Rumor - 2nd Gen Soul EV not coming to US

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IanL said:
slyugo said:
https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/kia-soul-ev-dead-canceled/

Speculation, certainly hope it’s not true...

I wonder how tricky it would be to import one from Canada...

Would you have to take it back to Canada for warranty work?
Good question. The actual importing should have been no big deal during COVID, I don't see anything stopping you from travelling to Canada (by bus maybe?), buying the car, and driving it back (paying any import costs or duties). Not cheap, but should have been totally do-able. You might have contacted them ahead of time to make sure they had your preferred colour and trim on the lot, and then given them a deposit to hold it.

I think you can do it even during COVID. You're not allowed to drive into Canada from the U.S., but you are allowed to fly there. So you'd do the same as above, fly into the country, and then drive home. The tricky part is whether they'd make you self-isolate in a hotel for 14 days or not before venturing out to buy the car!

They're in hot demand in Canada, from what the Kia dealership tells me. Which underscores what a lost opportunity it is for them that they can't get this model for sale in the U.S. market yet.
 
MassDeduction said:
They're in hot demand in Canada, from what the Kia dealership tells me. Which underscores what a lost opportunity it is for them that they can't get this model for sale in the U.S. market yet.

Allegedly, the main reason for shortage is the availability of batteries, so some market has to lose out. Considering the hammering their profits will have taken from the battery replacements in the hotter parts of the US, avoiding that market seems to be a sound business decision.
 
IanL said:
...Considering the hammering their profits will have taken from the battery replacements in the hotter parts of the US, avoiding that market seems to be a sound business decision.
Agreed.
Although it is more than just avoiding the financial loss of a battery replacement under warranty.
By mostly avoiding the US Kia has protected the reputation of its brand.
They are probably waiting to be sure there will be no negative press from the 2014 and 2015 failures, before entering the US market again.

The failure of the Nissan Leaf in the hotter parts of the US has damaged their brand.
The Nissan Leaf is now globally associated with severe battery degradation, even though this car actually does okay in cooler climates.

I do not believe there has been any shortage of batteries. The SK Innovation battery factory has always been under utilized.
 
JejuSoul said:
IanL said:
...Considering the hammering their profits will have taken from the battery replacements in the hotter parts of the US, avoiding that market seems to be a sound business decision.
Agreed.
Although it is more than just avoiding the financial loss of a battery replacement under warranty.
By mostly avoiding the US Kia has protected the reputation of its brand.
They are probably waiting to be sure there will be no negative press from the 2014 and 2015 failures, before entering the US market again.

The failure of the Nissan Leaf in the hotter parts of the US has damaged their brand.
The Nissan Leaf is now globally associated with severe battery degradation, even though this car actually does okay in cooler climates.

I do not believe there has been any shortage of batteries. The SK Innovation battery factory has always been under utilized.
That's a really good point, since the 2019 and earlier Soul EV only had air cooling for the battery, like the Leaf. But the 2020 (and newer) Kia Soul EV has active thermal management for the battery, so it would seem like the perfect car to deploy to start resuscitating their reputation, wouldn't it?

They could also choose to only sell them in northern states, if they're *really* worried about it, couldn't they? Why sell them in British Columbia but not Washington State, or in Ontario but not Michigan? The weather doesn't really change that much when you're only a few kilometres either way across the border! :)
 
MassDeduction said:
JejuSoul said:
IanL said:
...Considering the hammering their profits will have taken from the battery replacements in the hotter parts of the US, avoiding that market seems to be a sound business decision.
Agreed.
Although it is more than just avoiding the financial loss of a battery replacement under warranty.
By mostly avoiding the US Kia has protected the reputation of its brand.
They are probably waiting to be sure there will be no negative press from the 2014 and 2015 failures, before entering the US market again.

The failure of the Nissan Leaf in the hotter parts of the US has damaged their brand.
The Nissan Leaf is now globally associated with severe battery degradation, even though this car actually does okay in cooler climates.

I do not believe there has been any shortage of batteries. The SK Innovation battery factory has always been under utilized.
That's a really good point, since the 2019 and earlier Soul EV only had air cooling for the battery, like the Leaf. But the 2020 (and newer) Kia Soul EV has active thermal management for the battery, so it would seem like the perfect car to deploy to start resuscitating their reputation, wouldn't it?

They could also choose to only sell them in northern states, if they're *really* worried about it, couldn't they? Why sell them in British Columbia but not Washington State, or in Ontario but not Michigan? The weather doesn't really change that much when you're only a few kilometres either way across the border! :)

I'm pretty sure that KIA only sells these in markets that have a government rebate program in place for new EVs, or that require a percentage of sales to be EV. Not sure if Washington State has one of those, BC, QC, and until recently ON provinces do. Also a federal one now in all of Canada.
 
IanL said:
Perhaps because customers in Arizona or California could go to Michigan or Washington state to buy them?
You're right that an owner could do that, but would they be likely to? I'm sure it happens, but A) I doubt a very high percentage of people are into the idea of travelling long distances to buy a car, and B) warranty could be tied to using it in a state where the car is sold.
 
ksoul2084 said:
I'm pretty sure that KIA only sells these in markets that have a government rebate program in place for new EVs, or that require a percentage of sales to be EV. Not sure if Washington State has one of those, BC, QC, and until recently ON provinces do. Also a federal one now in all of Canada.
Isn't Kia eligible for a national rebate in the U.S. still as well? From what I understand, only Tesla and GM have run out of their eligibility for the national programme in the U.S.
 
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It seems to be more than a rumor.

The new Kia Soul EV is apparently never coming to the US

...Kia has completely removed the Soul EV from its US consumer website and wiped almost all mention of it from the company's US media site, too...
What's more, while the 2020 model-year Soul EV received an official range rating of 243 miles, this has since been removed from the EPA's website...
 
JejuSoul said:
-
It seems to be more than a rumor.

The new Kia Soul EV is apparently never coming to the US

...Kia has completely removed the Soul EV from its US consumer website and wiped almost all mention of it from the company's US media site, too...
What's more, while the 2020 model-year Soul EV received an official range rating of 243 miles, this has since been removed from the EPA's website...
A shame. I'm surprised that they're not at least selling it in CARB states, where every e-car sold might save them having to pay penalties for not selling enough. The Niro EV is a great car, but not everyone wants that particular model. I wouldn't buy an e-Niro over a Soul EV, that's for sure. It would seem variety would help them meet their targets. Meanwhile they're selling it in Canada and other places where you generally aren't penalized for failing to meet EV volume minimums. So weird.
 
In the last couple of weeks there have been two articles saying that it is returning to the US. One older article said that Kia denied the rumor that it wasn't. Other car websites haven't removed the "2021 or later" from their websites. Is it coming or not? Has Kia made a public statement either way?

Maybe it's obvious, but I want one!!! :geek:
 
I too am bummed that the Soul EV currently for sale in Europe and Canada, at least, isn't coming to the US. But perhaps Kia is focusing efforts of getting us a real-life version of the electric HabaNiro concept. I've seen pics of Kia test-driving a new body-style Niro-based EV in disguise lately, so if they evolve the dowdy-looking Niro into something that looks like a mashup of the current Soul and Niro, and make it available for sale in the US this year, I'll be happy. https://www.kia.com/us/en/concept-vehicles/habaniro
 
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