Kia Stinger Review

What and exceptional vehicle. We almost can not fault this vehicle. Hardly surprising given the fact that it is coming from the same creators as the Hyundai. A Korean brand that has all but put the name of “cheap rubbish” in the history books.
People who criticise the Stinger are either one of three types of people.
Holden and Ford lovers struggle with the fact that the rear wheel drive commodore and Falcon are pure rubbish when put up for comparison on the global market. Bogan Australian thinking states that the icon home grown brands are “the best vehicles ever made” is comparable to stating burnt toast is better than Jamie Olivers Vietnamese bun cha with lemon grass beef. if not an over weight Australian slob critics are those who have fallen involve with German engineering. They own an Audi R8 and BMW M4 or an AMG Mercedes all of which are engineering feats that ooze pan ash and excitement but for a price tag that is double and then some of the Stinger. the third group of critics are those who simply purchased the wrong vehicle for their needs.
The stinger is a GT vehicle, for those playing at home with minimal car knowledge that stands for Grand Touring. These vehicles are sports vehicles but on another level. They are high powers, stiff suspensioned rear wheel drives made for blowing away red P platers at the traffic lights as well as touring the winding country roads of Europe.
Kia stinger P plate legalThe stinger comes with two engine options. a four cylinder turbo charged engine which by all accounts is somewhat un impressive, not bad but just a jam sandwich for lunch kind of car. The twin turbo V6 is a whole different ball game. this engine Is the seafood platter of motor vehicles. For a price difference of just over three thousand dollars, it seems ridiculous that you would even consider the the four cylinder option as the V6 lays out almost double the power and double the torque. The V6 goes like a cut snake, the brembo brakes are real and work like brembos and the suspension allows for custom settings catering to any enthusiasts driving needs or wants.
The stinger is still a five door vehicle with three baby seat anchor points, so if you felt you needed to drop your triplets to day care in a GT vehilce the stinger is it.
all features and styling on the Stinger are very impressive, none of the silver plastic junk you see in Fords but rather a lot of polished metals. All styling appears to be stolen straight from the European competitors with many features resembling Audi and BMWs aesthetically.
The only real gripe some have with this vehicle is the  eight speed transmission. The lack of a conventional manual transmission means there is no option for a clutch pedal and manual shifting can only be done via the steering wheel padles. Even then the  control module will overrule you and force the transmission to shift if it feels its needed. This does remove the fun of putting the pointy end into a tight corner, selecting a lower gear, popping the clutch and pinning through that corner at a high RPM (something the Hyundai coupe was brilliant for)
The boring four cylinder underpowered option is P plate legal however the far superior and much more fun twin turbo V6 engine is close to the top of the banned list for P plate drivers in New South Wales.
Colour options do seem to be a little bit limited with the Stinger. Red, blue, black white and yellow are all options along with the strange grey kia has released that appears to be stolen air craft carrier paint.
Overall this vehicle is nearly faultless. It has a 5 star safety rating its competitors in the field are $80-$180K more expensive, the vehicle gains attention everywhere it goes and it comes with Kias seven year warranty. If you want a sporty type car that can be used everyday for work and weekends, want to show those young whippersnappers what real power is but don’t want a German shopping cart full of overpriced expensive cooling system parts. Go and buy a Stinger.

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