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.

Standard specification includes reversing sensors, front fog lights, electric folding door mirrors, privacy glass, dual auto air conditioning and heated front seats, plus an upgraded 8 speaker sound system with subwoofer and external amplifier, Bluetooth and iPod connectivity.

The Soul Searcher is powered by a 1.6-litre CRDi diesel engine available with either 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic, with prices starting from £16,965 OTR and £18,025 (including VAT at the new 20% rate) respectively.

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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.

Taking design cues from this year's Asian Lunar year animal, the Tiger, the customized Soul combines an all-white exterior with tiger-themed graphics and a contrasting jet black leather interior.

The body colored bumpers, spoiler, black fender vents, rear bumper cat claw appliqué, alloy fuel door and white-finish 18-inch alloy wheels round off the exterior package, while interior goodies include a push-button start, leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, unique floor mats with contrasting stitching and illuminated scuff plates.

Next up is the Soul Hamstar Concept, inspired by the hip hamsters from Kia's well-received ad campaign. The crossover's exterior is finished in a custom red and black color scheme, highlighted by a "star" graphic with the signature Hamstar script logo on the hood and off-black matte finish stripes on the sides. The car rides on black gloss and polished alloy wheels.

Inside, interior appointments include two-tone red and black sport cloth seat materials with black chenille stars attached to the back side of the front headrests, special Hamstar floor mats and a rubberized Hamstar badge.

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Kia Recalling 2010 Soul and 2011 Sorento for Electrical Issues

The first recall of the month comes from Kia, which is recalling approximately 23,973 Soul subcompacts from the 2010MY and around 11,213 Sorento crossovers from the 2011MY, all built from September 7, 2009 through July 30, 2010, due to a potential fault with the vehicles' electrical system.

In a letter to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), the South Korean automaker said a limited number of wiring harnesses supplied by JCI and used in the Soul's lighting speaker system, located in the front door trim panels, and the Sorento's interior accent illumination, placed in the front and rear door trim panels, may have been improperly soldered.

Even though there are no reports of accidents or injuries, the safety agency said under certain conditions, an electrical short may occur and result in a fire.

Company officials said dealers will replace the wiring harnesses for the lights on both vehicles, free of charge with the recall expected to begin later this month.

NHTSA Probes 2010 Kia Soul After Steering Shaft Falls Off in New Car

The feds over at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) have launched a preliminary investigation into Kia's 2010 Soul crossover after receiving a complaint about a steering shaft that literally fell off from the steering wheel on a two-month old model with just 4,300 miles on the odometer. NHSTA said the issue could potentially affect more than 51,000 Kia Soul cars.

"The steering shaft de-coupled from the hand wheel resulting in a complete loss of steering capability. The de-coupled steering shaft reportedly fell into a position that interfered with brake pedal application," said NHSTA in a statement.

Even though the government agency doesn't usually open an investigation based on a single complaint, it did this time because the car was almost brand new and the problem could have led to an accident (luckily, that didn't happen to the driver who filed the complaint).

NHTSA said it was "very concerned about this failure in that it occurred without warning on a new vehicle at low mileage and resulted in a complete loss of steering as well as a compromised brake system."

The Korean automaker responded with a statement saying it is "committed to sharing information and findings with NHTSA on an ongoing basis in order to reach a prompt resolution."

Source: Yahoo / NHTSA

KIA UK Presents Black and White Editions of Picanto, Rio and Soul

Two new special editions named Domino and Echo that both play on black and white color schemes are joining Kia's UK-market lineup. The Domino special edition is available on the Picanto and Rio superminis, while the Echo is offered on the Soul crossover.

Starting with Kia's supermini models, the Picanto Domino is motivated by a 1.1-litre petrol engine hooked up to either a manual or automatic transmission, while the Rio Domino is available with a 1.4-litre petrol or 1.5-litre CRDi diesel engine. Both the Rio and Picanto Domino editions are available in white or optional black metallic paint. Buyers can also opt for a contrasting black or white stripe covering the bumpers, mirrors and door handles.

Standard features include front fog lights, air-conditioning, iPod connectivity, remote central locking, leather-trimmed steering wheel and gear-knob and Electronic Stability Control, as well as rear electric windows on the Rio.

Prices start from £7,995 OTR for the Picanto Domino and from £9,295 OTR for the Rio Domino.

Following on from the Burner, Shaker and Samba, the Soul Echo is the latest special edition version of Kia's small crossover. It is offered in a choice of two colors - Clear White or Quartz Black metallic - with contrasting features.

In particular, the white Echo gets black 18-inch alloy wheels, black high-gloss door mirrors and a corresponding black sports stripe, while the black Echo features white 18-inch alloys, white high-gloss door mirrors and a sports stripe in white.

Interior upgrades include a full black leather interior and high-gloss black dashboard fascia and uprated audio system with and iPod connectivity, as well as standard parking sensors, air conditioning and privacy glass.

The Soul Echo is offered with a choice of 1.6-litre petrol or 1.6-litre CRDi diesel engines, with prices starting from £13,995 OTR.

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.

Other enhancements include a new body kit, a custom free flow Borla exhaust, a light weight Optima battery, as well as a short ram intake by Takeda.

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.