2012 Kia Soul
Price: $15,700.
Fuel economy: 27 mpg city and 35 mpg highway.
The 2012 Kia Soul is another of those cars that has so many standard features that we can recommend the base model.
Boasting the most cargo room among our seven urban warriors at 23.7 cubic feet, it also offers the largest passenger compartment. It's about midpack in "parkability." The steering is responsive and well-suited to moving around tight spaces.
Kia boosted the power in the base 1.6-liter, four-cylinder engine to give it 138 ponies. Included in the posted price is a six-speed automatic transmission that adds some extra standard equipment, such as remote keyless entry and Bluetooth connectivity.
Among the standard features are air conditioning, full power accessories, six air bags, cruise control, trip computer, tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel, and a four-speaker audio system with CD player and USB/auxiliary input jacks for your music-playing device.