Kia’s made a lot of interesting cars over the years, though it’s not the first brand that comes to mind when it comes to driving fun. The only car from the brand I’d consider owning right now is the EV6 GT, a sporty version of its electric crossover that actually handles wonderfully. And as of last year’s facelift, it even includes simulated gearshifts (a must-have for any performance-minded EV, in my mind).
I’d argue that the only fun gas-powered car built by Kia was the Stinger, a sleek, front-engine, rear-drive sedan that handled far better than anyone expected—including myself. That car was eventually discontinued in 2023, and now, it seems like Kia might finally be readying its replacement.
The company released a short teaser video on its social channels on Wednesday showing off a funky four-door concept. It has a bunch of distinct design cues that suggest it could be an EV.
What’s The Deal Here?
Well, no one outside of Kia actually knows yet. The company hasn’t said anything about this concept, so it’s unclear if this is a replacement for the Stinger or something totally different. It’s not even confirmed whether it’s actually an EV, though the cab-forward proportions seem to suggest that it will be.
The design itself feels almost Prius-like, at least from the side. The blocky widebody fenders made things more interesting, though, as does the unusual layout of the glass. I’m particularly fond of the side mirror cameras, which are each covered by a light strip that stretches forward onto the hood. It feels like a more streamlined, far less awkward version of Kia’s EV4 sedan.
InsideEVs seems to think it’s the Stinger’s successor, but suspects it won’t use the Stinger name:
Whatever Kia decides to call this new model—EV7 and EV8 are available—this will likely become the Kia equivalent of the Hyundai Ioniq 6. This means it will be built on the more expensive, 800-volt, rear-wheel-drive version of the E-GMP platform, so it will be a drift-ready machine with over 600 horsepower and a simulated combustion powertrain in its top GT trim.
As a reminder, the outgoing gas-powered Stinger made 365 horsepower from its twin-turbo V6. While that isn’t mindblowing, it was plenty to deliver smiles. If this new car is anywhere as fun as the EV6 GT, I’m sure it’ll be a worthy Stinger replacement. But it’ll also mean the Stinger will be solidified in history as the only truly fun gas-powered Kia.
As for when Kia plans to reveal more about this concept, that’s also a mystery right now. The company is planning to show off its long-awaited EV2 at the Brussels Motor Show in January, so this concept might appear alongside that car.
Aren’t You Forgetting Something(s)?
By now, you’re probably ready to scroll down to the comment section to yell at me about the Kia Elan. This was a full-on convertible sports car built by Kia in the 1990s, after all. The great David Tracy even got to see the original prototype in person a few years back. While I’m not arguing this was a fun-to-drive car with a Kia badge, there’s a strong case to be made about it not really being a Kia.
The Kia Elan’s story is a fascinating one. The company wanted to compete with cars like the Mazda MX-5 and the Toyota MR2, but instead of developing a sports car itself, it bought the tooling for the front-drive Elan—codenamed the M100—from Lotus after that car was discontinued in 1995. Kia added its own naturally aspirated engine to replace the turbocharged unit and changed some lighting, but didn’t do much else. To me, it’s still very much a Lotus, not a true Kia.
Honestly, a better argument for another fun gas-powered Kia might be the company’s supped-up, Euro-market Pro Cee’d GT hatch from the 2010s. Publications described that car as more of a “warm” hatchback than a true “hot” hatch that could compete with the likes of the Golf GTI or Focus ST, though, so that might not hold much water, either. Plus, like the Elan, it was never sold in America. As far as this market is concerned, the Stinger is the only truly exciting gas-powered Kia—and it might stay that way forever.
Top graphic image: Kia
This is likely going to be Kia’s version of the Hyundai Ioniq 6. Hyundai and Kia’s product lineup is pretty much evenly matched, and they share platforms on everything. There’s the big hatchbacks in the EV6 and Ioniq 5, the SUVs with the EV9 and Ioniq 9, and Kia is just missing their equivalent to the Ioniq 6. They’ll probably name it the EV7 or EV5.
Wasn’t the C. D one of Top Gears big star in a cheap car models?
Maybe if Kia dealers were not so terrible and stopped jerking people around, the Stinger would still be in production. When the Stinger first came out my local dealer stuck a 10k markup and you could only test drive after you had approved loan and had signed a sales contract. Good car, terrible experience.
Yup.
Kia (and Hyundai) dealers are still ghetto even though now they are trying to sell cars closing in on $100k. They still have shady practices, find ways to screw over their customers (more than most), and their service departments are more used to servicing 15 year old 4-bangers, rather than advanced new EV and hybrid systems.
Kia can keep on churning out new models every couple of years to try to get customers to forget their econobox roots, but that dealership experience will remind them.
Any of the dealers I went to in the Boston area when I owned my previous two Hyundais (Sonata PHEV Limited and Sonata N Line) all went through major renovations that improved the look and feel of the dealerships. The techs and service writers seemed good enough, with only one of the dealers seeming to be shadier than normal.
Some yes, but at more than a few dealers in my area are still shady. Yeah, the building it much nicer, but the attitude and character of the workers remains from when they were hustling to sell inflated loans to poor people who didn’t know better.
My Forte GT (201hp, 3000lb, DCT) would beg to differ. It’s properly fun.
GT is supposed to be the Kia Fun Cars. Like Hyundai N’s. the thing is they changed tactics and to avoid watering down high end Hyundai/kias with base level Genesis vehicles, they wisely are not sharing much. Genesis is the main Sport model arm it seems like, but the N’s and GT’s that are getting that treatment seem pretty fun for what they are.
Whatever this car is, please make this a kia-designed not-weird looking, better driving version of an Ioniq 6. PLEASE. I’ve been waiting for this for years
I’m betting it’ll be EXACTLY what you’re asking for. Hyundai/Kia don’t really do one-offs. Everything they make is platform shared, and that includes Genesis to a point. The G70 is on the Stinger platform. Kia is missing their EV sedan, and this is probably it. Ioniq 5=EV6, Ioniq 9=EV9, Ioniq 6=?.
Im not too sure. I love the 6N but its too expensive for me and I don’t like the overall design of the 6. I would’ve preferred an N version of the regular dual motor. Even the Ev6 GT doesn’t have the handling chops of the 5N. So hyubdai and kia have the ingredients to make all this work and fairly easily, but I’m not holding my breath just yet.
I think Kia design peaked sometime around 2020, maybe more generic but in general much more handsome. Now we got the EV9 which looks like it was designed by Picasso, the odd trio of EV3,4 and 5, while the once handsome Sportage has had just one to many facelifts and botox injections.
Saying something was designed by Picasso is like throwing shade unto some music that was written by Mozart. Really bad example.
Ok, to be more precise: Late Picasso when his work was pretty shit.
I think the entire industry peaked around 2018. Upper trim Kia Sorentos and Fortes looked pretty nice to my eyes. Other brands also looked really good, especially VW. VW had the Passat, Arteon, and the mk 7.5 Golf, all of which are some of the cleanest styled vehicles to ever grace the pavement. BMW hadn’t gone to the beaver teeth yet. The W222 might be the best-looking Mercedes S-Class too. Overall, 2018 was when LEDs looked modern, but mega grills and black plastic cladding hadn’t taken over the industry.
The first gen two-door Sportage was pretty fun…
I once test-drove a Turbo Soul. I thought it was a lot of fun, but the cost increase over a base Soul put the turbo into a price territory filled with better choices.
My now 79-year-old mom bought a Turbo Soul back in ’17 when they first hit the market. She still loves it. My ’24 Forte GT has the same engine with a beefed-up version of the DCT and it’s a hoot.
I guess the Kia Elan wasn’t fun enough for you. ????????
“By now, you’re probably ready to scroll down to the comment section to yell at me about the Kia Elan. “
Yes… that’s exactly was I was going to do. LOL
I knew it was going to happen, but I really wanted to use the painting nails emoji and it didn’t work.
Does Kia even have a RWD platform for an ICE car that could realistically be used for this?
Yes, they have the M2 platform used for the G70 – G90 but the G70 is already cheap for a front engine / RWD car. Why would they undercut their own sales?
The Stinger was itself on that same M2 platform.
As to why they’d undercut their own sales…well, they wouldn’t, really. Hyundai (which includes Genesis) and Kia are not sister brands in the same way that Ford and Lincoln are, under the same corporate umbrella. As it stands, Hyundai owns 33.9% of Kia, which is a majority share. And it means Hyundai and Kia share a lot of engineering, especially around platforms and powertrains.
But Kia is still an independent company, with its own product development, sales, marketing and servicing operations. Kia even has its own manufacturing facilities in most cases.
All that is to say that Kia is not necessarily benefitting from Genesis G70 sales, and would be–was!–perfectly willing to release a price-competing product when suitable.
Also, Kia and Genesis have separate buying profiles. I have a friend who has a very nice Stinger GT2, and the forums and ownership base seems to be a lot of people who fall into the “fast car for not a ton of money” crowd (aka, would-be HEMI Mopar owners). Whereas the Genesis buyer, even for the G70, is a little more subdued. And the Stinger was also midsize, with a liftback, so it made a decent case for itself against the slow-moving Arteon, or a used A7…whereas the G70 is a fairly cramped compact sedan.
Yes, the Stinger was on the M2 platform. Kia killed it off in 2023. Nothing profound has happened in the auto market that would justify bring it back.
All 3 brands: Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis are owned and managed under Hyundai Motor Group. While there is some independence between brands at the end of the day their leaders answer to the same people. (Similar to the convoluted ownership of VW, Audi, and Porsche)
You guys know the Kia Elan existed?
We knew, but then the men in black showed up and flashed us with that red light thingy.
So, no option to delete comments ha.
I feel like the Forte5 SX, while not at Stinger levels, would qualify, or at least come close. 200hp turbo hatchback seems at least like a fun car on paper, and I liked mine.
For that matter, the Kia Soul with the same powertrain.
I liked the stinger. All I ever saw online were comments about people wanting to look at getting one when they were used which ment not that many were sold new.
For a few years it seemed like I was Stingers pretty regularly on the road. Now I never see any. I wonder what the cause is.
good question.
My friend has one (and loves it). The engine blew up 2 days after he clicked over 100k (and thus the warranty) miles.
BRUTAL. So that’s where they all ended up.
I have a secondhand Stinger GTS, and from the extensive research I did before purchasing, they don’t blow up. The Stinger/G70 are more German than South Korean and are built really, really well. The internals will handle a bolt-on tune that pushes almost 500hp with just re-gapped plugs.
People didn’t buy them because 1) 50k for a Kia lol 2) Pandemic 3) they’d rather pay 10k more and get an BMW badge even though it’s basically the same car.
So serious question: where did they all go? I love the Stinger and have regularly thought about buying one next year, but the lack of seeing them on the roads anymore concerns me.
Well, they only sold 70k in the US between 2018-2023. Honda sold more Accords in three months of 2018 as a reference. So there just aren’t that many out there to start with! On top of that, I’d guess that being RWD and powerful, more were lost to accidents than other FWD family sedans.
In my midwest suburban sprawl of a few hundred thousand people, I have seen a grand total of TWO driving around in recent years. And there were only 800 made of the GTS that I picked up, so I will likely never see another in my lifetime. That was a big part of the allure to me. The other parts were that it’s a darn good car with a bulletproof drivetrain, rave reviews, and looks incredible in person. I would highly recommend looking into them more seriously as long as you don’t mind regular fill ups of premium gas.
So I guess your friend had one? Lol the blown motor at 100,002 miles is a design feature.
Every enthusiast Hyundai/Kia owner I know has blown up an engine.
Wasn’t the Forte GT also reasonably decent?
Some of it is also personal preference, David Tracy would probably have a lot of fun with the KM450
It’s certainly not a Civic SI or Jetta GLI but it’s a peppy little car with a DCT that offered a manual until fairly recently
For that matter, DT approves of the Geo Tracker, so the original Kia Sportage (the BOF one) might get his approval too.
The original Sorento was also BOF. My mom had one, a loaded 2003 EX 4WD. With an unstressed V6, a ladder frame, low overhangs, a proper full-time 4WD system with a two-speed transfer case, and even a solid rear axle, I’m surprised the Sorento isn’t more popular as an overlander.
I’ve had my ’24 FGT for 10 months or so. It’s a very fun little car that makes me smile every time I’m behind the wheel. It isn’t especially refined, but that probably adds to the fun factor. My only complaint is that we didn’t get the hatch here in the States.
What’s your definition of fun? Gobs of horsepowe? An older manual transmission Kia Soul is plenty fun to drive.
What’s your definition of fun? Gobs of horsepowe? An older manual transmission Kia Soul is plenty fun to drive.
Jesus this thing is absolutely hideous. I get that the Korean manufacturers rely on a “more is more” design approach to make their vehicles stand out in crowded segments, and if sales are any indicator it seems to be working…but this design is just ridiculously busy even by their standards and it’s giving “Cybertruck but make it a liftback sedan” vibes.
Anyway it’s almost assuredly an EV. I don’t see how they could make this design functional with an ICE powertrain and if they want to sell cars outside of the US electrification is going to be a better bet. Here in yee haw land we have an insatiable thirst for gas but the majority of the first world is quickly moving away from it.
They will sell maybe 3 of them here, but globally and in Europe in particular this could do well. There aren’t very many EV sedans outside of Tesla and luxury manufacturers, and given how much Elon has done to ruin Tesla’s reputation a Model 3 alternative just might sell pretty well.
I am kind of surprised you are not reminding him of the N series Hyundai’s? I mean historically speaking the Kia’s always seemed more sporty than anything Hyundai, and the N stuff kind of fixed that stigma.
I kind of feel like the goal for them though is to make a Camry competitor in the AWD GT K5 as basically being the top dog Kia fun car.
If Kia doesn’t name this car Stinger 2: Electric Boogaloo, then what are we even doing?
The Festiva? Don’t forget that one’s a Kia too
Australia got the Rio Sports Pac, which sadly ddidn’t make it over here 🙁
It’s a Ford. It’s a Festiva.
Rent free in my head for decades.
Do you really not know that the Festiva is a Korean license-built copy of the Mazda 121? It’s a Kia.
Same goes for the Aspire that followed it. The Festiva and Aspire were better cars than anything else Ford sold in the US except the Probe and Capri.
It’s the jingle from one of the Festiva commercials, lodged in my brain for decades.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxHzwgEIhjI
ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ok
I’ve never seen that commercial, oops 😛
If the Elan isn’t a Kia because it’s a Lotus, the Festiva isn’t a Ford because it’s a Kia, and ergo the SHOgun is the most fun gas-powered Kia.
I think the assumption that new ICE cars, including fun ones, won’t be developed anymore is highly dubious.
If this sells poorly, it’s certainly plausible that Kia could bring back ICE power for a subsequent generation.
I think Kia will develop and sell more ICE cars in the USA (for one reason or another), but I don’t think they will be “fun” cars like the Stinger. I think the market is too small and it’s a shock to me that they made Stinger at all.
I think the average buyer in the coming years will not care about gas vs electric. Since the majority of people are deathly allergic to inconvenience, the will inevitably pick whichever makes their life easier.
Right now, charging infrastructure is pretty lousy outside of large cities. However, as that changes, so will buying habits.
I would be really surprised if we saw a return to ICE in the era of electrics. Besides, the manufacturers can charge more for an electric and brand it as some sort of premium feature. Clearly, that’s what they do anyway, this is just another excuse to go harder.
Once insurance companies are gently persuaded by outside forces that gas cars are a higher liability, they’ll raise rates on ICE powered cars accordingly. Win-win for them, they can charge more and their automaker buddies can charge more. The hell with the customer, they can suck it. They can all drive anonymous software-controlled CUV blobs that present as rugged, and can be monitored and controlled by the manufacturer, while they sell the data off to any 3rd party with two nickles to rub together.
I think hybrids need to have their day as the majority of new car sales before we see EVs begin to move the needle significantly more than they are now.
I think where we are going to differ is I don’t see there being an “era of electrics” for decades, barring a major breakthrough in battery technology.
How many people live in apartments that don’t allow for overcharging outside cities where charging stations exist? I think rural driving distances trend longer, but … What percentage of the population lives in those locations?
I mean within the next decade there’s a very real chance that the only places new ICE vehicles will be sold as personal transportation (commercial applications are a different story) will be the US and the developing world. A lot of the early adopter concerns for EVs are rapidly being addressed and a lot of the second generation EVs that are set to come out soon (the iX3, Rivian R2, Toyota’s new and improved BX/CHR, etc) just won’t come with the same concerns the early ones did. The rest of the world is moving towards large scale adoption quite rapidly.
Do I think American manufacturers will still be shoving V8s in cars until the heat death of the universe? Almost certainly, but when it comes to companies with bigger international footprints like Hyundai/Kia we’re nearing the inflection point for a lot of this stuff, and it’s no longer going to be a wise financial decision to develop big, loud, inefficient ICE vehicles for a singular market.
Hell the Koreans have basically stopped new ICE development entirely and they’re still absolutely printing money right now.
I guess we’ll see. I’m much less convinced of this than many others, and I think most predictions about the pace of EV adoption have turned out to be overly optimistic. Maybe this time it will be different.
I agree. For comparison, there are 450 wh/kg cells available commercially for several years now (silicon anode derivatives mostly) and lifepo and sodium ion are at or below $60/kwh while prices keep dropping.
Pretty much everywhere not the US is moving into the age of electrics, especially if you consider scooter and ebikes too. EVs are cheaper and quicker to build, and the infrastructure problems are eminently solvable if your government cares about solving it.
Lol the Germans have already asked for a delay on the EU combustion ban. It ain’t happenin’ in 2035. As far as I can tell, Japan and South Korea are considering, but have not implemented a combustion ban date. Developing markets will never have one most likely. Middle East? LOL. What China does or doesn’t do will soon be irrelevant to foreign manufacturers as the day will come when they’re not allowed to sell there anymore. So it’s going to be down to what consumers want and can afford. I’m not seeing inevitability there barring some breakthrough. In fact, affordability of BEV components may get worse in the near term with China’s rare earth export controls.
I’m very open to the idea that the majority of cars sold in major (free-ish) markets are hybrid/phev by 2035, but definitely not BEV. Hell, by that time a majority of new cars in the US will probably be at least hybrids.
This may be a controversial take, but I feel like Hyundai/Kia is starting to lose the plot a little bit with their hybrids and EVs. They’re falling into the same “ballistic performance at all costs” trap that so many before them have.
There’s room in their lineup for a Prius competitor and this design language would work well for that kind of a car, IMO – give it a sportier version if you want, but the actual market for 12,000 horsepower RWD EVs has got to be microscopically small.
I’ve got a ‘19 Stinger, and even though I bought it new, I still love it. Putting it in sport mode really livens things up. The only thing I don’t like is that it’s an auto. There was a Genesis version with a stick, but that was unobtainium.