Kia Soul

The passenger compartment remained stable in the frontal impact test. Dummy readings indicated good protection of the knees and femurs of the driver and passenger. However, when the car was inspected after the test, it was found that spot welds had released as the front subframe was driven backwards and that this had caused a rupture in the driver footwell. This precluded any demonstration from Kia that the knees and femurs would be well protected for different occupant statures and positions, and the steering column and the edge of the centre console were thought to pose a risk of injury. In the side barrier test, the Soul scored maximum points with good protection of all critical body regions. However, in the more severe side pole test, dummy readings of rib deflection indicated weak chest protection. Cars before VIN KNAJP816LF7778250 have an earlier side airbag system with a slightly different design and deployment timing. The updated design tested by Euro NCAP offers better chest protection than the original system and Kia are contacting owners of earlier cars to have their cars updated to this specification. Protection against whiplash injuries in the event of a rear-end collision was rated as good for the front seat occupants and marginal for those in the rear.