JIMMY:

comes with a 130-hp 1.6-liter 4-cylinder engine and 6-speed manual transmission. The midpoint Plus (+) starts at $19,800 and comes with a 161-hp, 2.0liter 4-cylinder engine, 6-speed automatic transmission, 5-inch touchscreen, rearview camera, better cloth seating surfaces and 17-inch wheels. The Exclaim (!), at $22,800, has the new engine, leather upholstery, 18-inch wheels and keyless ignition. This is the trim that begins to separate it from its more economical stablemates.

I’m all about value. The interior is surprisingly nice and does carry over enough quirks from the outside to the inside. It may not be to everyone’s liking, but the interior styling is consistent with the exterior. My tester had leatherette seats with piping to match the exterior color. On the nonleather seating surface was a checkerboard-like pattern. The seats are supportive and have a nice angle. The dashboard doesn’t have many soft touch points, but is clean and well organized. The minimalistic approach to the interior design seems apropos for a car of this price range.

For a car that is well short of 14 feet in length, there is a surprising amount of passenger

DAVE:

and cargo space. The upright stance certainly plays a part in this so two adults can ride reasonably comfortably in the back seat, and there is 24 cubic feet of cargo space in the rear. When you fold the rear seats – although there is a not a completely flat floor – cargo space increases to 61 cubic feet. Big things can come in a little box.

JIMMY:

The Soul is one of those cars that people either love or hate. The quirky styling and over-the-top advertising campaign makes it well known. It’s a car with a trim that’s an exclamation point. That says it all right there. But looking past all of that, you find a compact hatchback with a lot of merit. You get a lot of personality for a small price tag.