Kia has built up a solid reputation for building cars that are dependable, practical and great value for the money, but they’ve never really been what I’d call trendsetters.

Together with its sister company, Hyundai, both offer fantastic warranties on their vehicles, but somehow the pair always seemed to me to be treading on each others toes in regards to models.

Well, times have changed for the Korean manufacturers and the two brands have decided to branch off onto differing roads. Hyundai is now well on the way to becoming a prestige vehicle manufacturer with its amazing Genesis, and Kia has decided to venture down the cool and trendy pathway. Yes, you heard that right, Kia is set to become one of the movers and shakers of the auto world and to prove it, let me introduce you to its latest offering, the new 2010 Kia Soul.

One doesn’t have to get that close to this new chunky urban crossover to figure out what it’s all about because the Soul certainly stands out in a crowd, especially when painted orange as my tester was.

Yes, we’ve seen these boxy cube-like designs before (Think Honda Element or Scion xB), but I believe Kia has now perfected that. The Soul takes on a much cutesier look, and with its ultra-modern lighting units, the vehicle appears much more 21^st century than the aforementioned models.

When stepping inside the Soul, one gets not only an immediate sense of space, but also a pleasant feeling of coziness. Its twin-cube boxy design allows for maximum use of the interior space, yet the layout is not as van-like as one would imagine. You tend to sit lower in the Soul than you might first expect, yet higher than you would in a normal car. This allows for plenty of headroom and extremely easy access to and from the car. In fact, it’s almost the perfect height for a vehicle.

The interior has a cool and trendy feel to it, although I have to admit that some of the dashboard plastics could be a little softer to the touch. However, the controls fall readily to hand, and as far as the overall look of the interior goes, I’d rate it higher quality than what you’d expect for a vehicle it its price range.

That naturally raises the issue of pricing, and this is where Kia gains a slight jump over its competitors. The Soul range begins with a 1.6L 5-speed manual version offered at an incredibly low price of $15,495 (The 1.6L is only available with a standard transmission). Although that figure is only slightly under the base price of the Scion xB, when you factor in the long list of features included, like Bluetooth, steering mounted audio controls, heated seats/side mirrors etc, it actually makes this vehicle appear quite reasonably priced. Kia has always prided itself in offering its customers more than they’d bargained for, and this vehicle perfectly demonstrates that.