Picture – Courtesy: Car and Driver
Chances are that if you haven’t already heard of the Kia Stinger, you will start to hear about it pretty soon. Apart from the name, which garners enough attention by itself, it has already been stunning car reviewers and testers with its surprisingly good bag of tricks. Just go to YouTube or any automotive blog and you’ll see exactly what I mean.
I mentioned this car briefly in my “Year in Review” article, stating that it was a car that renewed my hope for the future of the automobile. For me, that’s still true. There hasn’t been anything about it thus far that’s really dulled my enthusiasm. While car companies all over are coming out with gratuitously uninspiring cars, Kia decided to turn their back on convention and make something unique. And that’s exactly why it will be the best car that nobody buys.
Now, when I say “best car” I don’t actually believe that the Kia Stinger will go down in history as the best car ever. Rather, I should say something like this: The Kia Stinger will rank among the industry’s “best cars for the money”, and yet, it won’t sell like it should. It won’t sell like it should because of one major factor: It’s a legitimate performance-oriented Kia. That would be completely different if it were released as a BMW, Jaguar, or Mercedes.
The branding plays a huge factor in the success or a failure of a certain type of car, but another factor that will play into the success of the Stinger specifically is its design. Technically, it’s a hatchback. Though it doesn’t look entirely like a proper hatchback, it also doesn’t look completely like a larger sports sedan. That isn’t to say it looks bad. The car is truly stunning to look at from just about any angle.
The overall usability of the car is its bread and butter. Because of the hatch, you can fit nearly anything you need to inside the back. Performance in mind, the GT trim offers a twin-turbo V-6 engine that pumps out a healthy 365 horsepower. For a car of the Stinger’s size, that’s completely adequate with a plenty left over for good measure. Kia has therefore remained level-headed in a world of both heavy, underpowered cars and overpowered performance cars.
And that’s not all. The car is available in all-wheel-drive. Brembo Brakes, a limited slip differential, and an 8-speed automatic transmission should be music to the enthusiast’s ears when ordering a top-of-the-line GT2 package. Nappa leather, Lane Keep Assist, and a Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning system are welcome options for those who are more safety conscious. All of this seems to add up to something pretty nice. The fully loaded GT2 trim comes in right around $50,000. The base trim with the 4-cylinder turbo engine option starts at a touch under $32,000. What sounded pretty good just got even better.
Comparable BMW, Lexus, and Jaguar vehicles could cost thousands of more dollars than the similarly equipped top-of-the-line GT2. That’s exactly what makes the Stinger one of the best values in the car industry. Not all of this is good news though. Whenever BMW, Lexus, and other notable luxury brands enter the conversation, those vehicles continue to be the topic. That’s as far as it goes. The people who buy those types of cars, snub the others that don’t wear the proper badge. Those who buy Mustangs, Camaros, and Challengers will inevitably shun the Korean offering because cars without a V-8 and 2.3 gazillion horsepower aren’t any good. Tuners and import guys and girls will stick to their Subaru’s, Toyota’s, and Nissans because of Kia’s lack of tuning culture.
All of this could change. I could be catastrophically wrong about the Stinger. Indeed, I hope I am wrong. It could prove to be so good that everyone drops everything they already own to get their hands on the new kid in town. While I don’t believe that will ever happen, I know that whoever does decide to buy the Kia Stinger will be rewarded in a big way. Those who choose the new kid will be few and far between, and no matter who thinks so, they will be a lot cooler than most people think.
–SWF
