2018 Kia Stinger GT2

Four doors plus a hatch, a low stance, rear-wheel drive, twin-turbo power and a driver-oriented cockpit. BMW? No, Kia.

Meet the long-awaited Stinger.

Is it a true GT car? Kia says so: “This question was the foundation for a years-long journey that began when the GT Concept was first unveiled at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show. Although every Kia design …

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You have no idea how happy this makes me. OK, you probably do, but still. Now to wait 3 years for the depreciation to hit and I'm in!

In reply to bobzilla :

Did you read the part where they said they test drove these in Indiana?  Might be time phone a new phone because apparently yours misses calls. 

John Welsh said:

In reply to bobzilla :

Did you read the part where they said they test drove these in Indiana?  Might be time phone a new phone because apparently yours misses calls. 

Yeah, I don't know that JG has my number. I'll let it slide this time. 

The BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe is a great car. As I look forward to my next car I'm very curious to know whether the Kia or Bimmer will depreciate faster.

I realize keeping the costs down means keeping the options low, but when I go to configure the GT2 and there is one interior color option for most of the exterior colors it makes me sad.

The other thing is that I think they are seriously overestimating how many people will want a red or white interior. Blue exterior only has white interior? Silver and black exterior only have red interior? I can't believe I'm saying this, but they probably should have just gone with black if they were going to limit it to one color.

This car and the Alfa Giulia both felt a little 'out of left field'. Both manufacturers that had either no current US presence in the segment, or no historical presence in the segment at all (or both!) that launched relatively unhyped cars (compare to frs/brz for example) that got rave reviews right out of the gate.  Pleasant surprises!

As I've said before, I got to drive an AWD GT2 and a RWD GT2 through a 0-60 run and a small autox course at SEMA last fall.  The instructor really let me turn it loose in the RWD car after he gained a comfort level with me in the AWD car.  I was thoroughly impressed by it.  Quick, good handling (it's a bit heavy), responsive with a super nice interior.

Really hope it depreciates like the K900 and Cadenza...I may own one in 12-18 months if it does.

If it didn't already have enough challenges establishing itself into a new market that's dominated by brand loyalty, a $50k Kia in a market that spurns cars in favor of CUVs seems like a tough sell. 

I've only seen 1 in the wild and it was really eye catching. I credit the fact that it was an actual color (blue) instead of some black/white tones.

I test drove a GT2 around 6 months ago.  I was well impressed.  I own a '16 BMW M3 and the Stinger reminded me of it more than just a little.

I have seen a few in the wild. They look good out there. 

We drive a lot of new cars. This was one of the standouts from the last couple of months. 

In reply to David S. Wallens :

I'm still mad you two didn't call me to come assist for this. 

To our friends that business travel/rent often... 

Is the Stinger showing up on rental car lots? 

Seems like a good way for Kia to get some "sampling" from the right demographic. 

For me, seems like a good way to buy a depreciated example. 

Back in '06 when I traveled a lot, it seemed that Hyundai put a ton of the "then new" Sonatas into rental fleets. 

I never thought i'd say this about a Kia but then again i'm sure many people in the past thought the same about a Toyota or Nissan. 

These cars are cool. I'd MUCH rather have this than the equivalent Infiniti. 

They need to make a slightly smaller coupe version with the same engine and i'd be game. 

They need to make a slightly smaller coupe version with the same engine and i'd be game. 

Not a coupe, but the 2019 Genesis G70 is a slightly smaller and lighter version of the Stinger that shares the same engines:

https://www.motortrend.com/news/2019-genesis-g70-vs-2018-kia-stinger-whats-the-difference/

I was not aware of the Genisis G70.  Goggle shows this.  Wow, is that Audi-esque.  

That G70 is nice. Much more around the size of car i'd like. 

I guess the Coupe isn't too far off if they are willing to make it. If it's like Mustang GT weight with this engine it should be quite good. Still hoping for a manual in that.

There are two of these in my parking garage at work, and they do look nice in person. I've been hoping to see who gets out of them to ask them about the car but they're early-arrivers. There are a few weird details in the look that I'm not sure I like, but overall they're pretty cool. And I assume they have a pretty cool warranty?

These look nice.  

Ceramic Silver for me, please. 

In reply to David S. Wallens :

I wish they had given the option of the concept car  orange.

The0retical said:

In reply to David S. Wallens :

I wish they had given the option of the concept car  orange.

Wow!

My dad had a 2012 G37. My uncle had a similar era (2009ish?) Genesis sedan. The G37 was better—not by much, but it was. 

My wife and I just bought a new Sedona. Interior materials, including leather, are all nicer than the G37. 5 year newer car, but still... I think I’m gonna love this car. Too bad I just bought a different new Kia. 

Harvey said:

I realize keeping the costs down means keeping the options low, but when I go to configure the GT2 and there is one interior color option for most of the exterior colors it makes me sad.

The other thing is that I think they are seriously overestimating how many people will want a red or white interior. Blue exterior only has white interior? Silver and black exterior only have red interior? I can't believe I'm saying this, but they probably should have just gone with black if they were going to limit it to one color.

This is an Asian car thing. And a large part of what kept us out of an Acura TLX. They had  reasonable  color choices, but very few of them were actually available together. 

In reply to Duke :

Also look long term. With one or two color choices for the interior, the amount of parts they have to stock in the warehouses decreases significantly. It's not just the initial cost, but long term that choice for one or two colors as opposed to 4 colors could save millions in long term costs.