Kia Trail'ster Concept: First Look
Looks like: A Kia Soul ready for off-road trails
Defining characteristics: Lifted ride height, meaty winter tires
Ridiculous features: Blinding array of front LED illumination
Chance of being mass-produced: You never know
An off-road Kia Soul seems like a stretch of the imagination, but the automaker put together a fun, if not convincing, concept at the 2015 Chicago Auto Show called the Kia Trail’ster. Featuring a turbocharged engine, electric all-wheel drive, lifted ride height and various trail-focused features, Kia says the Trail’ster is intended for those looking to escape the urban environment in favor of snow, mud, streams and trails.
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“The Trail’ster concept is a near-future look at how the production Kia Soul would logically evolve into an AWD-capable version that’s built to escape the city streets and roam into the mountain wilderness,” said Tom Kearns, Kia Design Center of America’s chief designer, in a statement.
Though the concept shows off numerous trail-focused bits and pieces, Kia also teases that the Trail’ster’s electric all-wheel-drive system could be a fuel-economy booster if used in a production application. We’re listening, Kia.
The Trail’ster doesn’t look like a heavy-duty, go-anywhere off-road rig; it’s more along the lines of a Subaru XV Crosstrek, a successful raised-ride-height Impreza hatchback. Inspiration for the Trail’ster’s interior and exterior come from high-performance outdoor sporting gear in the form of anodized red wheel accents and billet aluminum highlights. The Trail’ster’s exterior features a full-length retractable canvas roof and a barrage of LED lighting. In the front, the LED headlights are similar to those found in the Kia K900 luxury sedan.
At the core of any off-road vehicle is its drive system. The Trail’ster’s all-wheel drive is composed of an electric motor powering the rear wheels instead of a traditional all-wheel-drive system with mechanical linkage between the rear axle and power transfer connection. The hybrid system has more capability than just all-wheel drive as Kia cites potential fuel-economy improvements over today’s current Soul if employed in the future.
The rear-axle electric drive is designed for low-speed assist during traction-limited situations and is powered by a 1.2-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion polymer battery; the motor makes 35 horsepower and 100 pounds-feet of torque. Additionally, Kia says the electric all-wheel drive also helps mitigate turbocharger lag from the Trail’ster’s 185-hp, turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine and also improves fuel economy versus a traditional all-wheel-drive setup.
The electric motor can drive the Trail’ster concept for up to 3 miles on electric-only power, assist the gasoline engine during acceleration for more power and torque, and limit wheel spin when front wheel slippage is detected. In a production Soul, which is front-wheel drive only, Kia estimates fuel economy could improve 25 to 30 percent in city driving and 5 to 10 percent in highway driving over the 2.0-liter Soul’s 23/31 mpg city/highway ratings.
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