2014 Kia Soul + on 2040-cars

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2014 Kia Soul

Rounding Out The Market's Best Box
As a car critic, you can tell a lot about a new car just by looking at a map. That's because more often than not, the geography of where a vehicle is initially launched will tell you a surprising amount about how the automaker feels about its new baby. Manufacturers want their models to be shown in the best light - dynamically and socially - so they put a lot of thought into where they first let members of the media slip behind the wheel. Luxury cars nestle up closely to swank hotels in the globe's trendiest locales, high-performance cars are let loose on breathtaking mountain roads with adjacent racetracks, and so on. It all makes for a tough life, as you can imagine.
So consider it telling that when Kia first launched the Soul way back in 2009, it did so in Miami. Trendy? Check. Billiard-table level, arrow-straight smooth roads? Frequently snarled with traffic? Check and check. You see, good as it was, the original Soul wasn't a particularly thrilling driver. Competent, sure, but its simplistic suspension, modest power and upright dimensions didn't exactly afford it entertaining driving dynamics. Which is exactly why Kia launched it in an environment utterly devoid of potholes and curves (save those conjured by the area's robust plastic surgery community), instead choosing a city loaded down with pedestrians and slow-moving motorists.

Kia prepping Provo-inspired Mazda CX-3 challenger for 2017

Kia will be joining the fray in the sub-compact crossover segment, Australia's Motoring reports. The company could introduce a challenger to the Mazda CX-3, Jeep Renegade, Honda HR-V, and Toyota C-HR as early as this year's Los Angeles Auto Show. Kia Australia COO Damien Meredith told Motoring the new CUV will ride on the same platform as the redesigned Rio, and Kia will build the two compacts alongside each other, in South Korea. Kia hasn't gotten so far as naming the new crossover – at least it's not as far as wanting to publish a name – but it should draw inspiration from the Provo Concept the 2013 Geneva Motor Show. But it's tough to predict what that means. The Provo is, after all, a small hatchback. If Meredith came out and said it'd inspire the next Rio, it'd be an easier pill to swallow, but converting such an aggressive vehicle to CUV duty while retaining the overall look could be a challenge. That said, Kia's designs have become increasingly extroverted over the past several years – we can't wait to see what Peter Schreyer and his team come up with. According to Motoring, the Rio-based CUV could hit the market in the third quarter of 2017, which would put it several months behind the redesigned Rio. While that applies to the Australian market, a debut at Los Angeles or even in January 2017 at Detroit could lead to a similar timeline for a US on-sale date. Related Video:

Trump encouraged by talk of 'a level playing field' on trade with South Korea

South Korea is a longstanding American ally, but President Donald Trump has spoken harshly about U.S. trade imbalances and threatened to tear up the bilateral trade pact. "We will do more to remove barriers to reciprocal trade and market access," Trump said, adding that the two leaders had talked about the thorny trade areas of steel and autos. Trump said he was encouraged by South Korea's President Moon Jae-in's assurances that he would seek a level playing field for American workers and businesses, particularly automakers. A joint statement said the two sides had agreed to work together to reduce over supply of basic materials such as steel and non-tariff barriers. It also said Trump had accepted an invitation from Moon to visit South Korea this year. Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank, said it was unwise for Trump to air the trade issue so publicly. "Public complaints by Trump about unfair trade and inadequate defense spending provide opportunities for China and North Korea to drive a wedge between the allies," she said. The U.S. goods trade deficit with South Korea has more than doubled since the U.S.-Korea free trade pact known as KORUS took effect in 2012. The agreement was forecast to boost U.S. exports by $10 billion a year, but in 2016 they were $3 billion lower than in 2011. At the start of Friday's talks, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the largest component of the deficit was automotive trade and many non-tariff barriers to U.S. auto exports to South Korea remained. "I think the way to address it is to deal product by product with what we can do to change the export side and what we can do to reduce the bad imports side," he said. Ross said later on Friday that some progress had been made in the talks. The current pact was agreed to despite protests by supporters of Moon, who was then in opposition. But analysts have suggested that given the need to preserve a unified front in the face of a hostile North Korea, there could be compromise on both sides to resolve issues. (By David Brunnstrom and Lisa Lambert. Additional reporting by Fatima Bhojani, Roberta Rampton, Tim Ahmann, David Chance, David Lawder and Eric Beech; Editing by Bill Trott and Andrew Hay) Related Video: Image Credit: Kim Hong-Ji / Reuters Government/Legal Genesis Hyundai Kia trade