Lively engine performance, poised handling and a host of standard - 2023 Kia Stinger GT Review
0Overview
Kia, the same automaker that sells the 120-hp Rio subcompact and the Soul crossover that was once marketed by hamsters, has a wildly-good sports sedan that doesn’t get the respect—or the sales—it deserves. The Stinger is a four-door hatchback with rear-tire fire—rear-drive is standard—and all-wheel drive as an option. The Stinger is like a BMW 4-series Gran Coupe but with the starting price of an affordable sport compact. The base engine is a zippy 300-horsepower turbocharged four-cylinder. The available 368-hp twin-turbo V-6 is the preferred method of stinging, and this combination was the first Kia to accelerate to 60 mph in under 5.0 seconds. This is a good-handling car with surprisingly comfy ride quality plus sharp styling and a premium interior.
What's New for 2023?
The Kia Stinger celebrates its fifth rotation around the sun with a simplified lineup and two special edition models for 2023. Kia has also announced that 2023 will be the final production year of its sports sedan. Last year’s GT-Line, GT1, and GT2 availability have been slimmed to just GT-Line and GT2. Kia is also offering Apex and Grand Tourer special edition packages. Apex, available exclusively for the Stinger GT-Line, goes dark with Brembo brakes, black exhaust tips, fenders, and mirrors. The Grand Tourer, available exclusively for Stinger GT2, also adds black exhaust tips, fenders, and mirrors, but gets specialization for the interior with black suede seat inserts, suede dashboard trim, and sporty red stitching for the seats and instrument panel.
The right way to order the Stinger is with the peppy 368-hp twin-turbo V-6. The only way to get that powertrain is to order the GT2. For an additional charge, you can add all-wheel drive, but that replaces the rear-drive Stinger’s Michelin Pilot Sport summer tires with all seasons. All-wheel drive also reduces the top speed from 167 mph to 149 mph. Granted, you could end up in jail at either of those speeds, but should you want to enter the Stinger into a track day on a circuit with a very long straight, the extra 18 mph might just come in handy.
Engine, Transmission, and Performance
The Stinger is available with two different turbocharged engines, a 300-hp 2.5-liter turbo-four as well as a 368-hp twin-turbo 3.3-liter V-6. The V-6 delivers scintillating performance that gets our enthusiast blood pumping. Both engines pair with an eight-speed automatic transmission, which, in our experience, delivers quick shifts at redline and is unobtrusive when left to shift for itself. We wish the paddle shifters offered sharper responses to driver inputs, however. Still, for drivers in single-minded pursuit of straight-line speed, the V-6–powered Stinger GT does not disappoint. The all-wheel-drive Stinger GT2 has mastered straight-line speed; it sprinted to 60 mph in 4.6-seconds during our track testing. It comports itself well in normal driving, but when pushed to the limit, it couldn't quite match the composure of its more established competition. Likewise, we identified some protestations from the rear suspension—an unnerving side step when cornering hard on a bumpy road—while some fore-and-aft pitching accompanied our all-out acceleration and braking runs. The GT2 features powerful Brembo brakes, which provided quick stops by any measure and fit in nicely within this class of high-performing sedans. Without the Brembos and rolling on less grippy all-season tires, the Stinger is less impressive.
Fuel Economy and Real-World MPG
The rear-drive, four-cylinder Stinger has the highest estimated fuel economy, with EPA ratings of 22 mpg city and 32 highway. That efficiency drops slightly if all-wheel drive is added, to an EPA-rated 21 and 29 mpg respectively. Naturally, the more powerful V-6 engine is less efficient at 18 mpg city and 25 mpg highway, especially with all-wheel drive, which drops its estimates to 17 and 24 mpg. While we haven't tested the new 2.5-liter turbo-four on our 75-mph highway route, which is part of our extensive testing regimen, the all-wheel-drive, V-6 model we evaluated returned 26 mpg in that test. For more information about the Stinger's fuel economy, visit the EPA's website.
Interior, Comfort, and Cargo
The Stinger's interior is well-designed and attractive, but it can't quite match the Audi A4 or the BMW 3-series for material quality or construction. Then again, the Kia costs considerably less than those two German sedans. The Stinger does, however, offer a significantly more comfortable rear seat than many cars in this price class—and its space advantage feels greater than its numbers would suggest. While the Stinger's interior is free of glaring errors and omissions, the overall effect is less polished than the efforts we've enjoyed from established luxury brands. The Stinger's stated trunk volume would predict that it has by far the most cargo space in this set, but it only bested its rivals by a small margin in our real-world cargo tests. With its wide