Is that the future?| Off-Topic Discussion forum |

James_S New Reader
10/1/14 7:36 a.m.

Kia's Electric Car Leads The Competition In Value And Range Oct. 1, 2014 4:20 AM ET | About: Kia Motors Corp. (KIMTF), Includes: NSANY, TSLA Disclosure: The author is short TSLA. (More...) Summary

Kia launches its first electric car in the US this week, the Soul EV. At $36,500 loaded and with 93 miles of range, it compares favorable to Nissan’s best-selling LEAF. This is the preview of Kia’s 200 mile electric car I expect to launch in 2017 in order to compete with Tesla’s Model 3. Sales of Kia's (OTC:KIMTF) first electric car, the Soul EV, starts in California in early October, and will extend to some other states in 2015 and beyond. I took it for a spin and compare it to the other similarly priced electric cars in the market, most notably the Nissan LEAF.

But first, let's review Kia's position in the US marketplace, and the Soul nameplate in particular. Kia's overall US sales are up 7% year-to-date and are on target to hit approximately 600,000 cars. The Soul model is up 26% year-to-date and is on track for 160,000 cars in the US this year.

Read more: http://seekingalpha.com/article/2533265-kias-electric-car-leads-the-competition-in-value-and-range http://www.scienceclarified.com/Ca-Ch/Cell-Electrochemical.html http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/transport/story/ntu-scientists-find-way-help-electric-cars-drive-further-single-charg

Duke UltimaDork
10/1/14 7:48 a.m.

Looks like relevant canoe?

N Sperlo MegaDork
10/1/14 8:15 a.m.

Somewhat relevant, but aimed at pulling traffic to another site.

Canoe indeed.

GameboyRMH MegaDork
10/1/14 8:15 a.m.

Not a canoe, but don't just post a link and an article excerpt

Specs are similar to the Leaf and it's a helluva lot better looking...when these things go on sale by me the whole road is going to be nothing but Leafs and Soul EVs!

mtn UltimaDork
10/1/14 8:20 a.m.

I thought it was a canoe as well, but it is not.

mndsm MegaDork
10/1/14 8:27 a.m.

Its not the future till I have my goddamn hoverboard.

T.J. PowerDork
10/1/14 8:33 a.m.

In reply to mndsm:

I want a Mr. Fusion powered car, but I do want to be able to drive 88 mph without being sent to another decade.

N Sperlo MegaDork
10/1/14 9:35 a.m.

mndsm wrote: Its not the future till I have my goddamn hoverboard.

YES!

Anyway, yes. Unfortunately I see the heavy use of unmanned/computer driven vehicles as well. That is scary. I'm all for alternative energies. Yes saving the environment is great. Now give me the keys to my truck back.

mtn UltimaDork
10/1/14 9:46 a.m.

N Sperlo wrote:
mndsm wrote: Its not the future till I have my goddamn hoverboard.
YES! Anyway, yes. Unfortunately I see the heavy use of unmanned/computer driven vehicles as well. That is scary. I'm all for alternative energies. Yes saving the environment is great. Now give me the keys to my truck back.

While I don't like it for what I assume are the same reasons as you (the impending doom of humanity due to our new robot overlords), The statistics are coming back that the computer driven vehicles are safer.

wvumtnbkr Dork
10/1/14 9:50 a.m.

At least in idiocracy they still drove their own cars.

nderwater PowerDork
10/1/14 11:00 a.m.

I really like the Soul and was hoping that it would be a Leaf beater, but the trunk space is small compared to the Leaf and it's slower from 0-60 mph too. So it's a viable Leaf alternative, but not a leap forward.