The Most Driver-focused Car That Kia Makes
The updated Kia Stinger is revealed in full detail for the first time on Aug. 27, with the high-performance fastback sports sedan boasting a range of upgrades to amplify its gran turismo character.
In addition to its refreshed design, revealed earlier this month, the enhanced Kia Stinger includes Kia’s latest driver assist and safety features, as well as improved interior packaging for greater space and comfort. For North America, the upgraded model is also now offered with a powerful new ‘Smartstream’ 2.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine.
“The Stinger remains the standard-bearer for the Kia brand, almost a decade after we first revealed the Kia GT Concept in 2011. It remains our most driver-focused car, and is capable of covering great distances in comfort and style,” said Thomas Schemera, head of Product Division at Hyundai Motor Group. “The upgraded model builds on the Stinger’s well-established grand touring ethos, with a renewed sense of design flair, new powertrains and technologies, and greater usability enhancing its appeal for buyers in markets around the world.”
The new Kia Stinger will go on sale in Korea during the third quarter of 2020, with sales due to commence in many of Kia’s global markets later in the year.
The upgraded Stinger offers a revised range of three powerful turbocharged gasoline engines, in line with its reputation as the most performance-focused car that Kia makes. Each engine offers swift acceleration and rapid responses to driver input, while offering a refined grand touring experience for steady cruises.
A new engine has been added to the Stinger line-up exclusively for North American customers. The new ‘Smartstream’ 2.5-liter T-GDi (turbocharged gasoline direct injection) engine sits directly between the two existing gasoline powertrains, producing 304 ps at 5,800 rpm. The maximum torque of the new four-cylinder engine, 422 Nm, is accessible from 1,650 to 4,000 rpm, making it easy for drivers to build and maintain speed in all conditions.
The most powerful engine in the Stinger line-up, a twin-turbo 3.3-liter T-GDi V6 from Kia’s ‘Lambda’ engine family, remains unchanged, save for a new Electronic Variable Exhaust Valve system. This features a small butterfly valve in the exhaust which opens and closes, producing a more prominent, deeper exhaust note in Sport driving modes, or a quieter, more subdued exhaust note in Eco or Comfort mode. As well as enhancing the sound quality, the revised exhaust flow path helps to liberate an extra 3 ps from the engine (for a total of 373 ps at 6,000 rpm). Its 510 Nm torque is accessible from 1,300 to 4,500 rpm, giving the Stinger effortless performance everywhere.
The 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder ‘Theta’ engine, also available since the car’s launch in 2017, is unchanged, producing 255 ps at 6,200 rpm and 353 Nm torque from 1,400 to 4,000 rpm.
All three engines are paired with a smooth-shifting eight-speed automatic transmission, matching the car’s long-legged gran turismo personality.
At the center of the Stinger’s upgraded cabin is an upgraded touchscreen infotainment system, providing new functionality to meet customers’ changing expectations of in-car technology.