Should we buy this 2016 for $11K (US) ?

[Tibbs]

I found a 2016 EV base with 64kmi for just shy of $11,000USD in the bay area at a Kia dealer. Car Fax shows it was a lease with 42k miles driven, then a second owner had it for a little over 2 years and got it up to current mileage. Good news is the battery seems to already have been replaced between the first and second owners (the same dealer sold it to the second owner so I'm hoping to ask for more info on the whole story).

How have these second batteries held up? I haven't seen them mentioned so far in threads. Edit – Just found the thread on replacement battery performance and it sounds pretty promising. I'd love to get a SOH report from them but I'm guessing charging it to full then running it down and recharging isn't something I'll be able to do. Is it even worth asking for a SOH in its current state? I'm guessing that these cars move so fast they might not want to bother with my request. It's not too hot or cold here ever so I don't feel too worried about that. The 22,000mi in two years driven by the 2nd owner in the bay area definitely says commuter car to me, but probably a mix of stop & go and moderate speeds, likely not 70mph+ all the time, but who knows.

Overall I appreciate the fit a great deal. We test drove it and a 2018 Niro PHEV @ $28,900USD yesterday, and at 6'4" I was pretty comfortable in each. I'm scrapping my '04 Toyota Matrix to a clean air program an they're giving me $7500 toward a BEV/PHEV (has to be under $46kUS, under 75,000mi, and 2014 or newer), so this is a chance to upgrade. Main car is a 2010 Prius and we've used it to go camping a fair amount this summer with a roof bags and two kids in back (6 & 3yo).

We'd wanted to make the jump to buy a RAV4 Prime to give us more space but the payments are more than we want to be on the hook for. The Niro PHEV caught our eye as an alternative but really its only slightly roomier than the Prius and actually has slightly less trunk area. I didn't like the fit of a Leaf.

Coming back to the concerns at hand…
Will this 2016 EV have a pretty good battery health for another 3-5 years?
Do replacement batteries get a new warranty? is the original 10yr/100,000mi still in effect?
Is there really no way to remotely control the charging now that 3G is gone? Or are there chargers that I can remotely program?
Anything else I should think about/ask?

-Jamie
Thanks!

 

[JejuSoul]

-
It's not your car, but a similar one in the Bay Area.
This car was the very first on this forum to show battery problems.
27,000 miles 86-mile range; my Soul EV commute is over

Cars in the US do not get a battery with new cells they get a refurbished battery.
Using my car as an example to show how the second battery is better than the first may not be a good idea in the US.
Instead look at this thread.
Second Battery replacement! 2015

 

[gogogut]

I am in a similar position. Used 2017 soul ev on a non-Kia dealership lot. Has under 20k miles from one previous lease. Since they are not a Kia dealer, they know nothing about the car and can’t provide any report on the battery. Wondering if I should take the risk of buying it since it still has a few months left of its basic warranty and the battery warranty is good for 10 years.
The only problem is that the touchscreen doesn’t work. They supposedly are taking it to a Kia dealership to look into that problem. No way I would but it if that isn’t fixed, especially since that warranty is now past.
Thanks for any advice. And I would love to hear more about the limitations due to the end of 3G and any workarounds.

 

[IanL]

If it is being taken to a KIA dealer, they could ask for a battery SOH readout. Also, if it is a late 2017 (I think after August) it will have the 30 kWh battery, which has the improved technology cells. Those car have a "J" for the 10th character of the VIN.

 

[MassDeduction]

If it is being taken to a KIA dealer, they could ask for a battery SOH readout. Also, if it is a late 2017 (I think after August) it will have the 30 kWh battery, which has the improved technology cells. Those car have a "J" for the 10th character of the VIN.

Is there much benefit to the improved cells from the 2017 model year if the car is being used in a mild climate? I have two people in my circle with 2016s, so I'm curious whether how much we short-changed ourselves (if at all) by not splurging for the 2017 model. We live in a part of the world where it's rarely very hot in the summer, and rarely very cold in the winter, so maybe it doesn't make as much difference here?

 

[IanL]

Is there much benefit to the improved cells from the 2017 model year if the car is being used in a mild climate? I have two people in my circle with 2016s, so I'm curious whether how much we short-changed ourselves (if at all) by not splurging for the 2017 model. We live in a part of the world where it's rarely very hot in the summer, and rarely very cold in the winter, so maybe it doesn't make as much difference here?

Oh yes. There have been quite a few battery replacements in the UK for the 27kWh cars, but I can't recall any for the 30 kWh models. Mine is a late 2017-built 30 kWh which still has over 100% SOH ( I calculate about 102%). I seriously doubt there is an early 2017 27 kWh car with more than 90%, and most are probably in the 80s. Plus you get the extra 3 kWh range. Interestingly, 2016 model owners who have recently had new batteries have got the new technology cells, which seem to give nearly 30 kWh usable, even with 4 cells less.

 

[ishiyakazuo]

Oh yes. There have been quite a few battery replacements in the UK for the 27kWh cars, but I can't recall any for the 30 kWh models. Mine is a late 2017-built 30 kWh which still has over 100% SOH ( I calculate about 102%). I seriously doubt there is an early 2017 27 kWh car with more than 90%, and most are probably in the 80s. Plus you get the extra 3 kWh range. Interestingly, 2016 model owners who have recently had new batteries have got the new technology cells, which seem to give nearly 30 kWh usable, even with 4 cells less.

My 2017 27kWh reports 95% SOH in SoulSpy as of last month (May 2022)... mine was a fairly late 2017 model year car, though -- I've checked and it's got the E4000 battery model number on the sticker, but I've been seeing over 100 miles of range in it fairly regularly, so it seems to be behaving more like the E4200 with the new chemistry. No record of a battery replacement, so I may just have an outlier. Maybe it somehow did get the new cells?
(All that being said, while the 27kWh has served me amazingly well thus far, I would feel better with an extra few kWh buffer in some cases... I'm not going to complain as it's been well within the ranges I tend to drive, even though I've only been charging to ~80% -- my car doesn't allow setting to 80% so I've just been timing it roughly.)
If I could get another Soul EV for my parents for a reasonable price, I'd jump on it, especially if it was in imminent need of a battery replacement, assuming it was still eligible by having a good service record.

 

[IanL]

That's interesting. It was my understanding that the ability to set 80% charge was removed with the 30kWh battery introduction - there had to be a new BMS because of the extra four cell-pairs. Do you have a 96 cell-pair battery, not 100? Should be visible in SoulSpy.

 

[Paleyrenk]

How have these second batteries held up?

The second generation batteries in the 2016 Kia Soul EV have held up very well. In a recent study by InsideEVs, a 2016 Soul EV with a replacement battery was able to achieve a range of 100 km (62 miles) on a single charge, which is very close to the original EPA range of 111 miles.

Will this 2016 EV have a pretty good battery health for another 3-5 years?

It is difficult to say for sure how long a specific battery will last, but based on the data available, it is likely that a 2016 Kia Soul EV with a replacement battery will have a pretty good battery health for another 3-5 years.

Do replacement batteries get a new warranty? is the original 10yr/100,000mi still in effect?

Replacement batteries typically come with a new warranty, typically 5 years or 60,000 miles. However, it is important to check with the dealer or manufacturer to confirm the specific warranty terms for the replacement battery.

Is there really no way to remotely control the charging now that 3G is gone? Or are there chargers that I can remotely program?

There are a few ways to remotely control the charging of a 2016 Kia Soul EV, even though 3G is gone. One option is to use a smart charger that supports Wi-Fi or cellular connectivity. Another option is to use a third-party device like the ChargePoint Home Flex charger, which can be remotely controlled using the ChargePoint app.

Anything else I should think about/ask?

Here are a few other things to think about or ask when considering buying a 2016 Kia Soul EV with a replacement battery:

Ask the dealer for more information about the replacement battery, including why it was replaced and when.
Get a State of Health (SOH) report for the battery. This will give you an idea of how much of the battery's original capacity remains.
Ask about the warranty on the replacement battery.
Make sure that the car has been serviced regularly and that all of the maintenance is up to date.
Be aware that the range of the car will be reduced in cold weather.

Overall, the 2016 Kia Soul EV is a great car, and a replacement battery can give it a new lease on life. Just be sure to do your research and ask the right questions before you buy. That's help from - JejuSoul edited out the link

 

[JejuSoul]

How have these second batteries held up? ...

This looks a ChatGPT comment.
Maybe the first Spam using AI filler I have seen.

Paleyrenk - please reply if this isn't spam and explain what the link at the bottom of your post is. I do not click on spam links!

 

[IanL]

How have these second batteries held up?

The second generation batteries in the 2016 Kia Soul EV have held up very well. In a recent study by InsideEVs, a 2016 Soul EV with a replacement battery was able to achieve a range of 100 km (62 miles) on a single charge, which is very close to the original EPA range of 111 miles.

62 miles is very close to 111 miles? I don't think so.

 

[jray3]

Good Catch Jeju- not all noobs are neural nets, but at least most neural nets are still noobs! :roll:

How have these second batteries held up? ...

This looks a ChatGPT comment.
Maybe the first Spam using AI filler I have seen.

Paleyrenk - please reply if this isn't spam and explain what the link at the bottom of your post is. I do not click on spam links!

 

[ishiyakazuo]

That's interesting. It was my understanding that the ability to set 80% charge was removed with the 30kWh battery introduction - there had to be a new BMS because of the extra four cell-pairs. Do you have a 96 cell-pair battery, not 100? Should be visible in SoulSpy.

Sorry, missed this reply ages ago... I took in my Soul EV for maintenance recently and asked about the battery recall, and whether it even applied to my car, since I seemed to not have the E400 cells, and they said I do have the E400 cells, and showed me a record of the cells being swapped in 2019 (before I had the car). But they also said that my car doesn't seem to be subject to the recall in their system anymore, so I guess that explains why my 96-cell car had a 95% SOH back in 2022. (I haven't noticed much range degradation in the last 2 years, but the range estimate the car gives is down about 10 miles, so maybe I should whip out Soul Spy again and see what it's saying today...)

 

[IanL]

Yes, my car with original E400 battery cells is also not subject to the recall - if they haven't made a mistake, the recall does not affect all E400 , but one can only speculate why.

 

[JejuSoul]

That's interesting. It was my understanding that the ability to set 80% charge was removed with the 30kWh battery introduction - there had to be a new BMS because of the extra four cell-pairs. Do you have a 96 cell-pair battery, not 100? Should be visible in SoulSpy.

This is wrong. The change was in 2017 to 27kWh cars. It was done to 'game' the EPA distance measure. Not really Kia's fault. It was a stupid rule. With an 80% setting the car's max range was set 10% lower. Kia's fault was not to restore the setting when the EPA dropped the rule.
What Kia did do that was sneaky was not to increase the advertised range in 2017 but wait until the 30 KWh version came out in 2018. This gave an artificial 10% bump in range to the new version to make that car look better. ( The rest of the range increase is due to added cells 4% and increased capacity 7%. Subtract a percent for higher weight which cancels out the increased efficiency due to higher voltage.)