2016 Soul EV Range anxiety

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Lorythril

Lorythril

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Aug 23, 2024
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Hi all,

I'm trying to determine if the battery on a kia soul that i looked at is toast, or if its simply a finction of the cat sitting on a lot for a long time.

the dealer sent me this photo, and while the range is showing very low, im wondering if that because people are turning the car on qothout driving it. it was impposible to test drive as it was completely blocked in on the lot. is this car worth a 2nd glance or completly skip if i have an 80km commute?
 

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23.3 kWh/100 km equates to about 2.67 miles/kWh, which is about half of what I get, so that would support your idea that the car has been substantially powered without motion.

Otoh, even if you double the predicted range to 42 km, it looks like a full charge will only take you about 60-65 km. A new battery should manage about 180 -190 km, so that suggests the SoH of the battery is about 33%. At that level, I would expect the battery to degrade further rapidly.

Bearing in mind that, if the car were still under warranty, the manufacturer would replace the battery at 70% SoH, I suggest you look elsewhere.
 
In most European countries the battery warranty has a 7 year, 150,000km limit to 70% SOH.
In Canada it is 8 years, 160,000km to 70% SOH
This car is out of warranty, and may well have a bad battery.
(MY2016 was sold from August 2015 to July 2016 - hence out of warranty unless the car was sitting on a lot for a year before first being sold.)

In almost all circumstances I would suggest not buying this car at any price.
Exceptions would be enthusiasts who want a badly degraded car to analyze, or mechanics who can replace the battery pack themselves.
Most of these cars seem to end up in Eastern Europe with DIY battery replacements.
For those in Eastern Europe who are thinking about buying a used Frankenstein EV I would suggest not. A new Chinese EV is probably cheaper and less likely to explode.

The warranty manuals are here.
USA: 2017 Soul EV Warranty Manual
Canada: 2016 Soul EV Warranty Manual
UK: Warranty Terms and Exclusions

The Korean warranty is 10 years, 160,000km to 70% SOH.
The United States is 10 years, 100,000 miles to 70% SOH.
The Canadian warranty is 8 years, 160,000km to 70% SOH
The United Kingdom is 7 years, 100,000 miles to 70% SOH.
Europe is 7 years, 150,000km to 70% SOH.
 
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Thank you both. I apologize for the atrocious spelling in my post :)

I was fairly certain that the car was out of warranty, so that's what concerned me most about the battery health. I figured 1 5km test drive wouldn't be enough to adjust the range estimate if my theory was correct. I'm guessing the only way to know for certain would be via odb reader?
 
I think that screenshot shows energy consumption not range. In my 2017 it’s usually around 3-4 because of the way I drive and hills etc but I ignore it usually. I doubt anyone could get 23 unless they’re driving around a flat farm at 5mph. :) I’m not sure it’s the right metric in this case.

(Edit: never mind — my iPhone only showed part of the picture, I see it now)
 
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richdean said:
I think that screenshot shows energy consumption not range. In my 2017 it’s usually around 3-4 because of the way I drive and hills etc but I ignore it usually. I doubt anyone could get 23 unless they’re driving around a flat farm at 5mph. :) I’m not sure it’s the right metric in this case.
Click to expand...
It shows both - I'm pretty sure it has been sitting on the dealer lot for a while, so when people like me come around to check it out, they could only turn it on, but not drive it without moving 30 other cars (it was a tightly packed lot)
 
If you can afford it, I'd stick with the 2018-2019 with the original 30kwh battery. Their battery durability is far superior to the earlier models.
 
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IanL said:
Is that really so? In UK, the warranty applies to subsequent owners. I bought mine 2 years old, and the dealer has had no problem covering my warranty claims.
Click to expand...
It's obviously false. There's loads of reports on this forum of second owners getting replacement batteries under warranty.
 
JejuSoul said:
It's obviously false. There's loads of reports on this forum of second owners getting replacement batteries under warranty.
Click to expand...
US owners?
You should go read the links that someone posed, 10/100 applies to the OP, and there's a reduced warranty for nonOP. Our 2019 was ended at 5 years.
 
IanL said:
Is that really so? In UK, the warranty applies to subsequent owners. I bought mine 2 years old, and the dealer has had no problem covering my warranty claims.
Click to expand...
Hence why I only quoted the US link. I don't want those purchasers to be falsely misled by non-US commentors.
 
jcaz2019SoulEV : I don't know if you are being deliberately deceptive or just making a mistake.
But please stop posting these false statements about the battery warranty.

It is easy to disprove your claim above by looking at the second page of the warranty.
From 2017 Warranty and Consumer Information Manual

warranty2.png
 
As a 2017 second owner in the US I can confirm my battery was replaced at no cost. Warranties are on the car not the person.
 
THANK YOU!!! I'm going to have to have a chat with the dealer about those coverage details. Ever since we picked it up, in the heat, there is a buzzing sound that has been getting worse and worse that is sure to be EV related. Initially it was barely audible over the AC on high. But it goes away if you turn off the AC. It also diminishes as you slowdown to a stop. This summer it was louder than ever and unlikely to reappear until the 100s next May. Dealer couldn't find it (no surprise, they didn't know what a batter SOH was and thought we were in for an oil change) and informed us the warrant was over. I suspect some sort of coolant pump.
 
jcaz2019SoulEV said:
THANK YOU!!! I'm going to have to have a chat with the dealer about those coverage details. Ever since we picked it up, in the heat, there is a buzzing sound that has been getting worse and worse that is sure to be EV related. Initially it was barely audible over the AC on high. But it goes away if you turn off the AC. It also diminishes as you slowdown to a stop. This summer it was louder than ever and unlikely to reappear until the 100s next May. Dealer couldn't find it (no surprise, they didn't know what a batter SOH was and thought we were in for an oil change) and informed us the warrant was over. I suspect some sort of coolant pump.
Click to expand...
If it only does it when the AC is on, it does NOT sounds to me to be EV system related....it sounds like AC system related (the fact that the AC system runs on an electrically operated compressor and fans, does NOT make it 'EV system related'. Your warranty coverage for that likely runs out with the 'Basic warranty' at 5 years, 60,000 miles.
 

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