Kia gives Stinger tech, power, safety upgrades for 2021
Kia has officially revealed in detail the upgrades it has given to its high-performance fastback sports sedan, the Stinger. Other than some minor design updates which were already revealed, the company has also given the Stinger some of the latest driver assistance and safety features, and an improved interior for better comfort.
“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.”
Exterior updates include new multifaceted reflector LED headlights with a new design and LED daytime running lights. The new headlight clusters appear darker and sleeker with the lights out, while giving the car a more high-tech light signature. At the rear, a svelte new rear combination lamp displays a new light signature, extending the full width of the car and mimicking the shape of the subtle spoiler integrated into the trunk lid. The new turn signals comprise a collection of 10 individual LED units each, arranged in a grid pattern to mimic the appearance of a checkered flag, used in motorsports.
Stingers equipped with more powerful engines can be specified with larger wide-bore bright silver exhaust mufflers, with a more purposeful and performance-oriented rear diffuser to give the car a more muscular rear appearance. Two new 18-inch and 19-inch aluminum alloy wheels are also introduced.
Inside, the updated Kia Stinger gets, depending on the market, a 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Bluetooth multi-connection feature. This allows two devices to be connected via bluetooth to the system at the same time. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard on this system. For other models, a new 8-inch touchscreen display with a narrow bezel design is also available. This replaces the old 7-inch display. This can come equipped with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well but only depending on the market.
Under the hood of the updated Stinger are choices of three different turbocharged gasoline powertrains. New and exclusive to North America is a 2.5-liter Smartsteam T-GDi engine. It produces 300 hp and 422 Nm of torque. The second and third powertrain options are carried over from the pre-updated model. These are the 3.3-liter Lambda T-GDi V6 and the 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder Theta engine. They produce 368 hp and 510 Nm of torque, or 252 hp and 353 Nm of torque, respectively. All three powertrains are paired to an 8-speed automatic transmission.
The new Kia Stinger will go on-sale in the company’s home market of South Korea by the third quarter of 2020, with sales due to commence in many of Kia’s global markets, hopefully including the Philippines, later in the year.
