Ford built a genuinely quick electric crossover that happens to embarrass its own gas-powered Mustang in a drag race, the GT does 0-60 in 3.1 seconds, and one owner's 300,000-mile example lost just 8% battery capacity. The 2021, 2022 models suffered chronic infotainment failures (Bluetooth drops, system freezes) that Consumer Reports documented, and Ford's loss of the $7,500 federal tax credit leaves it thousands more expensive than a Model Y or Ioniq 5 after incentives. If you want the performance and can live without the rebate, the 2025 refresh at $38,000 finally adds the heat pump and fixes the value equation, just know you're buying into a brand still figuring out its EV commitment, with dealers sitting on unsold inventory.
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.