soul’s uses a simple reflector to direct its standard headlights. The Kona Limited’s LED headlights produce a whiter, brighter light (up to 3x) using five times less power than the Soul’s halogen headlights. LED lights also light instantly and last over twenty times longer than halogen.

The Kona’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Kia only offers heated mirrors on the Soul EX/GT-Line.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Kona is less expensive to operate than the Soul because it costs $155 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Kona than the Soul, including $35 less for front brake pads, $7 less for a starter, $124 less for fuel injection, $128 less for a timing belt/chain and $300 less for a power steering pump.

Recommendations

The Kona was chosen as a Car and Driver’s “Top Ten” for 2019. The Soul hasn’t been picked since 2018.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Kona as the 2019 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The Soul has never been chosen.

The Hyundai Kona outsold the Kia Soul by 11% during 2022.