Used 2018 Kia Soul Consumer Reviews
Used Soul for sale
Why did I wait so long?
andrew betancourt, 01/15/2019
2018 Kia Soul 4dr Wagon (1.6L 4cyl 6M)
5 of 6 people found this review helpful
I was in need of another Scion, however the company stopped making them. I went to a Kia dealer and he gave me the keys to a car parked near the office and said to try it with a test run. I did for 10 minutes and knew that this was. I returned to the office and said, 'let's do it.' I paid cash for the car, the price was great and I am truly satisfied. As good as and much better than my Scion XB, I am glad I bought the Kia Soul.
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Awesome Kia Soul EX (2.0L)
Kia Soul 2018, 06/16/2021
2018 Kia Soul + 4dr Wagon (2.0L 4cyl 6A)
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
Hi Everyone, I personally read a lot of reviews for many different cars on edmonds.com and really appreciate all the people who shared their experiences. The Kia Soul 2018 EX model year I have now is my second Kia Soul and my 4th car. The one before was a Kia Soul 2014 Base. Both of those Kia Souls I bought 1 year used. In 2012, one friend of mine helped me move a normal size Fridge, yes Fridge, in his Kia Soul. That was crazy because this car doesn't look big from the outside. I really liked the option of having a small car but being able to move something big like a Fridge. But I wouldn't say I liked the ride and comfort on those 1st generation Kia Souls (production 2008-2013). I ended up buying year used Kia Soul Base 1.6L engine in 2015 (2nd generation). I drove that car all the way to 2019 (4 years). I loved everything in that car, but...1.6L engine was not my favourite, and I wanted things like a panorama moonroof, harman/kardon stereo system, ventilated seats and safety futures of the 2018 model year. Both models (2014 with 1.6L engine and 2018 with 2.0L engine) have the same fuel consumption. I am not taking the consumption readings from the trip computer (which is usually off by 0.5l. I am using an application to track all the things happening with the car, and the average fuel consumption after 44,800km (28,000 miles) is 8.8L/100km (or 26.7MPG). I had to say that 70 to 80% of my driving is in Toronto (yes, Canada, that is why the metric system used). I have friends admitting that even if they are amazed at how much good stuff Kia put inside this 2018 Soul, they will never buy one, just because the brand does not show that they cool. That is fine by me; I hope that will keep the Kia price down for current and future products. One of my friends bought a 2020 VW, which is more than 2 times expensive than my Soul and every time he sat in my car and listened to music, he became upset that he could not add a premium stereo system to his car; the price was going crazy.
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2018 Kia Soul for sale near you
Showing 3 of 53 listings
- Base WagonMSRP: $11,99016 mi away
- + WagonMSRP: $13,29744 mi away
- ! WagonMSRP: $13,998In-stock online
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"A Little Bit of Soul"
Tedibearjeff, 08/28/2020
2018 Kia Soul + 4dr Wagon (2.0L 4cyl 6A)
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
The Soul model I purchased was a used rental car in the "plus" variety. The two-liter engine has plenty of pick-up, and a firm but, also, smooth ride. There is a button to select eco, normal, or sport mode driving, that, I believe, changes the engine response and efficiency. I'm using the 'normal' drive mode right now for around town. The non-electric fabric seats in my vehicle are comfortable and mult adjustable, and cargo room with the rear seats folded is spacious. The basics of the entertainment system with UVO, apple car play, android auto, and satellite radio provide enough sound volume and options (except for vehicle security system) , for most drivers even if the audio is of more average quality. It has an auto headlight feature, as well. You will want to have two keys (or two keyfobs) in case one is lost. Being a rental car, only one key with fob is included. An additional keyfob, as I understand it, needs to be programmed by either a dealer or a locksmith (a $150-$300.00 additional cost) which is a 'negative' compared with my '01 Frontier SC with full security system, where one working keyfob was all that was needed to program an additional one (I lost one in a karaoke bar one night). I like that Kia put an AGM battery in the engine compartment (vs typical lead-acid), so that the vehicle can withstand longer periods of non-use without needing a charge or jump-start. All-in-all, it seems to do everything well for around town driving, and I could see that doing an occasional two hundred mile one-way trip in a Kia Soul + would not be a problem.
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Great Size—Poor Reliability
AmbassadorSoval, 03/26/2023
2018 Kia Soul + 4dr Wagon (2.0L 4cyl 6A)
4 of 5 people found this review helpful
I bought my Kia Soul+ brand new in 2018 with 300 miles in the odometer. I wanted something cheap and roomy; this car fits the bill. You can transport a surprising amount of things with the rear seats down. There is also plenty of headspace in both the front and back seat. I’m very happy with the practicality of the car. It drives like crap. The engine is not refined, and I can definitely feel the transmission shifts. It has to go into 5th gear to go up even small hills and drives even worse if it’s windy. I realize that is because it is not aerodynamic, but I still hoped for a better driving experience. Be prepared to get 22mpg and drive in 5th gear if driving into a strong headwind at freeway speeds. I have a long, mostly highway commute, and I’ve come to realize this car does not excel at freeway driving. It feels much more at home in city driving. There is quite a bit of road and wind noise too although I found the stereo system to be quite good. Gas mileage is poor for a small car like this. I average 27mpg on the highway in the summer and 25mph on the highway in the winter. My biggest issue is the reliability of this engine. I believe the engine was poorly designed. I reached 145,000 miles, and it started using copious amounts of oil. I have to add about 1.5 quarts every 1,000 miles. When I asked the dealership what can be done about it, they said it would require an engine replacement. Now, I am the original owner and have taken care of it pursuant to the recommendations in the owner’s manual. Almost all my driving is done on the freeway. While I have put a lot of miles on the engine, I expected it to last longer than this. In my ownership of the car, I have replaced the tires twice at about 70,000 miles and 140,000 miles. I replaced a failed wheel bearing at 150,000 miles. I replaced a brake caliper at 125,000 miles and all four rotors and pads at about 95,000 miles. There were two recalls so far, one relating to an engine knocking system and one for the brake system. I replaced the original battery at 75,000 miles. Besides the poor driving experience, the other thing that drives me bonkers is the rattling noise in the dash. That started in 2020. The dash rattles when going over bumps or rough roads. The dealer wanted $600 to replace some sort of plastic part in the dash that would have required removing the dash. I elected not to do that, and turning up the music loud enough will drown out the rattling noise.
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Decent car, horrible manufacturer support
Old Engineer, 11/25/2023
2018 Kia Soul ! 4dr Wagon (1.6L 4cyl Turbo 7AM)
8 of 12 people found this review helpful
We’ve had a 2018 Kia Soul Exclaim, purchased Certified Pre Owned from a dealer in San Jose, CA 39 months old, with 10,000 miles. Nice car. Comfortable, capable, was just what my wife of 40 years wanted (we aren’t kids). She didn’t care about the turbo - we’re old, and I’ve owned Shelby Mustangs and Corvettes and Trans Ams and so on while we’ve been married, but are past that now. So far, so good. But on 1 October 2023, when it was 71 months old and had 33k miles on it (and ~40% of the tread still on the factory tires - my wife isn’t a hot rodder), the DCT wouldn’t go into R so she could go to the supermarket. Funny - we had come home from church, parked it in the driveway instead of its usual place in the garage next to my Mercedes, and had lunch. During which we talked about it being nearly three years since we bought it, and how well it had worked. We took it on the long drives, over said Mercedes E-class, because she drives on those and it’s comfortable for both of us. I ended up calling the dealership near us (45 miles away) and they said they had about 20 failed Kias in their holding lot and couldn’t even look at the car for over a week. I called around (this is a smaller dealership in a farming town of about 50k people) - same story. So I said I’d have it towed, and if they could get to it earlier it would be appreciated. My wife still works, and needed it to get to her office. Calling the Kia CPO service phone number, I was told that the road service was unavailable after the car was 36 months old, and it would be $450(!!!) to tow it 45 miles. Methought something may be rotten in the State of Denmark. Or at least Korea. Once the dealer got through their backlog of blown engines and transmissions that had come in before us, I was told that it would be three weeks for Kia CPO to decide whether they would cover it under the 10/100k powertrain “warranty.” Here’s where I found out that Kia don’t warrant their cars - the lay off the risk to a dealership development consultant called JM&A. JM&A work from the premise that all customers are to be fleeced and treated as criminals. They wanted a $300 work order to examine the car for signs of abuse. 33k miles, original tires, always serviced at the dealership, treated like a BMW/Mercedes (change the coolant and brake fluid every 24 months, air filters annually, oil and filter every 3-4 months, at the Hyundai dealer in our town - same company, both dealerships said same engine/trans, no 90 mile round trip for service, JM&A still tried to weasel out. Fast forward three weeks: we’re told they’re going to have the car done on Friday (only 7 weeks at the dealership now). Then, with much fear and trepidation, the sales writer calls to say that Kia America had shipped the WRONG BLOODY TRANSMISSION. The dealership was waiting for the right one to show up. Maybe a week, then they could try to slot it back into their scheduled of failed and recalled Kia vehicles. Such fun. My wife’s father is still with us, but in his middle 80s. Our daughter had surgery scheduled. Family Thanksgiving dinner is in the San Francisco East Bay. Still no firm date for the car to be back. I’m driving a 30 year old GMC pickup (which, ironically, still has its original and unmolested 4L60 transmission) at 12 MPG, and my wife is driving a Mercedes E-class that she dislikes. Such fun. So, the night before Thanksgiving, we solved our Kia problems. We went to the MB dealer in Rocklin, CA, and bought her a CPO GLC 300. She’s on her way to see her Dad and check on our daughter in it, and it gets the same mileage as her Kia. It’s far more comfortable, and I trust it. I’ve driven BMWs and MBs for several years. The Kia Soul replaced a 15 year old BMW X3 with 200k miles on it - only time she was “stranded” was when the starter went out at around 170k, and our independent shop had it running the next day. I’ve yet to hear from anyone at Kia America who seems to think two months is an unacceptable service window. They all sound like this is normal, expected, and I’m unreasonable for wanting the car back Still no firm date to have it back. I’m paying to insure it and the “new” Mercedes, but my experience is that BMW, MB, Saab, Ford, Chevrolet, Pontiac, Honda (all of which we’ve owned over the years) care about their reputations and try to take care of their customers. Kia’s observed business model is to care about their customer’s money, but not give an airborne rodent’s rectum about the people or their needs - like getting to work, shopping, taking care of family… I asked about a loaner or rental, since this was a long-term problem, and the laughter from both Customer (Dis)Service at Kia America and at their dealer still rings in my ears, 8 weeks later. Nicely packaged car, which we would have given five stars to a couple of months ago. Wretched customer service, which matters. If you want better manufacturer support, I recommend a nice, clean, low-mileage 1990 Yugo. One of these days they’ll get the right transmission - I think they’re mining the aluminium for one now - and we’ll be able to replace some of the money spent on the CPO Mercedes-Benz. Fortunately we aren’t poor, and had alternatives. But not everyone can buy a Mercedes to “tide them over” while Kia and their dealer muck about for months. If you get a good one, great! But if not, hang on. If we didn’t have an extra pickup hanging about and I’d had to rent a car on my own, I’d be our about $600 a week (with the recommended CDW and PAI insurances) at a screaming good rate from Avis, accorded to me because I’m retired from a huge multinational and still get Corporate perks. Kia and their dealer’s attitude - well, I could always walk. (I’m old, need a hip replacement, can barely make it across my living room some days, and the literally told me if I didn’t want to pay for a rental car I could always walk, or use Lyft/Uber). Kia - appealing cars that are terrific when they run well, but if you’re that unlucky punter who gets a lemon, saints preserve you.
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