The Kia of today is very different from the Kia of 15 years ago, and worlds apart from the Kia of the ’90s. But it wouldn’t have reached these heights if not for the plucky, quirky Soul, which staked the brand’s unique identity for the first time. No longer was Kia merely a low-cost, lower quality alternative to Toyota and Honda; with the Soul, it had something you couldn’t find anywhere else. And it’s with that legacy that the boxy hatchback often associated with hamsters and Stormtroopers will bow out after the 2025 model year.
Yes, Kia has announced that the Soul will be retired once the current crop is sold through. The nameplate launched in 2008, a time when there was genuine enthusiasm surrounding small cars for the first time in a very long time in this country. That had a lot to do with post-recessions doldrums, of course, but the Soul was appealing because it was a necessary reminder that cheap transportation needn’t be bland, undesirable, or cramped.
Like the Honda Fit, the Soul could swallow more cargo than you’d think. And of course, the ad campaigns went a long way to establish the car’s optimistic vibe in the psyche of the American public, buoyed by a posse of streetwise hamsters. I genuinely don’t know what’s more shocking in this spot from 2010: the CGI rodents dunking basketballs like they’re in NBA Street, or the sub-$14K starting price of the first-gen model.
The Soul also represented a much-needed glow-up for Kia (and Hyundai’s) design in the late-aughts, as one of the first products shaped under the influence of Peter Schreyer, who left the Volkswagen Group for the Korean automakers in 2006. From here on, things would only go up.
The Soul exits the market now in its third iteration. Kia noted in a send-off release today that over the years, its appeal expanded beyond the younger buyers it was originally designed for, attracting “an older demographic that Kia quickly realized were often people of the same spirit.” Not unlike the Honda Element, the Soul found that inventive design transcends generations. Its departure leaves the K4 as the brand’s cheapest entry point, starting at $23,185.
Got a tip? Send us a note: tips@thedrive.com
Backed by a decade of covering cars and consumer tech, Adam Ismail is a Senior Editor at The Drive, focused on curating and producing the site’s slate of daily stories.
