Kia Soul EV Maxx could be the ultimate all electric car; New Kia Soul EV Maxx Review & Road Test

This all-electric version is now the only kind of Soul you can buy here in the UK. It costs less than £35,000 and its 64kWh lithium-ion battery delivers up to 280 miles of range, and plugging it into a 100kW DC charger will replenish the battery to 80% in just 54mins, so could this be the all electric car we have all been waiting for?
Range could well be the deciding factor for customers choosing between the ever-increasing number of compact rivals. Neither the popular Nissan Leaf or Renault Zoe can match the maximum range of the Soul EV, while the Hyundai Ioniq is a capable contender, but is still unable to match the Soul for distance covered on a single charge. A Volkswagen ID.3 Life Pro Performance version is similarly priced, while you'll save around £5,000 if you opt for the Hyundai Kona Electric, although again neither are able to match the Soul EV for range. The Soul is great to drive, it feels agile in the city, yet comfortable and supremely quiet on a motorway. There’s a choice of driving modes, along with regenerative braking, so you could find that you rarely use the brake pedal.
There’s only one trim level: a lavishly equipped Maxx model, which features the likes of 17-inch alloy wheels, a Harman Kardon premium sound system, 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system, leather seats and full LED headlights. Only a relatively small boot and expensive finance deals prevent the Kia Soul EV from finishing top of the class in the electric car segment. The Kia e-Niro is more practical, but the Soul EV is more interesting and helps to move the electric car industry to the next level.The Kia Soul EV Maxx should retain at least 50% of its value after three years or 36,000 miles, so if you do choose to buy outright you’ll be looking at around £18,000 in depreciation over a typical 36-month period of ownership. However, this should be partly offset by the lower day-to-day running costs.
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[@maureenandjohnwhite6228]

Thanks AJ a nice down to earth review with excellent close ups and description of what the function of the buttons are. Seriously good when second hand car time comes round

[@Soulboy63]

AJ , you covered so much on this review , the details others have missed .

[@seany108]

Love this guy and his reviews! Always makes me smile and loving the more frequent releases! 👏🏻

[@AJThePlayerYouTubeChannel]

Thanks for the comment really appreciated

[@poundlane1]

Firstly, Great review, no faff just the info you need to know. Had our First Edition since last August, what a car!! White and red, looks like a Stormtrooper from the front. Differences to the Maxx We get a Head up display and wireless charging for your phone. These features were removed on the Maxx to bring it under £35,000 to get the plug in car grant, although you can spec the HUD for an extra £200. Shame about the rear armrest/ski hatch, other territories get this. 10" touch screen is great, shows you how far at a glance on the map you can go with current charge. As you say, Harmon Kardon sound system is great. Car is so plush & quiet, we've named it the Electric Armchair. Always have regen pre-set to 3 , and standard eco mode on. In summer I get nearly 5 or sometimes over 5mkwh, amazing. Summer charging gives over 300 miles on the gauge. Winter due to cold nights, 265-280 miles. Living on the Isle of Wight with general to work trips and running about, I charge it once a week, and it still has nearly 100 miles of juice left. Done a few motorway runs to Swindon, Reading, Brighton & Kingston. No range anxiety. no need to stop & top up. Agreed Marmite looks, but we love it. Just wish the pillar box red with black roof was available when we got ours. Saw one last week and I was jealous. Only colour available at the moment on the Kia site is all white, probably due to the well known worldwide chip shortage. Large 64kwh battery was a great selling point. This car is not a poor mans Tesla. It is amazing what Kia have done with a car that was not designed as an EV. Good work on Kia's part only having one model, saves much of the decision making.

[@AJThePlayerYouTubeChannel]

Absolutely amazing comment thank you so much for all the information and taking the time to put all that together really appreciated

[@cyclist20]

Excellent review. Loved the close ups of the knobs and functions. The trouble with other videos I have watched with car journalists is they assume the viewer has knowledge they may not have. Really useful. thank you.

[@maureenandjohnwhite6228]

Just bought Kia Soul Maxx this review was the one that made my mind up to go electric. Thanks so much for a superb review keep up the good work.

[@adriennebell2839]

Thanks for showing us around the Kia soul EV I'm hooked and going for test drive Wednesday Adrienne

[@sevenpointfive5450]

Those options for driving etc are great

[@agrace2655]

Best kia soul ev review i have seen

[@AJThePlayerYouTubeChannel]

Thanks for the comment really appreciated

[@eamongreen]

Really good review. Mines on order! By the way, the headlight adjustment is not for raising the beam when out driving in the countryside, it's for lowering the beam when you have lots of weight in the back so you don't blind on-coming drivers.

[@richardhaywoodh]

Great down to earth review

[@chrisrebeyka5283]

Great review AJ! We just took possession of the first 2023 Soul EV Limited (long range) here in Canada this week. Thank you for the tip on the trunk bumper cover, actually ordered a custom fit one after I finished your video. Looking forward to many miles of enjoyment with the Soul!

[@seanpeacock5595]

Hopefully it holds upon our winters

[@omerhamad9945]

Great review, make me actually want to buy it, love the humour too

[@AJThePlayerYouTubeChannel]

Thanks for the kind comment very much appreciated

[@rachelarmstrong6258]

This is a brilliant review. My Soul Maxx is being delivered in August, I can't wait to drive it.

[@AJThePlayerYouTubeChannel]

Thank you very much for your kind comment. You are gonna love the car

[@andy5786]

Fantastic Kia ev class nice car great review AJ the player👍

[@denisrousseau9071]

in Canada the Limited version have sunroof and the rear armrest with 2 cup holders and NO VESS!

[@fleecystheking]

Nice review! Interesting how much content is missing from your car. My canadian-spec 2020 Limited has a sunroof, QI charging for my phone, a heads up display, heated & ventilated seats up front and heated seats in the back. It also has a multicolored LED setup for the doors and footwells. It’s also sold for much less money than in the UK. 😊

[@cyclist20]

The UK gets stung for high prices for everything _especially cars. We don’t complain enough!

[@chrisp7839]

Another great thing about this car - heat pump - heating the car doesn’t suck oodles of juice out the battery - hardly has any effect on the range.

[@awc5uk]

I really like the design of this EV and enjoyed test driving it. I just dont get why they made the boot so small. It would be perfect if it was a bit bigger. I guess to differentiate from the Niro in terms of capacity. Just not big enough for a family of four.

[@chrishewson40]

Great review, im currently looking for an electric car around the 30k mark, the MG zs ev se, the Peugeot 208e gt or this one the kia soul maxx ev. This one ticks all the boxes and impresses me more than the other 2, especially the range, looks and space and you mentioned a high driving position?

[@davemanley1311]

Top review I’d love one

[@AJThePlayerYouTubeChannel]

Thanks for the comment appreciated

[@davemanley1311]

@@AJThePlayerKZbinChannel I always enjoy your in depth reviews they are honest and down to earth especially the Kia picanto 2 which I hopefully hope my daughter will choose

[@rodbhar6522]

Some sources say cargo space with seats down is 1339 L. Others say 1735 L or 62.1 cubic feet. I'd like to know which is correct!

[@Trevorfoggia]

The Kia Soul has always been a Marmite car. Personally I love the individuality of the design. I had a diesel Kia Soul (Tempest) about 10 years ago and it was simply brilliant for my daily commute and travelling around workplace locations. Visibility was excellent, comfort very good, economy very good perhaps the only fly in the ointment was boot space however, it was still more than sufficient for ‘normal’ use. I went to see the Kia Soul EV at a dealer in west Cumbria and the salesman said to my wife and I, "why bother with one of them" and showed us the Niro and said "I wouldn’t bother buying EV, get a hybrid". I bought neither and walked out disgusted and disappointed. A few months later I went to Kia in north Cumbria and ordered the new hybrid Sportage - yet the be even built I might add 😡 The west Cumbria dealership is a joke and deserve to go bust the way they treat its customers.

[@briantarby675]

It's not the motor under the hood. It's the Inverter. The motor sits under the inverter 😊

[@AJThePlayerYouTubeChannel]

Thanks for a good constructive comment

[@chrisp7839]

Don’t see why they wouldn’t give a 12v in the boot. It’s not to prevent using the battery - at 64kWh there’s enough energy in there to power a house for 5 days - pity there isn’t a 240v socket like in the Niro or EV6

[@12alocin]

I want to know how the Soul takes bends and body roll, compared to my Yeti.

[@BB-pm7ze]

I had a Yeti back in 2016 before switching to an EV for the first time. We currently drive the Soul EV Maxx and it is a solid through the corners when compared the Yeti, I think because both the motor under bonnet and the battery under the floor are slung very low, this helps to keep it stable. From what I remember the Yeti was okay through the bends, but the Soul EV definitely feels more controlled in terms of body roll.

[@denisrousseau9071]

64.8 KW battery

[@richardhaywoodh]

The close relations KIA e-Niro & Hyundai KONA are also amazingly efficient much more so than some later ground up EV designs which are bloated and less efficient more like EV 'Gas Guzzlers' ⛽️ 🤔

[@seanpeacock5595]

Have they solved the battery degradation issues?

[@uberpantz8320]

where have you heard issues? i've heard about battery issues from the old platform that did not have liquid cooling. maybe you were referring to those older models 2019 and earlier.