Compare the2024 Volkswagen TaosVS 2024 Kia Soul

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

Safety

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Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Taos deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Taos’ side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Soul’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

The Taos has a standard Automatic Post-Collision Braking System, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Soul doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Taos SEL has standard Maneuver Braking that use rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. The Soul doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

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

The Taos has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. A system to reveal vehicles in the Soul’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Taos has standard Rear Traffic Alert and automatically engage the brakes. Kia charges extra for Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning on the Soul.

Compared to metal, the Taos’ 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 Taos has standard Car-Net, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to 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 Taos 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, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras 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 Volkswagen Taos is safer than the Kia Soul:

	Taos	Soul
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	224	324
Chest Compression	.7 inches	2 inches
Neck Stress	135 lbs.	160 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 Volkswagen Taos is safer than the Kia Soul:

	Taos	Soul
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	111	142
Chest Movement	.6 inches	1 inches
Abdominal Force	115 lbs.	259 lbs.
Hip Force	394 lbs.	490 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	393	422
Spine Acceleration	69 G’s	73 G’s
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	3 Stars
Max Damage Depth	12 inches	13 inches
Spine Acceleration	46 G’s	46 G’s
Hip Force	939 lbs.	1090 lbs.

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

Warranty

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

Volkswagen pays for scheduled maintenance on the Taos for 2 years and 20,000 miles. Volkswagen will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Soul.

Engine

The Taos’ 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 11 more horsepower (158 vs. 147) and 52 lbs.-ft. more torque (184 vs. 132) than the Soul’s 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Car and Driver the Volkswagen Taos is faster than the Kia Soul:

	Taos	Soul
Zero to 60 MPH	7.4 sec	8 sec
Zero to 100 MPH	21.5 sec	24.7 sec
Quarter Mile	15.8 sec	16.4 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	87 MPH	86 MPH
Top Speed	130 MPH	120 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Taos FWD gets better fuel mileage than the Soul 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder (28 city/36 hwy vs. 27 city/33 hwy).

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Taos’ brake rotors are larger than those on the Soul:

	Taos	Soul
Front Rotors	12.3 inches	11 inches
Rear Rotors	10.7 inches	10.3 inches

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Taos has larger standard tires than the Soul (215/50R18 vs. 205/60R16).

The Taos S’ standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Soul LX/S’ standard 60 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Taos S has standard 17-inch wheels. Smaller 16-inch wheels are standard on the Soul LX/S. The Taos 4Motion’s optional 19-inch wheels are larger than the 18-inch wheels on the Soul GT-Line.

Suspension and Handling

For superior ride and handling, the Taos 4Motion 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 Taos 4Motion has front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Taos 4Motion flat and controlled during cornering. The Soul’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The Taos has vehicle speed sensitive 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.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Taos’ wheelbase is 3.1 inches longer than on the Soul (105.5 inches vs. 102.4 inches).

Passenger Space

The Taos has .8 inches more front headroom, 1 inch more front shoulder room, .3 inches more rear headroom and .5 inches more rear shoulder room than the Soul.

Cargo Capacity

The Taos has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Soul with its rear seat up (27.9 vs. 24.2 cubic feet). The Taos has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Soul with its rear seat folded (65.9 vs. 62.1 cubic feet).

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Taos easier. The Taos’ cargo hatch lift-over height is 27 inches, while the Soul’s liftover is 29.8 inches.

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

	Taos	Soul
Length to seat (2nd/1st)	34.3”/65.2”	26”/59”
Max Width	48.5”	45.6”
Min Width	40”	41.5”
Height	37”	33”

Ergonomics

The Taos’ 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 Taos’ front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, 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.

On a hot day the Taos’ 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 Taos’ rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Soul’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are optional on the Taos to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Soul doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

The Taos’ LED headlights produce a whiter, brighter light (up to 3x) using five times less power than the Soul’s standard halogen headlights. LED lights also light instantly and last over twenty times longer than halogen.

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

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the Taos SE Black/SEL has standard cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Soul doesn’t offer cornering lights. The Taos SE Black/SEL also has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Taos SEL AWD keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Soul doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

On extremely cold winter days, the Taos’ standard heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the vehicle heater warms up. The Soul doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

Both the Taos and the Soul offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the Taos offers optional rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The Soul doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

Recommendations

The Volkswagen Taos outsold the Kia Soul by 1283 units during 2022.