This review first appeared in the August 2018 edition of the Northern & Central California Cruisin’ News published out of Folsom, California – mg
Sacramento, California – If you have two-time Indianapolis 500
winner and two-time Formula One world champion Emerson Fittipaldi putting your
auto manufacturing company's new creation through its paces in a TV commercial,
it better be a serious performance machine.
Fortunately, the all-new 2018 Kia Stinger is
every bit of that, and then some.
My tester was the 2018 Kia Stinger GT2 AWD V6
with a 3.3-liter, twin-turbo engine rated at 365 horsepower. Some call the four-door model a
hatchback. Kia prefers "fastback
sport sedan." I call it fast.
This one is special. The performance
characteristics of the tested Stinger were so outstanding that I was impressed
far beyond my expectations.
It's not so much that it's fast off the line
-- which it is -- but what it can do when the revs are up. You can be sailing along at 60 miles per hour
on the freeway, and a small blip on the accelerator blasts you into another
time zone. The response is so instant,
so robust and so pleasing to the ears (a throaty roar) that surrounding cars
just disappear from consciousness.
I've driven plenty of high-performance motor
vehicles, but this Stinger on the move is one of the best I've ever
driven. Kia touts the amount of time and
research it put into developing the Stinger's performance DNA, and it's no idle
boast. It's that good. And yes, fun.
My ride was nicely equipped with a somewhat
hefty bottom line of $52,300. Nice perks
included a power sunroof, a head-up display and leather trim.
The Stinger package competes against primo
foreign sports car makes with special goodies that include quad exhausts and
distinctive, bright-red Brembo performance brakes, world-class stoppers to be
sure.
Fuel mileage is not so bad, given the engine
power: 19 miles per gallon in the city and 25 mpg on the highway.
The rear hatch area holds a fair amount of
cargo, but the seating area in the back seats is going to be a tight squeeze
for large-size adults.
Even with four doors, the exterior look of
the vehicle broadcasts performance, with sleek, angular sculpting on the front
end and a nicely constructed tail section, complete with a subtle, extended spoiler.
The safety features are plentiful and
state-of-the-art. As usual, the Kia warranties are exceptional.
OK, you can buy this car as a family sedan
and a daily driver commuter, but the truth is that you want it for the
performance rush it provides. You don't
go to the racetrack for the food; you go for the thrill.
That, in a nutshell, is why you would get a
Stinger for your driveway.
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