The Change
We at Route Hunters have continuously agreed that Kia is consistently producing cars that we would consider to be ‘cool’. From the funky yet fun Picanto, to the multi-talented Optima GT which has eerily well engineered dampers, each Kia we have tested shows a stark improvement especially in areas of design, tech and dynamics.
These cars however are merely the prelude to the grand finale Kia has been drumming up for a while. We were teased, we speculated, but little did we suspect that it would actually happen. Kia Malaysia has finally brought in a car that’s a complete departure from its current range.
When every Japanese make is slowly but surely shying away from their ‘affordable’ sporting cars (Lancer Evo, Silvia, Skyline, RX7 and 8 Mazda’s), Kia launches the Kia Stinger, a rather sporting 4 door, rear wheel drive coupe with proper mechanical limited slip differential. Kia Malaysia however went above and beyond by not only bringing in the Stinger, but they brought in the flagship GT model which has a 3.3 liter biturbo V6! So now here’s the big question, what is the Kia Stinger and should you consider one? Here’s what we think so far.
Exterior
Make no mistake this is a Kia unlike anything you have seen before. Have the badges removed and drive it down the streets of KL, most onlookers would assume it’s some sort of Audi or Alfa Romeo. The heavily stylized LED headlamps, the gaping front air dams which we first saw ques in the Optima GT are gloriously big in the Stinger, all add to the visual drama.
Size wise the car is 4830 mm in length (200mm longer than a BMW 4 series Gran Coupe), 1870mm in width (10mm wider than the E Class Coupe) and 1400 in height (23 mm taller than the BMW 4 series Gran Coupe). It also has a longer wheelbase than the Mercedes E Class Coupe, the 4 Series GC and the A5 Sportback.
Of course, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, but we can all agree it does have a distinctive and striking presence on the road.
Interior
The result of the generous proportions is good interior cabin space. It is a coupe first and foremost. Yet, someone above 6 feet in height will have plenty of head and legroom in the back. Also the rear seats are so comfortable! Its apparent the moment you sit on the car and we had just been driving around in a Volvo S90 all day long before getting into this car.
The design of the door panels mimics that of the Mercedes Benz C Class, which is not a bad thing. Would you complain if you date a girl that looks too much like Jennifer Lawrence? The materials itself lining the door panels and seats are all leather both in the 2.0 and the 3.3 liter models, with the 3.3 getting the lovely red Nappa leather treatment.
The star of the interior has to be the front dashboard design. The 3 air vents at the center, the lovely gearknob and the now familiar 3 spoke steering wheel with the GT badge and perforated leather, are the biggest styling features. It’s a logical layout with well labelled buttons, with no over the top styling. The buttons could do with a heavier feel at first glance, and we have yet to test its Harman Kardon sound system, but overall it’s a perfect place to operate during long 500km journeys.
Powertrain
Both the 2.0 and 3.3 liter cars are turbocharged, with power sent to the rear wheels via an 8 speed gearbox. The 2.0 engine produces 251bhp and 353Nm from 1400 – 4000 rpm. This is more than what the BMW 430i M Sport and the Audi A5 2.0 TFSI Quattro.
The 3.3 V6 biturbo takes things to the next level with 365bhp and 510Nm torque from 1300 – 4500 rpm. Those figures rival the C43 AMG. Yes, a Kia with an output not far off an AMG! In fact, that’s more powerful than the BMW 640i, Jaguar XF-S, and even the entry level Porsche Panamera.
This is why the Stinger can sprint to 100kph in just 6 seconds for the 2.0 variant and a scary 4.7 seconds for the 3.3 liter variant. But the real ace in the sleeves is the 3.3 liters top speed. At 270kph, it’s faster than all the above mentioned European cars bar the Panamera. This is fast whichever way you put it.
Chassis
Since we have yet to drive the Stinger, we can’t say much about the way it drives. However, we can tell you that if recent Kia’s are tell-tale signs of things to come, then the Stinger promises to be a good drivers car.
The car itself comes with proper mechanical limited slip differentials on both variants, with torque vectoring. The 2.0 variant comes with 18 inch rims and the 3.3 liter comes with 19 inch rims and Brembo calipers. On paper, the chassis work sounds incredible. We would have to wait to see how it translates in the real world.
Yours truly spent a short stint at a small village in Germany called Nurburg. During that time, I saw a whole lot of Kia’s being developed on the Nordschleife. In fact Kia and Hyundai’s permanent Nurburgring test centre is one of the biggest ones operating at the ‘Ring. All in all, it does promise to be a brilliant car on the twists.
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The biggest question everyone is asking now is the justification of paying RM200k for a Kia. With price tag at RM239,888 for the 2.0 GT-Line and RM309,888 for the Stinger GT 3.3, the Kia Stinger does command quite a premium. True, the badge cred does favor the European brands. But there was a time when people questioned the rational of cars like the Supra, RX-7 and the Skyline. To the general public, Japanese cars were easy to maintain, reliable, uninteresting cars. And then cars like the R32 GTR, the Lancer Evolution, Subaru Impreza happened and the rest was motoring history.
The Stinger, in our opinion, is the Skyline and Supra of this era. Nobody expected the Japanese to produce sports cars back in the day but they did and they were brilliant, spawning generations of followers. The Stinger could well be the pioneer of the next wave of such a phenomena. The first impression I had on this car, especially the 2.0 variant, is that it’s spiritually similar to the R34 GTT Skyline. It’s got a turbocharged engine up front with drive sent to the rear wheels. It’s got a lovely coupe body and it was a drifters dream. This car already has a cult following and is going to be much sought after in a few years. The big question is though, is it a worthy buy now?
Verdict
It’s hard to say if the price is justified since we have yet to drive the car. However based on the generous amount of equipment, kit, safety systems and of course performance, this car is definitely worth a test drive. Kia is definitely making big moves as a brand, and Kia Malaysia is just as aggressive. Kudos to the team for bringing in the most sporting Kia yet!
What can we say? It’s absolute unanticipated subject of interest from an unlikely interesting product.
Hence why we say this car is a game changer 🙂