Kia Soul 1 1.6 GDi 5dr Car Review - February 2012

The 1.6 litre petrol engine delivers 138 bhp and 122lb-ft of torque, offering a decent amount of power considering the car's size. A top speed of 112 mph is fairly good for a car of this class but unfortunately the engine needs to be worked hard, making the diesel a better option.

The Soul's suspension is firm but handling is a poor and there is a lot of roll through the bends. The Soul is also susceptible to understeer but handles competently.

The Soul 1 1.6 GDi has a distinctive appearance with funky styling details and a well-proportioned, if somewat boxy, overall shape. Unfortunately, this style is not continued in the interior where the car looks and feels a little cheaper.

Kit wise you get: power steering, central locking, stability control, air conditioning, electric door mirrors, electric windows, a stereo with CD player and MP3 connectivity as well as Bluetooth connectivity as standard. A metallic paint finish can be specified for an extra £435.

The spacious interior of the Soul 1 1.6 GDi compromises the boot slightly and with the seats upright the there is only 340 litres of space on offer. This expands to 818 litres with the seats folded down.

In terms of reliability, the reputation of the brand is high and this means buyers should have few concerns over their purchase, especially as the car comes with a seven year/100,000 mile warranty.

The Soul also scored a full five star rating in the NCAP crash tests for overall safety and this makes it one of the safest models in this class. A safety kit which includes driver, passenger and front side airbags is partly responsible for this.

An immobiliser is also fitted to protect the car from theft but unfortunately the option to add an alarm is not available and this could be seen as a disadvantage.

With fuel economy of 44.1 mpg, the Kia Soul 1 1.6 GDi performs well for its class but fails to match the more impressive credentials of the diesel model. High carbon emissions push this model into road tax band F, which is high for a car of this size. Insurance premiums are also relatively high under bracket 16 and this means the low purchase price of £12,495 could offer a false economy.

Rival models, such as the Citroen C3 Picasso, deliver better fuel efficiency (58.8 mpg) and lower carbon emissions (125 g/km), making them more beneficial for long term ownership if buyers are prepared to pay the higher purchase price.