2014 Kia Soul hamster dances into the future

Like the opening montage of robots evolving to take over the world, Kia continues to move forward, just below the surface of our awareness. Really, Kia sold 500,000-plus vehicles in the U.S. last year? Bow down.

This year at the New York Auto Show, Kia unveiled three products to close out a dominating auto-show run of introducing stuff that exists below the radar of awesomeness but right in the mainstream of marketable. The first, a mid-cycle refresh of the Optima sedan, failed to impress. When one of your major selling points is a “new rear trunk lid,” you’re not poised to make headlines. The “new integrated driving mode selector” isn’t going to wow anyone, either.