Kia Soul EV review

Hyundai claims 280 miles of range for the Soul EV, which is great given how much it costs. Our car indicated it was full with 256 miles of range in the battery, allowing for the air conditioning and chilly February days. As we mentioned earlier, Hyundai/Kia are better than some others when it comes to delivering on promised range, so providing you drive thoughtfully, you ought to be ok.

Charging: you’ll want a 7kW wallbox, because a full charge using a normal three-pin plug takes 31 hours. Using a wallbox you’ll get there in 9hrs 35mins, meaning you’ll have 280-odd miles of range every morning to go about your daily business (which we can almost guarantee doesn’t involve anywhere close to 280 miles of driving). You’ll have to sort the installation yourself, as Kia doesn’t have an arrangement with a supplier like Renault/Audi etc.

If you get stuck and need to charge while you’re out and about, a public 50kW fast-charger will give you an 80 per cent charge in 1hr 15mins, while a 100kW station will do it in just 54 minutes.

What with it being a new car, the Soul EV only comes in one spec. At least that makes for less time spent at the dealer. It’s called ‘First Edition’ and it gets lots and lots of acronyms. LKAS, LFA, BAD, RCTA, FCA, HBA, DAW, HAC – the Soul EV has it all. Those are all safety systems tasked with keeping you awake, on the road and from getting dangerously close to other cars. You also get 17-inch alloys, LED lights everywhere, leather upholstery, adaptive cruise, climate control, a ten-speaker Harman/Kardon sound system and a 10.25-inch widescreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Prices start at £34,295 after the Government’s £3,000 grant. That’s £700 less than a Niro. The Kona starts much cheaper, because it’s available with a smaller battery and less powerful motor, but the equivalent car costs £35,600 including all of Hyundai’s incentives.

The warranty is a handy seven-years or 100,000 miles.