A 15-year-old platform that still sells because it's the only three-row SUV offering a 392 Hemi and 7,000-lb towing under $60k. The current generation (2011+) has genuinely matured, owners report the 5.7 Hemi runs strong and the ZF8 transmission holds up, a stark contrast to the catastrophic engine failures that plagued pre-2011 models. The tradeoff: it guzzles premium fuel, the interior feels a decade behind, and those HVAC blend door seals turn to goo on 2011-2019 models, gluing your vents shut. Buy it if you need V8 power and towing in a family package and accept you're choosing driving fun over efficiency. Skip it if you want modern tech, fuel economy, or the peace of mind a Telluride or Highlander delivers.
If you're eyeing a used Soul between 2015 and 2020, understand you're gambling on a ticking clock. Those model years, especially automatics with the 1.6L or 2.0L GDI engines, burn oil like it's their job, thanks to piston rings that fail predictably around 80k miles. Owners report topping off a quart every thousand miles, then one day the engine seizes with no warning light. Kia settled a class action over it and replaced thousands of engines, which tells you everything. The first-gen Souls (2010-2013) ran to 200k+ without drama, and the 2023+ models seem cleaner, but there's not enough road time to confirm the fix. What the Soul does well, maximum cargo in a tiny footprint, quirky looks, easy city parking, it does better than almost anything this size. Just make sure the one you're buying isn't someone else's oil-burning problem waiting to become yours.