Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Taos deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Taos’ side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Soul’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.
The Taos has a standard Automatic Post-Collision Braking System, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Soul doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.
Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Taos SEL has standard Maneuver Braking that use rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. The Soul doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.
The Taos offers all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Soul doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.
The Taos has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. A system to reveal vehicles in the Soul’s blind spot costs extra.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Taos has standard Rear Traffic Alert and automatically engage the brakes. Kia charges extra for Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning on the Soul.
Compared to metal, the Taos’ plastic fuel tank can withstand harder, more intrusive impacts without leaking; this decreases the possibility of fire. The Kia Soul has a metal gas tank.
The Taos has standard Car-Net, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Soul doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.
Both the Taos and the Soul have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and available rear parking sensors.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Volkswagen Taos is safer than the Kia Soul:
|
|
Taos |
Soul |
|
|
Passenger |
|
| STARS |
4 Stars |
4 Stars |
| HIC |
224 |
324 |
| Chest Compression |
.7 inches |
2 inches |
| Neck Stress |
135 lbs. |
160 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Volkswagen Taos is safer than the Kia Soul:
|
|
Taos |
Soul |
|
|
Front Seat |
|
| STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
| HIC |
111 |
142 |
| Chest Movement |
.6 inches |
1 inches |
| Abdominal Force |
115 lbs. |
259 lbs. |
| Hip Force |
394 lbs. |
490 lbs. |
|
|
Rear Seat |
|
| STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
| HIC |
393 |
422 |
| Spine Acceleration |
69 G’s |
73 G’s |
|
|
Into Pole |
|
| STARS |
5 Stars |
3 Stars |
| Max Damage Depth |
12 inches |
13 inches |
| Spine Acceleration |
46 G’s |
46 G’s |
| Hip Force |
939 lbs. |
1090 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.