Another Happy Customer

[droxtal]

Hello,

After nearly a year's wait, finally received a new 2016 Soul EV. Good timing too, not sure my 13 year old Sentra was going to make it through the coming winter. So far, loving the car!

This forum has really helped answer a lot of questions I had before buying, thanks everyone! The dealer shamelessly tacked on the AC charge and put on a good show of not knowing anything about it, but refunded in the end.

Maybe one or two minor annoyances (the faint but definitely noticeable high pitched whine when the windows are down, and I find myself wishing the cruise control would stay in the selected position between shutdowns). But tons of great features, the generous sunroof seems like a really good idea for my often-sunny-but-cold climate. All in all, a fairly well thought out vehicle. Now just hoping the battery life turns out as good as advertised!

 

[iletric]

Count on startup range in summer to be in the low 90s (90-93) after 20,000 miles. I am starting to see some degradation at 21,000 miles, however slight.

I may NOT be able to use the car in winter for my 82-mile round trip, b/c of lower winter range, heat use, wipers, and sticky wet roads. My fat (miles remaining) is only 8-14 miles at an average of 50-55 mph. Too close for comfort.

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As an addendum: the battery really likes 80-90 degree weather. I see a couple-three extra miles when overnight charging is in the 70s.

Still: the EPA is 93 miles, and they have it down pat. The dummy 2016 Leaf is now climbing to 110 miles, so it will now surpass the Soul. Having owned it for 3 solid years, I would not go back to the old Leaf. When the new Leaf 2 comes out in 2017 it may be a remote consideration. But ultimately, I'm waiting for Tesla 3 because its superior charging capabilities and availabilities.

 

[droxtal]

I've understood the batteries drop more quickly in the beginning, then more slowly as time goes on. As a reference, I picked up the car with basically no miles on it, at 100% charge was posting 188 km (116 mi) on the GOM. After a week or so of driving I'm consistently getting about 150 km (93 mi) showing at 80% charge, though my commute is all city, no highway. I'm very curious to see how that will evolve over the coming weeks and months.

 

[zax123]

Hi @droxtal,

I'm also in Montreal and just put a deposit on a 2016 Luxury Titanium with the panoramic roof... we're very close to pulling the trigger, I'm just reading as much as I can about the car.

There's actually a car in stock at Kia Elite exactly like yours which we've put the deposit on. I'm really surprised that they got two fully loaded SoulEVs two months in a row!

The dealership knows more about the car than when we first shopped for it in February but they still really have to brush up on their EV knowledge. Our other car is a Tesla Model S, so I'm a huge EV fan and I try to learn as much as I can about the car before buying it (leasing it for 48 months in this case).

Where are you located exactly in Montreal? We're in Candiac on the South Shore. Have you tried Chademo yet?

- Rob