Photos and Specification of Kia Soul leaked

Kia has confirmed that its new Soul hatchback will be sold in the U.S., with the first models set to arrive in April next year. Now photos of the U.S.-spec model have been leaked, revealing a car essentially identical to the international production version already seen and still true to the concept as well.

The U.S. will receive two petrol models, displacing 1.6 and 2.0L, respectively, while Europe will receive an additional 1.6L turbodiesel. Production of the Soul begins this month in Korea.

Spy photos of the interior reveal the car will share much with the newer models in Kia's lineup, which feature surprisingly high-quality materials and solid ergonomic design. The newly leaked photos, from Kia-World show the car's exterior will remain largley unchanged from previously seen versions of the car.

The Soul was shown in concept form shown as far back as the 2006 Detroit show but it was restyled this year by Kia’s new head of design Peter Schreyer to showcase the carmaker’s latest design language.

The original concept was designed jointly by Kia’s Californian and Korean design studios but the final production model was created by Kia’s European design team.

Kia is hoping to double its sales in global markets by 2010 with the introduction of several new and updated models. The first of these will be a facelifted Sportage SUV in July, followed by the Soul and two new sedan models next year. The carmaker is also scheduled to option its first U.S. plant next year and is planning to build up to 300,000 vehicles per year at the new Georgia site.