Safety is always important when considering purchasing a vehicle, even when said car is an all-electric model like the Soul EV.
That particular ride has just received a crash test rating from EuroNCAP, scoring 4 stars out of 5, which puts it in the same range as one of its biggest rivals, the BMW i3 electric car.
Let’s take a closer look at how the Soul EV performed in each of the tests.
Kia Soul EV Crash Test Video
The passenger compartment of the Soul EV remained stable in the front impact test.
Reading taken from the dummy showed that the knees of bot passenger in front had a good level of protection.
That level of protection was also shown to be in place with passengers of different sizes, as well as in different seating positions.
The Soul EV picked up maximum points in the side barrier test, with all critical parts of the body well protected.
That said, the tougher side pole test yielded dummy results that showed weaker protection for the chest area.
There was a good level of protection against whiplash in the front seats during the rear collision test, while those in the rear where offered marginal protection during the same test.
Child protection
It was maximum points for the electric Soul EV in frontal and side barrier tests when the 1½ year dummy was used.
When the 3 year dummy was tested, there was some forward movement of the head with the forward-facing restraint being used, although neck loads were marginally high.
Both dummy ages used the protective shells of the restraints during the side impact test, meaning that the likelihood of head movement was greatly minimized.
It is possible to disengage the front passenger airbag so that a rearward facing seat can be used.
The system was rewarded for making it clear to the driver that the airbag was disabled.
Pedestrian Protection
Almost every test location delivered a good level of protection to the legs of the pedestrian.
The same could not be said for the pelvic area, as protection when connecting with the front edge of the bonnet was poor, with the Soul scoring zero points.
Protection provided by the bonnet to the head of the pedestrian was either good or adequate, but was score as poor on the windscreen pillars.
Safety Assist
The all electric Kia Soul EV comes standard with electronic stability control, as well as a seatbelt reminder system in front and back.
A speed limitation device that is set by the driver will be found on most models, which was why it was included in the testing. The system met the requirements laid out by Euro NCAP.
