Kia's Facelifted 2012 Soul Lands in Britain

The refreshed for the 2012 model year Kia Soul is on sale in the UK with on-the-road prices ranging from £12,495 for the basic petrol model to the £17,795 for the fully equipped diesel variant.

The most important change for the 2012 Soul is the presentation of a new 1.6-liter petrol engine and a revised version of the 1.6-liter turbo diesel, both hooked up to a six-speed manual gearbox that replaces the previous five-speed unit. Furthermore, the diesel model is optionally available with a new 6sp auto in place of the former 4sp transmission.

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Kia's Hamsters Are Back to "Share Some Soul" in New Ad

Kia's groovy Hamsters are back with a new commercial to promote the cosmetically refreshed and mechanically upgraded 2012 Kia Soul which goes on sale with prices starting from $14,650 after a $750 destination and handling fee.

The commercial is set in a dark, futuristic videogame world in which the South Korean firm's rodents turn the battle between alien robots and humanoids into a dancing party under the sounds of electro-pop group LMFAO's summer hit, "Party Rock Anthem".

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Kia Launches Soul Hamstar Special Edition in the U.S.

The success of the popular Hamster advertising campaign that promoted the Soul in the U.S. in 2010 inspired Kia to launch a new special edition model of its boxy crossover model. Previewed by the Hamstar concept at the 2011 SEMA show, the red and black 2011 Hamstar is the sixth special edition Soul. The car sports unique exterior graphics and interior refinements, including a 315-watt audio system with pulsing speaker lights. Read more »

2012 Kia Soul Subtly Refreshed, gains New 135HP 1.6-liter and 160HP 2.0-liter Engines

Just three years into its sales run, and the Kia Soul is getting fine tuned to improve its place in the market. Set to be unveiled at the New York Auto Show alongside the all-new Rio Sedan that we told you about in our previous post, the 2012 Soul comes with a number of technology and powertrain enhancements and some subtle design updates.

The cosmetic differences on the outside are limited to the new projector headlamps with LED daytime running lights, a redesigned bonnet, restyled front and rear bumpers, plus the new LED tail lamps. Inside, Kia updated its audio offerings and added the new ‘UVO’ in-car hands-free communication and infotainment system. There’s also a new Premium Package with heated front seats, leather seat trim, automatic climate control, and a navigation system.

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Kia Confirms 2012 Rio Sedan and Hatch, and 2012 Soul Facelift for New York Show

In a move that shows Kia has no intention of letting the momentum it has gained with the launch of seven new products in the past two years fade away, the South Korean automaker confirmed today the world premiere of two new models at the rapidly approaching New York Auto Show (April 22 – May 1).

The first global debut concerns the four-door sedan version of the 2012 Kia Rio, which was unwrapped in hatchback form at the Geneva Salon in March. The 2012 Rio sedan will be joined by the North American debut of the Rio5 hatchback.

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SCOOP: Kia Readying a Facelift for the 2012 Soul

It appears that the Soul is the next vehicle in Kia’s list to receive an update. Caught here in testing in Germany by our spy photographers, the bagged-up ends do their job to hide the Soul’s stylistic upgrades with the only visible change being the redesigned exterior mirrors that house the turning lights.

However, it is expected that the Soul will take some cues from the new Picanto and Rio hatchbacks (both of which were revealed at the Geneva Motor Show) such as the pulled back headlamps and more pronounced bumpers. An interior rework may also be in the cards.

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Kia Soul Does Some Inner Searching with New Special Edition

The Soul Searcher is the latest addition to Kia's Originals line-up, which includes a collection of distinctive versions of the sub-compact crossover. This here special edition is for the UK market and it follows on from the Burner, Shaker, Tempest and Echo. Sales scheduled to start from the 4th January 2011.

The car is cosmetically distinguished by a light green metallic paintwork, and cream and brown full leather interior offset by a two-tone, cream and black dashboard. Furthermore, Kia's designers added chrome front grille and door handles, roof rails, black bezel headlights, front and rear mud flaps as well as 18-inch silver alloy wheels.

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Kia Takes New Soul White Tiger and Hamstar Concepts to SEMA Show

Kia is represented by a variety of customized models at this week's 2010 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, including this pair of concept versions of the Soul crossover called the "White Tiger" and "Hamstar".

The first concept study, the Soul White Tiger, is actually a teaser to one of two all-new special edition models that the company is planning to launch before the end of the year. Following in the footsteps of the four special edition Souls introduced over the past year, the White Tiger model features some unique styling cues and added content.

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Kia Unveils Soul Safety Car for U.S. Touring Car Championship

Following its debut at last year's SEMA motor show in Las Vegas, the Kia Soul Safety Car has made its track debut at the U.S. Touring Car Championship (USTCC) that is sanctioned by the National Auto Sport Association (NASA).

Kia's funk-o-wagon was modified by "GOGOGEAR" and it features upgraded suspension and tires, plus special strobe lights inside the headlamps, taillights and the light bar.

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New Limited Edition Kia Soul Ignition Hits US Showrooms

The second special edition Kia Soul to be offered in the States this year after the "Denim" is the "Ignition". Based on the Soul+ model, the limited run version features a unique ignition orange exterior finish with contrasting black rally stripes, a rear spoiler, an alloy fuel door and black 18-inch alloy wheels with machined accents.

Like the previously launched Denim, on top of the Soul+ standard equipment, Kia has loaded the Ignition with more features including a higher-grade audio system with iPod connection, center speaker, subwoofer, external amplifier and speaker lights that pulse to the beat of the music (...), carpeted floor mats, moon roof, fender vents with side marker repeaters and fog lights.

The new Kia Soul Iginition is available for order with prices starting from $17,500 for the model with a five-speed manual gearbox.

Kia to Unveil Soul Based Concept in Detroit

Having already shown the production version of the 2010 Soul, Kia is now preparing to reveal a new concept variant of its so-called "urban crossover passenger car" at the forthcoming 2009 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit. The teaser shot leaves a lot to the imagination but judging from the placement of the B-column, we'd say that the Korean automaker is most probably readying a three-door hatchback variant of the Soul. Though less likely, there is a possibility that the concept car might be a 'light' pick-up truck version of the crossover. Either way, we'll have to wait for the Detroit show to find out.

U.S. Market Kia Soul Photos Appear on the web

We wouldn't go as far as calling it a leak as the Kia Soul has already been revealed at the Paris Show (click here for our high-res gallery), but nonetheless, the first pictures of the U.S.-spec subcompact wannabe-crossover have made their way into the blogosphere. The photos are accompanied by a second set of images from a scanned brochure that show us the options that are being made available to the Canadian-spec model. The Soul will make its first public appearance on U.S. soil at the LA Auto Show on November 19 with sales scheduled to begin in early 2009.

In the States the Soul will be offered exclusively with a 2.0-liter petrol engine producing 142 HP at 6,000 rpm and 186 Nm (137-lbs/ft) of torque at 4,600 rpm. Buyers can opt for a 5-speed manual transmission or a 4-speed automatic.

Less-power-hungry consumers in Europe and other markets will also be able to choose between a smaller 1.6-liter gasoline engine generating 126 HP at 6,300 rpm and 156 Nm (115-lbs/ft) of torque at 4,200 rpm and a more frugal 1.6-liter turbo diesel delivering 126 HP at 4,000 rpm and 255 Nm (188-lbs/ft) of torque at 2,000 rpm.

Via: Kia-World

Kia Soul Rendering Speculations: Three-Door and Convertible Variants

A Kia fan has whipped up a couple of computer generated renderings based on the Korean automaker's newest proposition in the sub-compact segment, the Soul which was recently revealed at the Paris motorshow. Kia-World forum member Kevin created a rather convincing three-door variant as well as a less inspiring soft-top convertible version of the Soul. -Continued

Despite the fact that Kia has not announced plans to offer any additional versions of the Soul other than the five-door hatchback that will go on sale in Europe next February followed by North America in April 2009, we wouldn't be surprised if the Korean firm actually presents a three-door variant of its so-called "Urban Crossover" in the near future.

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• New Kia Soul Details
  
• 2009 Kia Soul Mega Image Gallery

Via: Autoblog.nl , Source: Kia-World

New Kia Soul: 90 High-Res Photos

Right after the Soul’s world debut in Paris, Kia released a mega image gallery of its funky proposal in the subcompact segment that will be arriving on international markets early next year. In Europe the Soul will be offered with a 1.6L gasoline and a 1.6L turbo diesel, while in the U.S. the Soul will only be available with a 2.0L gasoline engine. Hit the jump for the photo gallery that includes pictures of the Soul customized with various accessories and decals that Kia has readied for its new model with which it hopes to attract a younger audience to the brand. -Continued