Opinion: we're not ashamed to admit we like the first-gen Kia Soul

‘A box on wheels’ is one of the common criticisms that’s been levelled at the new Jaguar Type 00 this past month. The same could be argued about the Kia Soul, a car I not-so-secretly have the softest spot for.

We’re not talking about the 2014 facelifted one (a bit prettier, perhaps). Nope, cast your minds back to the first-generation Soul, the boxiest of tyre-wearing boxes on UK roads. What looks unfamiliar in one country, however, is often the norm in another.

Asia loves a boxy car. Well, specifically Japan – home of the Kei car, and a place where boxes on wheels are embraced, so much so Honda named one of its models the ‘N-Box’. I lived there for a couple of years in my youth and when I first saw the Soul here in Blighty it evoked a pleasant sense of nostalgia.

At the time of the Soul’s launch, the dominant shape of cars meant there were more curves than the Microlino Spiaggina, thusly the Soul's square demeanour offered a refreshing change.

The model was also the reason I would find myself hooning around the back streets of Seoul in a Ray EV. The Ray was a micro car made for the Korean market, and to all intents and purposes, a mini version of the Soul. Since the Soul EV was about to launch imminently to the home market, Kia went on a (very fun and memorable) mission to showcase its early EV tech in something else. And this was back when the number of EVs on the market could be counted on one hand – a hand in which I was too busy juggling the requisite fistful of EV charge point access cards to liberate fingers to count anything anyway.

Granted, this is a poor excuse for an SUV. It doesn't really look like one – distinctive but not unlikeable – and it hasn't any 4WD capability. And yet, it has many of the other benefits bestowed to compact crossovers without the ostentatious stance. It's easier for grandparents to climb into, there's a generous amount of practical space, and the cabin tech was impressive at the time.

Granted, those bucket seats coupled with that stiffer suspension was not kind to the behind, so to speak. But overlook the cheap plastic interior, grab a cushion and wear some headphones to drown out the noisy engine, then this understated outlier is a good-looking, reliable box of joy.