Upon declaring the arrival of this series of GoodCarBadCar.net articles, The Good Car Guy specifically avoided naming the winner of the most categories as the overall winner. Kia's tidily packaged Soul and Nissan's appropriately named Cube are far too unique to put in the proverbial box. Subjectivity takes hold with vehicles such as these... and it doesn't let go. That being said, there are straightforward variances when reviewing these two vehicles that must be pointed out.Today's subjects are the interiors of the Soul and Cube. Let's get the nitty-gritty numbers out of the way for starters. Kia's car is larger overall in both length and width; though the Cube's advantage in height pays off in one specific area. Because of the Korean's size advantage, the Soul has more room behind the second row of seats, more room for legs in the rear perch, and provides greater opportunity for squeezing three passengers back there, too.
Though the Cube fits far less in the rear cargo area when the rear bench is being used (7.9 cubic feet less, in fact), the Soul loses out when seats are folded. Yes, that's where the Cube's height advantage comes into play. Nissan owners can enjoy nearly five cubic feet of total cargo capacity when filling straight to the roof.
Capaciousness covered; take time to think about comfort. Nissan has designed the Cube with this word in mind. Not only is the suspension engineered for cushiness, the seats are configured for octogenerian driving styles. Side bolstering is all but absent. Toss the Cube around any corner and you'll be sliding into your neighbour. That's not comfortable at all. Even so, one must not deny the third-generation Cube's superior all-around arrangement of nooks, crannies, and controls compared with the first-generation Soul. Expect the Kia to catch up on this front come 2014 or so.
Finally, take style into account. Beauty truly finds itself in the eye of the beholder. Fortunately, Nissan and Kia have produced completely different atmospheres inside their boxy cars. At least one should appeal to every beholder; both will attract the style-conscious.
It isn't hard to look past the gap between the Cube's two front seats and remember the Cube's genesis as a front-bench kind of car. Contrasting with the Nissan's centred configuration that clearly favours all passengers equally, the Soul's dashboard area is more aggressive and also a little more... well, normal.
Feel free to admit your belief that the Nissan Cube's interior style is more eye-catching; but adding the Soul's front-seat comfort, five-seat space, and seats-up cargo capacity to its lower-key style sharply distinguishes the Kia's innards as prize-winning.
INTERIOR VERDICT
1st: KIA SOUL 9/10 - Space, a modicum of style, and a superior driving position take the crown. Out-comforting the holder of the comfort key solidifies victory.
2nd: NISSAN CUBE 8/10 - 'Surprisingly spacious' isn't good enough. It's worth mentioning that the folding mechansim for the Cube's rear seat doesn't take the word "fold" seriously enough whereas the Kia's back row folds flat.
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