[Rania Elhoseny]

According to a newsletter sent out by the New York Auto Show organizers, Kia will debut its refreshed 2012 Soul hatchback as part of next week's festivities. In addition to a slightly revised front fascia complete with LED running lamps, the funky hatch will receive a number of powertrain enhancements for the 2012 model year.

Most significantly, the Soul will benefit from the addition of new six-speed transmissions, likely in both manual and automatic forms. According to Kia, this means the 2012 Soul will achieve nearly 35 miles per gallon on the highway – a healthy boost over the current car's fuel economy rating of 24/30 mpg city/highway when equipped with the 2.0-liter engine and five-speed manual shifter.

As we reported earlier, Kia will also debut the 2012 Rio in New York, boasting new direct-injection technology and fuel economy ratings of over 40 mpg. Stay tuned for the full details next week.