I just bought a new KIA. Does that make me UN-american?

[politicat]

63. If nothing else, the puns on the model name are an added bonus.

To be honest, I have never worked on mine -- our dealer is close and very good, and while I'm mechanically inclined, I am done working on machinery that can squish me. (I rebuild sewing machines.)

Drive a few model years, if possible. The one thing that's irritating about the Soul is the GIANT rear A pillars You have to set the mirrors and you have to use all three, because those pillars can make ginormous blind spots. Some model years have bigger pillars than others. I rented a 2014 (I think) at one point, and I disliked it intensely because those pillars felt huge compared to mine. But I was also driving in a city that has notoriously bad traffic, horrible urban stroad design, and stupid-aggressive drivers, so I wasn't in a great mood anyway and even more on edge because I was in a rental.

I consider the Soul superior to a Cruiser or an HHR. I've had experience with both, and really disliked both. I hated the HHR far more than the Cruiser, though. (Stay far away from the HHR. Transmission problems, and even when the transmission is working right, it still howls. So much road noise with the HHR. :eyeroll: ) The Soul has a tighter turning radius than the Cruiser, so it turns and parallel parks very well. They're about equally thrifty, but the Soul has pretty good pickup and gearing ratio for a small utility car, so it gets out of its own way very well.

One other oddity on the Soul: If I keep the fuel tank at or above half, I run about 33 MPG on highway, and 31 in city. If I let it go down to a quarter, I lose at least one on both. So in the interest of efficiency and because tornadoes and flash floods and wildfire are part of my world, I keep the tank above half. Right now, with my driving habits and gas prices, that means about $12 every two weeks.

And if you don't like AC, the Soul might not be the car for you. It drives MUCH better with the windows up. If the windows are down, it tends to buffet. AC is standard, but if you like 4x60, either look for one with a sunroof/moonroof, or look at another car. I prefer windows up, so it's not an issue for me, but my best friend loves the wind in her hair, and thus hates my car.