Looking for my Second EV

[Calaveras]

I am looking at a few 2017 Soul EV and they are about $3000 more than a 2017 Leaf with 30kWh pack.

I am active on the Leaf forum, but am wanting to give the Kia a closer look. Is the price difference due to more that a glut of Leafs on the market and the bad reputation of the Leaf battery?

My history with EV:
I bought a 2016 Nissan Leaf in 2017 and have put 25,000 miles on it in 2 years. I like it and plan on keeping it until it no longer gets me home.
It is the base model without Quick Charging port.
I got a good deal ($13,000) and it suits my commute of 50 miles per day. There is a level 2 charger within a mile walk of work which I use occasionally but mostly charge with a Juicebox level 2 in the garage at home.
My wife and driving age son like it and our diesel VW is going to be retired after 250,000 miles.
We could take turns using the EVSE and make it work.

We live up the mountain and commute down hill. With the 24 kWh currently at (82% SOH-LeafSpy) I can make it using 65% charge. 20% down and 45% back up the canyon. Of course it is worse in cold weather which is not common. (California)

 

[warren55]

I had a 2013 Leaf for a couple years, and I loved it...except for the styling. It probably comes down to how you feel about the Leaf vs. a Soul, but the difference is not great EXCEPT the warranty. The 10 year, 100,000 mile warranty on the traction battery was the deciding factor for me, after the styling. It's also nice that the Soul has a QC port standard, but I have yet to use it.
Range is definitely better in the Soul over the 24Kwh Leaf, but the 30 Kwh...? As for degradation, there are plenty of reports of owners getting new batteries here.

 

[JejuSoul]

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I looked on Craigslist to find the comparison price for the two cars you mention.
A 2017 Soul EV and a 2017 N issan L eaf.
I assume you live near Los Angeles, so that's where I looked first.
Yes, in Los Angeles the Soul EV seems more expensive. I think that is because there are few of them.
But, when I looked in San Francisco the two seemed to be the same price. About 16,000 dollars.
For the same money the Soul EV is the better car, but the difference is small. I would not pay $3,000 extra.
And there's many to choose from
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/cta?query=soul+ev
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/cta?query=nissan+leaf

I am curious about the fact that 2011 L eafs go for 4,000 dollars or less.
That is possibly a really good deal if you are willing to take the out-of-warranty risk.

 

[Calaveras]

Thanks @jujusoul

I live in the mountains East of Sacramento, so the Soul EV is rare compared to the Leaf and Spark.
I am wanting to try a different EV than the Leaf. I have a 2016 and am not concerned about a warranty.

My only concern is will the range be sufficient in 3-4 years?

My current 24kWh pack is doing great for my commute, but without QC I am stuck close to home.

I am not willing to pay for a 60 kWh pack that I will only utilize 4-5 times per year

The sweet spot seems around 100 mile range with QC capability.

I was willing to wait a year until more cars come off lease from 2018, but the prices of the 2017 I am starting to see are good at around$17,000.

 

[warren55]

A couple things to consider: Is there a Kia dealer near you that is certified to work on EV's? As you know, there isn't a lot of maintenance with an EV, but if your OBC goes bad (which does seem to be common with these) you'll need to get it to a dealer who can deal with it.
The other thing to consider is the that the 2018 model got an upgrade to a 30KWh usable capacity battery, increasing the range to well over 100 miles. That said, I get a little over 100 miles of range out of my 2016 driving conservatively.

 

[JejuSoul]

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I have a 2015 that still has 100% SOH and can easily drive over 100 miles in all seasons here. ( We don't have cold winters, so no winter tires or snow to deal with. ) A 2018 with the slightly larger battery would be more likely to do that in colder weather, and probably the battery would last a bit longer too.

Looking again at Craigslist I don't see any 2018s on sale. Perhaps they are too new, but also there may be very few of them in California. Kia shifted focus on sales away from California to the Pacific North West a few years ago seemingly because the battery lasts a lot better in the cooler climate.
There are many reported cases of battery replacement in Southern California and especially Arizona.

The car on Craigslist I liked best is this one - 2017 KIA Soul EV Hatchback $14,000 (santa rosa)
Only 10k miles. Looks in good condition, and a decent spec.
I don't know the full spec of the EV- cars, but would be wary that they do not have heat pumps or battery warmers which may be needed for your location.

 

[Calaveras]

Thanks for the tips

I am 70 miles from a Dealer.

The $14,000 Soul is a good price. I will check it out.

That is about 1K more that a 2017 Leaf with the 30 kWh battery. I suspect after 5 years of driving the rang in both will be about the same?
I have not driven the Soul yet. I need to do that this weekend.

 

[Calaveras]

I just test drove a Soul EV.
We liked it.
I found out that the warranty on the fatter is only 5 years for a second owner.
I did not get the price that I wanted, so the hunt continues

 

[warren55]

Everything I have read says that the EV system (which includes the battery and OBC) is covered for 10 years/100,000 miles to any owner. The powertrain warranty is only good for 5 years to the second owner and on. That would be axles, trans-axle, bearings, etc.

 

[Calaveras]

I just made a deal for a 2017 + with low miles for $15,500.

The dealer confirmed that the second owner only gets 5 year warranty on the battery for degradation to 70%

I was not able to check the SOH with the Bluetooth dongle, which comes in the mail tomorrow, but there will still be more than 3 years on the original warranty.

 

[JejuSoul]

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Congrats on getting a good deal for your new Soul EV.

...
The dealer confirmed that the second owner only gets 5 year warranty on the battery for degradation to 70%
...

No, this is incorrect! The Battery Capacity Coverage lasts ten years.
The warranty manual for your car is here. USA: 2017 Soul EV Warranty Manual





The Power Train warranty is as you described. But the EV System is not.
The section Lithium Ion Battery Capacity Coverage on page 6 is fairly clear about this.

 

[Calaveras]

@jejusoul

After my experience with the Leaf I should have known not to go by what the dealer says.

Thanks for the info, it makes me even happier that I went with the Kia over the Nissan.
We drove it home from the dealer and had to stop by a level 2 charger to make it, because it is a climb in elevation. We took it shopping today and keep learning cool features.

 

[warren55]

Typical of dealer misinformation, but the owners manual makes it pretty clear. I bought a CPO just so there was no question about it!

 

[freesoulev]

I recently bought a soul ev and its my first and it was only a few days ago and the honeymoon is going super strong :mrgreen: especially having the peace of mind of the original warranty being in effect until 2026. I have done years of research before this and my choices were this and the leaf and the toyota rav4 ev. The kia soul was the best option for me giving me the best suv feeling while driving plus the cargo space comparable to a rav4 with the prices comparable to the leaf. Of all the ev's kia has the best warranty with its 10y drivetrain. Also the battery management system after researching I found was overall better on the soul even with my 27kw I was shocked to see the gom read 104mi at 94% It had 38k when I bought it (east coast area) .

Every used leaf that I saw on internet ads in the same price was either more expensive since the 30kw only is available for 2016 and up and the few sv listed were around the same price as the base soul 1gens or a few k's much less money but for reasons like 2011-2012 sl models with more than 3 bars degraded or because they are s models with no FC port. I am not bashing the leaf I still appreciate that they are the most least expensive option since been mass produced from 2011 and have a high reliability record for everything other than the battery with constant reports of little to no maintenance. If I needed a ev to get me around for the least price thats the one.

The Rav4 ev I really wanted because of its size and performance. It has great range 100+ miles even after years 2012 - current and has a big cargo area. However they were only available on the west coast and would cost K's to ship so the shipping had to be added to the price. Also they lack a DC charger unless you can afford to have a Jdemo installed but again that would cost more on top of the shipping. Researching the soul I knew to expect it to be lower to the ground and the cargo vol is less but tbh I was surprised when I actually saw one and test drove it and felt like I was in a suv. The cargo when seats are down is nearly the same to me just a inch or 2 shorter than my previous 2002 ford escape all the items including 2 bmx bikes fit in the soul ev the same way. So again the soul was the better option here. I take nothing away from the rav4ev I like how rare it is the largest affordable used ev on the market compared to audi e tron or a model x or y.

The chevy Bolt is also a honorable mention but finding a used one in the price range and location was tricky since the battery being doubled in size makes it more expensive right away. I think had I found one a few less k's I would have made a move on one. While overall smaller and more car like It was very roomy in the back seats similar to the soul and had some great tech features like the some of the leaf models have with surround cameras auto start remote functions without the need to being plugged in. The value for the range on those are the best to date but again the 2016 kia soul just works out better for my needs currently.

The soul is my best choice I am still in awe of the value and efficiency this 27kw feels like a 30kw and the size is close to the escape / crv /rav4 smaller suv's. Caleveras Congrats ! That looks like a nice price for a 2017 + and the dealer may be wrong be sure to check with kia directly on the powertrain remaining as I have 6 years left on mine a 2016 model so you should have 7 years.

 

[Calaveras]

@freesoulev
As caught by others, the warranty info I had was wrong.

Just ordered weather tech floor mats which are great for the snow days.

I am still deciding on the trunk mats. I usually keep a big ice chest back there for shopping trips and put anything that spills in there.

 

[warren55]

I bought one off eBay, but this is cheaper than the one I got! https://www.ebay.com/itm/2016-Kia-Soul-Rear-Cargo-Black-Rubber-Trunk-Floor-Mat-OEM-LKQ-/192964555854?_trksid=p2385738.m4383.l4275.c10

 

[Calaveras]

We did our longest road trip today. From east of Sacramento to Monterey. We charged in Patterson and in Hollister on the way there and we charged in Santa Nella and Stockton on the way home.

We got one warning light come on the suggested some issue with the EV system. If was on the way back. I suspect doing 3 DC QC in one day was heating the battery or coolant too much. We got a hotel in Santa Nella and let it cool down. In the morning it was fine. Total cost for charging was under $40. It was just a pain to have to use three different apps or cards to charge. At least one of the chargers was not on plugshare app yet. It is the closest to a one stop app for me