Kia Soul to get AWD?
 

<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/new-york-auto-show/" rel="tag">New York Auto Show</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/economy/" rel="tag">Budget</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/crossovers-cuvs/" rel="tag">Crossover</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/kia/" rel="tag">Kia</a></p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2014-kia-soul/"><img alt="2014 Kia Soul" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2013/07/2014-kia-soul-001-1373921076.jpg" style="margin-top: 4px; margin-bottom: 4px; width: 628px; height: 410px; " /></a><br />
<br />
The funky <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/kia/soul/">Kia Soul</a> is one of the three affordable, efficient and style-first boxes on sale today (along with the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/scion/xb">Scion xB</a> and <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/nissan/cube">Nissan Cube</a>). Like its competition, it sits atop a front-drive platform with a longitudinally mounted four-cylinder engine.<br />
<br />
It's a dandy car in this setup, but it sounds like <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/kia/">Kia</a> may be looking to differentiate the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2012/02/23/2012-kia-soul-1-6l-eco/">Soul</a> from the herd by offering an optional all-wheel-drive system in the future. According to the report filed by <a href="http://www.kia-world.net/kia-soul-awd-release-date/"><em>Kia World</em></a>, the popularity of the small, stylish crossover segment is expected to expand considerably over the coming years, especially overseas.<br />
<br />
Citing the optional all-wheel drive on the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/renault+captur/">Renault Captur</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/ford+ecosport/">Ford Ecosport</a> and <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/opel+mokka/">Opel Mokka</a> (<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/buick/encore/">Buick Encore</a> in the US), along with the eventual arrival of a sub-Tiguan <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/volkswagen/">Volkswagen</a>, called the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/taigun/">Taigun</a>, an all-wheel-drive Soul seems to make a lot of sense for these foreign markets. In the American market, meanwhile, AWD would open the Soul up to a new segment of buyers that like its looks but want all-wheel ability. <em>Kia World</em> is claiming the Soul AWD could hit markets in 2016 wearing a ruggedized version of the sheetmetal shown on the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/03/27/2014-kia-soul-new-york-2013/">2014 Soul that debuted in earlier this year in New York</a>. Expect a bit of extra ground clearance to accompany the new drivetrain. Finally, all-wheel drive would likely only be available on the mid-range Soul + and top-spec Soul !.<p style="padding:5px;backgr ound:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/07/16/kia-soul-to-get-awd/">Kia Soul to get AWD?</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblo g</a> on Tue, 16 Jul 2013 08:58:00 EST. Please see our <a href="/rss-term-of-use/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/07/16/kia-soul-to-get-awd/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/20665154/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/07/16/kia-soul-to-get-awd/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>

أكثر...