Kia Soul Reliability — Best and Worst Years by the Data

Quick answer

The 2014 draws 22.89 complaints per run and the 2018 6.39, a 3.6-fold gap within the same model. Half of all complaints arrive by 6 years of age, so 65.7% land after the 5-year basic warranty ends. The system owners report most is Engine, with 3,092 complaints, typically at 6 years.

Kia Soul years to avoid — and the best ones

FIG.01·Kia Soul — complaint rate by model year
Model year	Per run	Complaints	Runs	Enough history?
2025	1.2	12	10	too new
2024	1.76	30	17	too new
2023	3	54	18	too new
2022	5.63	90	16	too new
2021	6.24	231	37	too new
2020	7.8	382	49	yes
2019	4.82	135	28	yes
2018	6.39	211	33	yes
2017	8.42	261	31	yes
2016	15.07	814	54	yes
2015	16.39	885	54	yes
2014	22.89	870	38	yes
2013	19.75	632	32	yes
2012	18	486	27	yes
2011	7.16	179	25	yes
2010	6	114	19	yes

ROWS 16·SOURCE NHTSA complaints, grouped by VIN production run

Does the market discount it? In our listings a 2014 Soul asks a median $4,900, against $5,800 for a 2015, the next model year: about 16% less, so sellers do price some of the trouble in.

Among the 6 Kia Soul years with enough history, the three to walk away from are 2014, 2013, 2015; the three worth hunting are 2018, 2020, 2016.

When it starts to break

FIG.02·Kia Soul — age at failure
Age at failure	Complaints	Running total	Warranty
0 years	289	5.5%	covered
1 year	275	10.6%	covered
2 years	222	14.8%	covered
3 years	400	22.4%	covered
4 years	633	34.3%	covered
5 years	743	48.3%	you pay
6 years	763	62.7%	you pay
7 years	572	73.5%	you pay
8 years	413	81.3%	you pay
9 years	319	87.3%	you pay
10 years	283	92.6%	you pay
11 years	205	96.5%	you pay
12 years	108	98.5%	you pay
13 years	65	99.8%	you pay
14 years	9	99.9%	you pay
15 years	3	100%	you pay

ROWS 16·SOURCE NHTSA complaints with incident dates

Basic warranty on this car is 5 years / 60,000 miles. Only 34.3% of reported failures happen inside it — the remaining 65.7% come out of the owner's pocket. Powertrain cover (10 years / 100,000 miles) reaches further, but it only covers the engine and transmission, which account for about 73% of the complaints here.

What actually fails — and at what age

What waits further out is Engine at 6 years — past every basic warranty, and the bill lands on whoever owns the car then.

FIG.03·Kia Soul — what fails and when
System	Complaints	Typical age	Crash	Fire
Engine	3092	6 yrs	27	223
Unknown Or Other	635	5.7 yrs	20	48
Steering	491	6.1 yrs	31	1
Electrical System	490	5.5 yrs	16	53
Power Train	424	4.5 yrs	8	19
Engine And Engine Cooling	395	6.8 yrs	3	19
Service Brakes	348	7.7 yrs	41	22
Fuel/propulsion System	343	6.1 yrs	7	25

ROWS 8·SOURCE NHTSA complaints

What else in this class

6 models share the Soul's vehicle class. Per production run, the Subaru Impreza draws 1.61, the Honda Fit 3.24 and the Honda HR-V 3.01, against 11.34 for the Soul. That is the most complaints of the group.

FIG.05·Kia Soul — rivals in the same class
Same class as the Soul	Complaints on record	Recall campaigns	Years built
Subaru Impreza	2,763	183	1993–2026
Honda Fit	2,196	94	2007–2020
Honda HR-V	1,836	37	2016–2026
Buick Envista	90	5	2024–2026
Kia Niro	111	29	2017–2026
Infiniti QX50	281	23	2014–2026

ROWS 6·SOURCE NHTSA complaints and recall campaigns

The table shows totals on record; the rates per production run are in the sentence above.

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Everything on the Kia Soul

Recalls39 campaigns Fuel economy114 mpg best Common problems5,584 complaints Check a VINAgainst this exact build DimensionsSize, weight, generations Cargo space24 cu ft Used prices3,774 listings What yours is worthValue by year & mileage Insurance costEstimated per year Window stickerOriginal Monroney label Decode a VINWhat each character means About this car2010–2026

Frequently asked questions

Is the Kia Soul reliable?

By complaints per production run it is worse than typical: 11.34 against 3.73 for the average car, and more than each of the 3 class rivals we compared.

Which Soul years should you avoid?

By complaints per production run, 2014, 2013, 2015. The cleanest years old enough to judge are 2018, 2020, 2016. Years newer than 6 are left out: complaints keep arriving for years after a car is sold.

When do Soul problems usually start?

Half of all complaints arrive by 6 years of age. The most reported system is Engine, typically at 6 years, followed by Unknown Or Other.

Will the warranty cover Soul problems?

Mostly not: basic cover is 5 years / 60,000 miles, and only 34.3% of reported failures fall inside it. Powertrain cover lasts longer, but engine and transmission make up about 73% of the complaints here.

Is the Soul more reliable than the Subaru Impreza?

No: 11.34 complaints per production run for the Soul against 1.61 for the Subaru Impreza.

Complaint records from NHTSA, grouped by VIN production run (characters 1–11). Rates, age-at-failure and warranty coverage computed by ForCar. Model years newer than 6 years are excluded from rankings — complaints accumulate for a decade (how we measure). Last updated Nov 2026. — ForCar Reviewed by Denis Kataev, founder of ForCar.

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