Tuesday, December 7, 2010

What would be your 2010 Subcompact Car of the Year?

2010 Kia Soul

The end of the year always bring the "INSERT TITLE of the Year" awards. Film of the Year, Song of the Year, sports plays of the year, etc. Of course, there are the top cars of the year, too. Several sites have run their "INSERT CAR RELATED THING of the Year," and I thought, what would be my Subcompact Car of the year?

However, if I had to name a '10 model year vehicle as "Subcompact Car of the Year," I'd have to say the Kia Soul. Its sales have been outstanding, it's made people seriously look at the Kia brand that may have never considered a Kia. The Soul was marketed very well, and overall, the car is quite decent and is definitely a bang for the buck.In fact, the Soul, much like Scion's original xB, has brought new people into the small car realm, and that's significant.

Some don't like to think of the Soul as a subcompact, but its wheelbase is within subcompact territory. Its exterior isn't exactly C-segment, but more like B+ segment. So I'm sticking with my argument the Soul would be eligible for a Subcompact Car of the Year Award.

So what would your Subcompact Car of the Year be?

Now keep in mind, this would be for 2010 models only, so the Ford Fiesta and Mazda 2, for example, would be out of contention. These models will have to wait until 2011.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I really like the new Fiesta. Seems like a great little car.

murphyseanm said...

In all honesty I would have to say the 2010 Suzuki SX4. It was a near complete refresh for everything inside the sheet metal on that car. The J20b is a much better engine than the Beta II in the Soul, the SX4 has AWD, the Soul has Hamsters, and I will take Italdesign over Kia California Design any day.

Unknown said...

Hamsters...that's enough for the Soul to win this year. The Fiesta is a great car who's time has not arrived yet, but obviously, subcompact sales are trending downward, so the Fiesta should go up sooner or later.

Chris said...

I'd have to go Fiesta. It seems to be the one making the greatest effort at reinventing what a subcompact can be. Aside from the Mini, which takes that message to the extreme, and the Fiat 500, which simply isn't here yet.

Andy Lilienthal said...

No Fiesta for 2010 Subcompact Car of the Year: It's a 2011 model.

D2M said...

If I could get a second car, it would totally be the Soul. It looks great and you get a lot of bang-per-buck.

I think the Suzuki SX4 is good if you live in an area that needs AWD. I live in Texas and I really don't need it. Plus the nearest dealership is 2 hours away. xD

Josh M. said...

Nissan Juke. It's interior and exterior have really changed a lot of perceptions of Sub-compacts. My buddy just bought one who used to own a Ford Explorer...

D2M said...

I SAW A JUKE! But only from the side. It didn't look that bad actually. :D

Andy Lilienthal said...

Well, again, the Juke is a 2011. I have seen a Juke on the lot, though. Haven't seen one on the road, yet though.