- Kia says that it wish to construct a religious successor to the Stinger.
- The largest factor holding it again? The price of an electrical efficiency sedan.
- By no means say by no means, although. Kia’s design boss is not ruling something out if EVs proceed to change into extra fashionable.
There was a time not too way back when the Kia was doing what virtually no different automaker dared to. The rising South Korean automaker constructed a rear-wheel-drive fanatic automotive with a twin-turbocharged V-6 after almost each different mainstream model had deserted the sports activities sedan phase. It had actual energy and proportions that made even the Germans a bit nervous. Nevertheless it died after only one technology, going out of manufacturing in 2023.
Now, Kia needs to do it once more. And identical to final time, the model is priding itself on going out on a limb to construct one thing pushed by emotion as an alternative of logic. The successor to the Stinger is nearer than ever.
Photograph by: Kia
In a current interview with Autocar, Kia’s design boss Karim Habib stated that the religious successor to the Stinger continues to be very a lot on the menu. However this time, Kia needs it to be electrical.
The funniest half could also be Kia describing the concept as a “sports activities sedan for the gamer technology,” which makes the entire concept really feel extra like a collab with Mountain Dew or Monster Power. However relaxation assured, that beneath of that advertising and marketing language is one thing genuinely fascinating that ought to restore your religion: Kia actually does appear obsessive about turning into an organization that builds vehicles folks have an emotional connection to.
Enter the Meta Turismo, an idea Kia confirmed off final 12 months. Designed to signify the way forward for Kia’s high-performance, trendy sedans, the Turismo may be the inspiration of the next-gen Stinger.
“We now have a small historical past of doing vehicles just like the Stinger and that is one thing we do not wish to hand over on,” stated Habib in an interview with Autocar. “The Meta Turismo is our concept of a sports activities sedan for the gamer technology. A couple of years in the past, we began enthusiastic about what might we do past SUVs? We do produce and promote lots of SUVs, which is sweet, however we additionally consider that there is greater than that.”
That is essential as a result of Kia is displaying that it understands one thing that lots of manufacturers magically forgot through the nice crossover flood of the 2010s. Folks truly like vehicles that provide a particular expertise. Not each automotive must be sensible or adventure-oriented. Some of us simply wish to drive one thing that makes the commute to work really feel participating.
You may see it taking place throughout the Hyundai-Kia empire. Hyundai’s N division has change into startlingly good at constructing fanatic vehicles. Even Porsche executives have all however admitted that Hyundai has set the bar for enjoyable EVs. Couple that with wild ideas just like the Hyundai N-Imaginative and prescient 74 and you’ll shortly see that practicality is not at all times an important notion when constructing a automotive.
So then why hasn’t Kia simply constructed the next-gen Stinger already?
The actual reply at all times comes right down to {dollars} and cents. Habib says that the price of constructing a efficiency battery-electric automotive is the primary drag, although that does not imply it’s going to by no means occur.
“At this level, it’s extra strategic. It is a pure EV and the value of doing a high-performance EV is what’s slowing us down. Hopefully, the upward motion of EVs retains going. I believe there will probably be extra openness to this [type of] automotive. At the least that is what we’re betting on.”
That is the actual problem dealing with fanatic EVs proper now. Everyone can construct a quick electrical crossover formed like some type of jellybean. However constructing one thing with the spirit of a Stinger—one thing low, dramatic, and charismatic—at a value that individuals can afford stays the arduous half.
Nonetheless, the truth that Kia even needs to strive says rather a lot. In an trade more and more terrified of taking dangers, there’s one thing extraordinarily encouraging about an organization that may take a look at the long run and even mutter the phrases “efficiency sedan.”
