Growing up, I didn’t even know the Kia brand existed. I only learned about it through a series of now-iconic commercials involving anthropomorphised hamsters driving a car that looked sort of like a hatchback, and sort of like an SUV. That car was, of course, the Kia Soul.
The Soul is inarguably one of Kia’s most important vehicles. Introduced in 2009 for the 2010 model year, it became an immediate hit, appealing to people who wanted the space and shape of a crossover, but with the efficiency and price of a sedan or hatch. By 2015, it was the brand’s best-selling model worldwide, moving over 150,000 units that year in the United States alone.
A lot of the Soul’s success can be attributed to those hamster ads, which thrust the Kia name into the households of hundreds of millions of Americans. The first one, below, presented the car as a standout in a sea of sameness, showing the hamsters driving the Soul and rocking out as the “cool” hamsters, while every other hamster was stuck in place with the same plain hamster wheel. The ad also showed off the Soul’s neat features, like the iPod compatibility and the flashing speakers. It was cute, fun, and, most importantly, appealing to a wide audience.
Later hamster-themed ads got a whole lot weirder. There was this version, which showed hamsters arriving at the front lines of a Sci-Fi battlefield and dancing to LMFAO’s Party Rock Anthem to save the day:
And then this one, which showed hamsters preparing for a big day on the red carpet while Lady GaGa’s Applause played in the background:
And who could forget this one, which had the hamsters crashing an opera with a Soul before breaking out in yet another dance to PSY’s Gangnam Style:
The Soul was an incredibly important vehicle for Kia’s growth in the U.S. Don’t take it from me, take it from the guy who runs sales for the brand:
“The Soul was one of the cornerstones in Kia gaining a foothold in the United States and this one-of-a-kind vehicle – and the marketing supporting it – helped Kia move to where it resides today,” said Eric Watson, Vice President, Sales, Kia America. “Kia is steadily progressing towards its third consecutive annual sales record and all-time high market share, and that is possible thanks to the early success carved out by the Soul.
The funky crossover-hatch, along with cars like the Forte and the Optima, revitalised what was, at the time, an aging and weak lineup. In 2009, Kia was selling 327,000 cars a year in the United States. Last year, it knocked on the door of 800,000 units.
Despite the average American buyer’s ever-evolving taste for bigger and heavier cars, the Soul managed to hold its popularity for a staggeringly long time, selling over 100,000 units per year between 2012 and 2018. It was only during and after the COVID-19 pandemic that sales began to fall off. Last year, Kia sold just 52,297 units. Still, Kia sold over 1.5 million units over 16 years and three generations. I’d call that a resounding success.
And now, the Soul is dying. Kia announced on Monday plans to end production of the quirky hatch in October, with 2025 being the car’s final model year. If you want one, there are “just a few thousand units” still sitting at dealer lots, according to the carmaker.
While it’s sad to see the Soul go, this news isn’t entirely surprising. The Soul is built in Korea and imported into the U.S., which means it’s subject to tariff duties. Keeping its base price of $21,935 (including destination) likely would’ve been tough going forward. The current generation car has also been around since 2019, and last received an update in 2023. With sales dwindling, Kia likely decided it was better off ending production than investing money into a new version. The majority of the company’s sales now come from real-deal SUVs and crossovers, anyhow. With the Soul out the door, that leaves the $23,185 K4 sedan (shown below) as Kia’s new cheapest car.
Rest in peace, Kia Soul. You and your dancing hamsters will never be forgotten.
Top graphic images: Kia
i drive a scion xb. comfy and can run on the highway with the big boys. when/if it dies my next choice was going to be a soul. it is a nice size for us older, retired folk. 4 doors so the dog can get in easily. i hear the mechanics aren’t up to toyota quality, but then most cars aren’t.
Another cheapest car down, another non-boring Korean hatchback down (I still mourn the Veloster).
I know that I’ve already commented on this below, but the more I think about it the more it makes me sad.
Makes me wonder why the Kia Roundo didn’t sell like crazy. It was a CUV with available V6 power. Should have blown the doors off the dealer’s buildings, but nope, it hardly sold at all.
Nah – it was much more MPV than CUV, and the V6 was small by that time, putting up similar acceleration numbers to a four-cylinder CR-V or RAV4.
We had a I4 in my family for ~5 years. Supposedly it exceeded sales expectations but I think Kia treated it more as a stopgap until a more conventional 3-row crossover arrived with the 2nd gen Sorento.
One of the coolest things about the Soul that goes nearly unnoticed in the enthusiast world were the special editions they did early on. Limited to 1-2k each, they were unique little bits of design fun. Seriously, look them up!
G1: Denim, Ignite, Ghost, Black Dragon
G2: Milkshake, Red Rocks, Hamstar, White Tiger
I’m sure there are others, but those were always the ones that stuck out. I see them from time to time and always miss mine.
Should somebody check on Sofonda Wagons ?
Oh, Btw, Fuck you for killing the Soul KIA!!!
Actually, KIA, thank you for justifying my next going to happen soon last car purchase for this lifetime (I’m an old dying fart, OK) I have always lusted for a 1977-1979 Ford Thunderbird. I will replace my Soul you just killed with an old T- bird you Korean heartbreaking bastards! May God help me find a Town landau Thunderbird in chamois or navy blue with low miles. Again, fuck you KIA. Your brand is dead to me from now on and I will never recommend you again to anyone. You discontinued the Soul and my tolerance of your crappy dealers, and shit service dept always trying to rip me off died with your decision to kill the Soul. I have decided to NEVER defend your products or reputation as being a shit brand again! My days of being a KIA fanboy are over. RIP KIA.
KIA JUST BECAME DEAD TO ME AS A BRAND. FUCK, FUCK, FUCK YOU KIA FOR KILLING MY SOUL!
They offered a good little box at a fair price aimed at young ones. Welp, turns out old shits like me bought them because they were affordable, easy to get in and out of, useable with a decent back seat for freinds, and we bought them in droves. Kia be like, we cant have oldshits buying a car we market to young folkl!!! We must kill it now! Kia is deaD TO ME
This truly, truly, truly, pisses me off. Kia wouldn’t be a big market player without the Soul’s success. Ironically, I’m on my 3rd one. I love the size, ease of getting my old ass in and out of, and it’s cute and greenI take in for service on Wednesday. had it 7 years now, just 31k miles. The two I had before, were good for 250k trouble free service with maintenance. Kia just lost me as a new car buyer. I bought my mom A Forte and it has been attempted at being stolen twice thanks to the whole kiaboyz shit. Kia just lost a life long customer. The sales of the Soul the last couple of years are in the 50k range. Many car makers would kill for numbers like that. KIA, you have just become dead to me as a brand. HOW DARE YOU KILL MY SOUL!!!!!!!!!
I daily a base model 2021 with the CVT, I got it with 28 miles on it as my first (and likely only at least for a very long time) brand new car. Having once borrowed a really worn out and uncomfortable 2017 Forte, admittedly my bar going in was really low, but the Soul drove well enough and the price was right, so I gave it a shot. 4 years later and it’s honestly been great- decently reliable with 20,000ish miles a year of driving, the size is just right, it has most features I want with nothing I don’t, and it has some of the best sightlines I’ve experienced in a car made in the last 15 years. I don’t think I’d buy another one on account of generally liking to change things up once in a while, but it’s a shame to see it go nonetheless.
I had a second gen with a manual and it was a great little vehicle. And very well priced. The 6 speed manual felt great considering it was a $14k car.
I remember the dealer saying they were selling the base model like crazy (a requirement to go manual of course). Seems like they’ve tried to take it more up market since covid and that misses the point of this vehicle.
Unfortunately mine was developing clutch problems and an unwilling dealer that would work with me about clutch work they did 1 year prior (they accidentally signed off on a warranty by mistake) that was going bad meant it was time to trade it in.
Is it just me or is Peter Schreyer in the Lady Gaga ad?