Something that has always amazed me about the car industry is how few people in the industry are actually car people. For most, a car is a car and while they are enthusiastic about their brand they rarely gush unless there are journalists around to impress. Working in the industry, I see the real side of things rather than the car show side of things. Given this general apathy for cars in general, I was stunned by the scene at Kia this afternoon when I dropped in to pick up this week’s tester.
3 young ladies surrounded the Kia Forte while chattering about what each of them was getting as a new demo. One has a Forte, while another has a Soul. As they compared notes about what they liked and didn’t like, one slid behind the wheel while another showed off some of the features. The trunk was popped and the cargo space was noted. These girls were truly excited to compare notes about Kia’s products. If only sales managers across the land could find a way to get their sales staff to exhibit this much enthusiasm during a walk around!
The folks at Kia are truly excited about the new Soul and the Forte. These two models are poised to launch Kia up the automotive food chain and staffers have a right to be excited. Our tester is a bright green 2010 Kia Soul 4U that makes a rainy afternoon just that little bit brighter. I must admit that the first thing I did when I got behind the wheel was to fire up the funky speaker lights. Yes, I’m a big kid but a car/truck/wagon like this is all about lightening up and having a little fun. Over the next week we’ll keep you up do date on just how much fun we are having in it.
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I dig the look of the Soul, and I think Kia deserves a lot of credit for building such a far out looking car. This is what Scion fans wanted of the 2nd gen xB but didn’t get. Hardly new to the box on wheels party, Kia brought the funk to this party. A real contrast to the calm, serene Cube.
A Soul was present at IMPA’s Spring Brake-I didn’t drive it, but stuck my head inside. While it certainly looked ok, I could not believe the cheap, hard plastics that were everywhere. The still under $20k Hyundai Elantra Touring I had just climbed out of is in a different universe from the Soul.