The 2022 Kia Soul is entering its new model year with a few small but notable updates. On the one hand, Kia is freshening it up with the new, artistic “Kia” logo. The Telluride recently got the new logo, so Kia is slowly rolling it out across the lineup. You’ll see the new Kia logo for 2022 on the hood, tailgate and center hubcaps.
There is also news in the manual gearbox sector, and the news is that there will be no more manual gearboxes. Kia makes the standard CVT gear based on LX trim, which was the only gear Kia’s six-speed manual offered. It wasn’t a particularly attractive offer anyway – Kia limited the color choices with the manual to just white, gray, and black. The fun Soul Turbo was also not offered with a manual transmission, but stayed with the seven-speed dual clutch automatic.
Even more technology is on the way for 2022. The 10.25-inch touchscreen, reserved for the Turbo model, now runs down the trim tree to the S, X-Line, and GT-Line models – major upgrades from the 7-inch screen, the attached to these moldings beforehand. Those three also get navigation, two-zone climate control, push-button start, a wireless phone charger, and two USBs up front. Even the base LX is getting a small infotainment system upgrade that goes from a seven-inch screen to an eight-inch screen.
Finally, Kia is adding an LX technology package to the portfolio, with which you can attach a whole range of driver assistance systems down to the lowest level. This tech package bundles 16-inch alloy wheels as an upgrade from the standard steel wheels.
The basic price increases dramatically this year due to the omission of the manual transmission. A 2021 Kia Soul LX with manual started at $ 18,765. The addition of the automatic brought that price to $ 20,265. For 2022, the base LX has a starting price of $ 20,365. That’s only $ 100 more than last year’s equivalent Soul, but we’re still sad to see the ultra-cheap manual option gone. The turbo model is experiencing a price spike as it climbs $ 1,315 to $ 28,695. Other equipment also see slight price increases with the additional equipment on board.
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