Compare the2023 Honda HR-VVS 2023 Kia Soul

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Honda HR-V have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision. The Kia Soul doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Honda HR-V has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Soul doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The HR-V EX-L has a standard Low Speed Braking Control that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Soul doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

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

The HR-V’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 HR-V has standard HondaLink Assist, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to 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 HR-V and the Soul have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, 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, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the HR-V its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 29 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Soul has not been fully tested, yet.

The HR-V’s 5 year corrosion warranty has no mileage limitations, but the corrosion warranty on the Soul runs out after 100,000 miles.

Honda pays for scheduled maintenance on the HR-V for 2 years and 24,000 miles. Honda will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Soul.

There are over 37 percent more Honda dealers than there are Kia dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the HR-V’s warranty.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the HR-V’s reliability 24 points higher than the Soul.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Kia vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 4 places higher in reliability than Kia.

The HR-V’s 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 11 more horsepower (158 vs. 147) and 6 lbs.-ft. more torque (138 vs. 132) than the Soul’s 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder.

The HR-V has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Soul doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

For better stopping power the HR-V’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Soul:

For better traction, the HR-V has larger standard tires than the Soul (215/60R17 vs. 205/60R16).

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the HR-V has standard 17-inch wheels. Smaller 16-inch wheels are standard on the Soul LX/S.

For superior ride and handling, the Honda HR-V 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 rear torsion beam axle, with a semi-independent rear suspension.

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

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the HR-V’s wheelbase is 2.1 inches longer than on the Soul (104.5 inches vs. 102.4 inches).

The HR-V uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Soul doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The HR-V has .8 inches more front legroom, .5 inches more front hip room, 1.1 inches more front shoulder room and .5 inches more rear shoulder room than the Soul.

The HR-V’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Soul has a lever-type parking brake that has to be strenuously raised to engage properly. It has to be lifted up more and a button depressed to release it.

The HR-V’s standard driver’s power window opens or closes with one touch of the switch, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths. The Soul’s power window switch has to be held the entire time to close it fully. The HR-V Sport/EX-L’s front power windows open fully with one touch of the switches, and its driver’s window also automatically closes.

On a hot day the HR-V’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Soul can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The HR-V’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.

Consumer Reports rated the HR-V’s headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the Soul’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

Insurance will cost less for the HR-V owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the HR-V will cost $330 less than the Soul over a five-year period.

The HR-V will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the HR-V will retain 50.77% to 52.43% of its original price after five years, while the Soul only retains 46.79% to 50.48%.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Honda HR-V and the Kia Soul, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Honda HR-V outsold the Kia Soul by almost two to one during 2022.