2013 Kia Soul Plus Hatchback 4-door 2.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Hyundai-Kia fuel-economy errors trigger $300M in federal penalties [w/video]

This amount includes $100-million in civil penalties, the largest such fines in EPA history.
Hyundai and Kia are getting more than a slap on the wrist for overstating the fuel economy of an estimated 1.2-million vehicles in their 2011-2013 model ranges. The Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Justice and the California Air Resources Board are hitting the automakers with collective penalties valued at around $300 million for Clean Air Act violations. This amount includes $100-million in civil penalties, the largest such fines in EPA history. Specifically, Hyundai is paying a $56.8 million penalty and relinquishing 2.7-million greenhouse gas emissions credits. Kia is paying $43.2 million in penalties and giving up 2.05-million credits.

Kia Soul EV starts production in Korea

As sister company Hyundai delivers its first Tucson fuel cell vehicles in California, Kia has kicked off volume production of the Soul EV in Korea. We've driven the prototype and are excited about the arrival of this electric vehicle. Kia is already calling the production start a landmark event, but let's remember that other automakers have been building production EVs for years now. The EVs won't be exported outside of Korea until later in 2014, but the automaker is hoping to make 5,000 a year at its Gwangju facility. The first batch is headed to "select European countries" with more coming to Europe at a later date. The vehicle might be coming to the US in the third quarter. The Soul EV is Kia's second production EV, following the Ray EV. Kia only made 2,500 of them for governmental agency use in Korea. We've got a little video on the Soul EV here. As a reminder, the Soul has a 27-kWh lithium-ion polymer battery which is good for a now-official range (on the European test cycle) of 212 kilometers. That's 132 miles, but expect a good chunk to get knocked off when it gets rated on the US text cycle. For example, the Nissan Leaf is rated at 199 kilometers (123 miles) in Europe but only 84 miles from the EPA. Read Kia's press release below. Start of production for all-electric Kia Soul EV Volume production of Soul EV for export is a landmark in Kia's history Ideal for commuters, Soul EV goes on sale outside Korea later in 2014 Class-leading drive range of 212 km certified for Europe 81.4 kW motor produces 285 Nm of torque for 'fun-to-drive' motoring The first vehicles off the production line are destined for select European countries and are scheduled to go on sale across the continent during the second half of the year. The Soul EV is manufactured at Kia's Gwangju facility in Korea, where annual output of the electric car is planned to reach 5,000 units. "Now that production of export models has begun, the new Soul EV is truly at the forefront of Kia's 'Clean Mobility' program, providing environmentally-friendly transport to our customers around the world," comments Thomas Oh, Executive Vice President and COO, Kia Motors Corporation.

Hyundai Q1 profit triples, as it adjusts production due to chip shortage

  SEOUL — Hyundai Motor Co posted a first-quarter profit that nearly tripled to its highest in four years as people bought its luxury cars, but warned it would have to adjust production again in May because of a chip shortage. Unlike its rivals, the South Korean automaker staved off production halts in the first quarter, thanks to a healthy chip inventory. But the shortage, exacerbated by factors including a fire at a chip factory in Japan and storms in Texas, is now catching up with Hyundai. Hyundai, which has lagged its rivals in the electric vehicle (EV) race, also said on Thursday that it was developing solid-state batteries and planned to mass produce EVs using solid state batteries in 2030. In February, Hyundai launched its Ioniq 5 electric midsize crossover, the first in a planned family of EVs that it hopes will propel it into the third rank of global EV makers by 2025. Hyundai Motor and Kia together aim to sell 1 million EVs in 2025. In the quarter ended March 31, Hyundai was unscathed as people at home and the United States snapped up its high-margin sports-utility vehicles and premium Genesis cars as the coronavirus pandemic dragged on, fueling car ownership. Net profit surged 187% to 1.3 trillion won ($1.16 billion) from 463 billion a year earlier, when business slumped as countries shut down to limit the spread of the coronavirus. This was in line with an average Refinitiv SmartEstimate. Revenue rose 8.2% to 27.4 trillion won. Hyundai is expected to report net profit of 1.4 trillion won for the April-June period, up 536% from the corresponding period a year earlier, Refinitiv SmartEstimate showed. Hyundai affiliate Kia Corp reported operating profit of 1.1 trillion won for January-March, up 142% on the year. Hyundai, which together with Kia is among the world's top 10 automakers by sales, has temporarily paused production three times since the beginning of this month and saved chips for its most popular models. "The condition of semiconductor parts is being a little more prolonged than we expected," said Seo Gang-hyun, an executive vice president at Hyundai. "As the semiconductor procurement condition is rapidly changing, it's difficult to predict production status after May.