2020 Kia Soul vs 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV

Buying a car blends pragmatic and emotional factors. You know you need a car to do certain things, but you also have preferences about how your car looks and perhaps how its brand's image is generally perceived. You used to have to make sacrifices if you wanted something affordable and economical. Look at small, affordable cars of the past; it's a depressing set of subpar cars.

Automakers have ensured that, with a few exceptions, there are no more truly bad cars, and that extends to the economy-car segment. But even in this competent segment of vehicles, one car stands out from the rest with refined driving dynamics, a lower starting price than most of its competitors, and form and function delivered in equal quantities.

Meet the 2020 Kia Soul. You've probably seen the hamster ads, and you’ve definitely seen this boxy little hatchback on the road. Its particular combination of boxy design and compact size makes it something of a rarity. On the one hand, it competes with small hatchbacks like the Honda Fit and Volkswagen Golf. And on the other hand, you could legitimately cross-shop it against subcompact SUVs like the Subaru Crosstrek and Jeep Renegade.

To top it all off, its latest redesign makes the Soul look more futuristic than anything you’ll find from Tesla; it's truly one of a kind. Take a closer look at the 2020 Kia Soul, because few cars do form and function any better.

Spend any time reading the news, and you’ll likely read about electric vehicles. They are influencing the stock prices of major automakers, and in turn, those automakers are investing heavily into a burgeoning market of EV startups. And yet, electric cars make up an incredibly small portion of the new car market. For all the news and hype, there are only a handful of actual models on the road today. They fall into two categories: larger, luxury-minded EVs like those offered by Tesla, and smaller, minimalist offerings such as the Nissan Leaf and the 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV.

Like the Leaf, the Bolt does things differently from Tesla. It uses a smaller battery pack and maximizes the efficiency of its nimble platform. The Bolt EV does not have the range or acceleration of the Teslas, but for many Americans, an EV like the Bolt EV is something closer to what they can afford. But is the Bolt EV right for you? Read on to learn more about this economic electric vehicle.