The fictional Blues Brothers, a musical duo played by the immortal pairing of John Belushi and Dan Akroyd, liked to sing Sam & Dave's hit "Soul Man." Were the Blues Brothers to sing it today, we like to think they would amend the lyrics to "Soul Person"; unfortunatelty for them, the Kia Soul didn’t exist when the original movie was released in 1980 so there's no way they could have predicted this fun hatchback's crossover appeal. Another multi-purpose vehicle, the 2016 Buick Encore, is a popular model and has its charms as well, so let's put the 2016 Kia Soul vs. 2016 Buick Encore on stage and see which is called back by the fans at the end of the performance.
If you like to save money, then you'll be clapping and cheering on the 2016 Kia Soul for hours, as it costs a mere $11,670 with available Friendly Kia VIP pricing, while our competition has the 2016 Buick Encore set at prices that start north of $20,000.
And when it comes to the design of these vehicles, there's no contest. While there is nothing inherently wrong with how the 2016 Encore looks, it's basically a more condensed version of what many small SUVs look like, while the 2016 Soul maintains its distinct boxy shape that is both geometric and utterly unique. Speaking of features where the Soul wins in a landslide, its cargo room is an SUV-like 61.3 cubic feet, an additional 20 percent more room than the 2016 Encore has for shopping bags and luggage.
Read more about the awards, hamsters and specifications of the Kia Soul
2016 Kia Soul | Vs. | 2016 Buick Encore |
$11,670 (Friendly Kia VIP) | Price | $20,896 (The Competition) |
164 | Top HP | 153 |
Yes (seven in a row) | 2016 IIHS Top Safety Pick? | Yes (two in a row) |
Yes (third consecutive year) | 2016 AutoPacific Vehicle Satisfaction Award? | No |
61.3 | Cargo Room (cubic feet) | 48.4 |
101 | Passenger Volume (cubic feet) | 92.8 |