It’s got heart and Soul of a champion

Sermons stop when this attention-grabber goes by

TECHNOLOGY, technology, and technology. I am not a techno guru, nor am I am a big fan of gadgets, okay? Perhaps the little ones ( cellphones and tablets) bore me. However, when they said “Here is your car,” I thought to myself: “Geez! This is the kind of toy I do not mind ‘playing’ with.”

I used to think Kia’s designers didn’t care about people like me: they think only about the young and those of medium height – people who wouldn’t mind being in a Cerato, Picanto, Rio or the models I would recommend for people who are 45 years and older, the Optima, Sorento and Sportage models.

Then came the Kia Soul.

I sat comfortably in the front, and there was enough legroom for the rear seat. My 1.88m frame didn’t have to worry about my head touching the roof. I felt at home. It fitted well with my age (24), it was perfect for my peers and those older than I am.

Kia had me and the people like me in mind when they designed this car.

The car’s speakers are incorporated in the interior design, like little vases well placed in the left and right corners. But instead of holding flowers, they release soul-soothing sounds.

Listening to Marvin Sapp, Israel Houghton and Kari Jobe, to name a few, was soulful in the Soul. The car has a Bluetooth connection, so you can play all your MP3 tracks. And if you disconnect the phone from the car music system, the reconnection takes you back to the song it was playing before it shut down.

The longest trip I took was from the Joburg central business district to Pankop, my home village in Mpumalanga. It was just after 9pm and it was the first time I had driven the car at night.

After scratching my head, wondering how I was going to adjust the brightness of the lights, I started the car (with a push button) and got on the road. Twenty metres on, I realised that the lights were automated. The intelligence of the car blew my mind.

The boot space is big enough. In this five-door car, you can pack enough luggage for the whole family for a weekend getaway.

The car is an attention-grabber. Its unique look got everyone talking. When I got to church on Sunday morning, everybody walked out of the building to look at it.

My eyes were constantly on the fuel gauge. I went to Krugersdorp on the day I got the car, a trip of about 30km. However, I came back with a gauge that was still on full. I thought something was wrong with the gauge. But that is the attraction of a diesel car – it’s much more economical than a petrol version.

At a supermarket, I noticed a crowd gathered around the car. I thought something had happened to it. But, as I approached and unlocked the car – an action that is accompanied by the side mirrors opening out and lights flashing – I received a guard of honour.

I realised that the new Kia had won people’s hearts

The technology is cool. The car has speed. It has gadgets. It’s economical. But its sporty look is ridiculously eye-catching. The interior design is ridiculously beautiful.

This Kia has a ridiculously amazing Soul!