2017 Kia Soul buying guide

A data-driven checklist for buying a used 2017 Kia Soul, built from 270 owner complaints, 1 recall campaigns, 101 service bulletins and federal safety records — not opinions.

Know before you buy

1 recall campaigns affect this model year. Check each one and confirm the repairs were done — recall work is free at any authorized dealer.
Main problem areas: engine (190), electrical system (19), power train (19), fuel/propulsion system (18), air bags (16).
Symptoms owners describe: stalling (41), check engine light (39), clunking / rattling (27), oil consumption (25), loss of power (16), vibration / shaking (9). Test-drive with these in mind.
Reported incident mileage: among 111 complaints with a usable odometer reading, half were filed between 46,000 and 95,653 miles (median 75,000). This describes when owners reported problems — it does not predict when a particular vehicle will develop one.
Crash-test rating: 5/5 stars overall from NHTSA. Full safety record.
Fuel economy: 27–28 MPG combined (EPA; engines: 1.6L 4-cyl, 2L 4-cyl).

When problems get reported

Reported incident mileage among 111 complaints with usable odometer readings.

under 20k		21
20–40k		3
40–60k		11
60–80k		24
80–100k		27
100–150k		23
150k+		2

Before you hand over money

Run the VIN through our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact build.
Check open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls — a recall that was never fixed is a free repair you can claim.
Get a pre-purchase inspection focused on the problem areas listed above.

This guide is generated from official NHTSA, EPA and FARS records. Complaints are unverified owner reports and raw counts are not adjusted for sales volume.