Limited Production Stinger Atlantica

[eljay]

I always expected special editions to supercede my GT2. The only thing that disappoints me here is (here comes my broken record) that I really could use that 360º camera. I've been harrassing people at Kia Corporate and dealerships about this since probably July. But I don't covet any other feature of this special edition.

Now if Kia USA would just come up with an affordable "special edition" aftermarket update for that surround view . . .

 

[robz32]

I think that should be something that needs to be offered to everyone. However the cost of doing such modification, I think, will be high. Unless everything is already wired up and is just a matter of releasing a software update.

 

[eljay]

I think that should be something that needs to be offered to everyone. However the cost of doing such modification, I think, will be high. Unless everything is already wired up and is just a matter of releasing a software update.

I agree--given how complicated installing even something like puddle lamps was, I can't imagine that there will ever be an option for the surround view that I would be willing to pay labor costs for.

 

[gilthanis1]

I could almost guarantee you the wiring is there for the 360 camera, but they didn't put the casings on the mirrors with the cameras in them. The added 'features' they are adding to this doesn't mean squat to me, BUT I know alot of people want them as standard on the GT2. I am still floored every time I stare at my Sunset Yellow GT2 AWD, purchased from Kia of Muncie, THANK YOU!!

If you like the car and don't have one, then jump on a early purchase of this one. If your like others and wanted the car because it's badass, then be happy with your purchase, second guessing will only sour the experience.

Don't forget, there will always be a "Next Big Thing", and that will never change.

 

[Bigserver1]

It is like buying a iPhone. As soon as it is released the next model is already in the works and spy shots are on all of the websites. We called this. color,wireless,rear heated seats. This was not a big surprise. Want to make something special? How would you of liked to have bought a Hellcat only to find out the Demon was next? These moves happen all the time to keep things moving and the hype continuing.

You are a dealer, so you’re biased, but there’s a flaw in your argument. It would be like buying an iPhone in the US that has less features than it had internationally. Like buying a US iPhone X without a dual camera at a higher price than international iPhone Xs WITH a dual camera, and then being offered the chance to purchase a special edition US iPhone X the following year at an even higher price, just to get the dual camera finally...

 

[gilthanis1]

You are a dealer, so you’re biased, but there’s a flaw in your argument. It would be like buying an iPhone in the US that has less features than it had internationally. Like buying a US iPhone X without a dual camera at a higher price than international iPhone Xs WITH a dual camera, and then being offered the chance to purchase a special edition US iPhone X the following year at an even higher price, just to get the dual camera finally...

Welcome to Capitalist Economy 101. The dealers just sell whats given, so we can't blame them directly. I place the blame for this squarely on Kia USA shoulders.

And the iPhone argument is a little better than a car argument. Apple could market an iPhone DUD edition, stripped down for $899 and then a special edition with 1 extra option for $1299 and people would buy out shiny turd special faster than the base model.

Yes I got a Sunset Yellow Stinger, but I was perfectly content to wait if I couldn't have. Complain to Kia, they need to know we are unhappy. Wether they listen or not is a different story.

 

[Bigserver1]

Welcome to Capitalist Economy 101. The dealers just sell whats given, so we can't blame them directly. I place the blame for this squarely on Kia USA shoulders.

And the iPhone argument is a little better than a car argument. Apple could market an iPhone DUD edition, stripped down for $899 and then a special edition with 1 extra option for $1299 and people would buy out shiny turd special faster than the base model.

Yes I got a Sunset Yellow Stinger, but I was perfectly content to wait if I couldn't have. Complain to Kia, they need to know we are unhappy. Wether they listen or not is a different story.

I’m not blaming the dealer at all, you’re right, they sell what they’re given. This is 100% on KIA USA.

This is a mistake IMO. Kia is treating these cars like they have a strong mind and wallet share among US buyers for 50k cars. They in fact do not, and regardless of how awesome the stinger is, they’re pricing themselves out of the market.

The G70 I think is going to crush the stinger in sales. Same engine, slightly smaller and lighter, full feature set, 50k loaded, zero dealer interaction or cost of ownership for three years. That’s a hard combo to argue with. I wish Kia had set the stinger up for more success in the US.

 

[gilthanis1]

I’m not blaming the dealer at all, you’re right, they sell what they’re given. This is 100% on KIA USA.

This is a mistake IMO. Kia is treating these cars like they have a strong mind and wallet share among US buyers for 50k cars. They in fact do not, and regardless of how awesome the stinger is, they’re pricing themselves out of the market.

The G70 I think is going to crush the stinger in sales. Same engine, slightly smaller and lighter, full feature set, 50k loaded, zero dealer interaction or cost of ownership for three years. That’s a hard combo to argue with. I wish Kia had set the stinger up for more success in the US.

I agree with you on the G70 100%. Personally, I like the looks of the Stinger better, but the G70 is a dam fine looking car. Kia is trying to get to big to fast per se with the Stinger and pricing. Lexus and Infiniti (fancy Toyota's and Nissans lol) did not get where they are overnight. Kia needs to be careful with what they do or people will simply go elsewhere, which will be doubly bad.

Kia need to do 3 things to get the Stinger moving faster in my personal view:
#1: Fix the dam shady dealers, PRONTO! Yes we all know there are great ones, I dealt with one and plenty of other people have too, but the majority are a**hole sheisters who just want to rip people off.
#2: Teach said dealers how to deal with an upmarket customer. You DO NOT ask them 'Where do you want your monthly payment to be?' when a customer walks in to buy a $50k car. That's a pretty big dam insult. We know what the car costs, we know we can afford it, focus on the bottom line price and for the love of god LISTEN TO WHAT WE SAY.
#3: Actually position the Stinger as an upmarket car, similar to what Hyundai did with the Genesis line. Not the full separate dealer treatment, but make it a little more appealing to get one than just picking between a Forte or a Stinger. My experience was above and beyond what I expected, but it fit the uniqueness and class of car I was purchasing.

That's just my 2 pennies, but I think it would give Kia a leg up to helping out with the Stinger as a truly class changing sports car and not 'just an expensive Kia'.

 

[Bigserver1]

I agree with you on the G70 100%. Personally, I like the looks of the Stinger better, but the G70 is a dam fine looking car. Kia is trying to get to big to fast per se with the Stinger and pricing. Lexus and Infiniti (fancy Toyota's and Nissans lol) did not get where they are overnight. Kia needs to be careful with what they do or people will simply go elsewhere, which will be doubly bad.

Kia need to do 3 things to get the Stinger moving faster in my personal view:
#1: Fix the dam shady dealers, PRONTO! Yes we all know there are great ones, I dealt with one and plenty of other people have too, but the majority are a**hole sheisters who just want to rip people off.
#2: Teach said dealers how to deal with an upmarket customer. You DO NOT ask them 'Where do you want your monthly payment to be?' when a customer walks in to buy a $50k car. That's a pretty big dam insult. We know what the car costs, we know we can afford it, focus on the bottom line price and for the love of god LISTEN TO WHAT WE SAY.
#3: Actually position the Stinger as an upmarket car, similar to what Hyundai did with the Genesis line. Not the full separate dealer treatment, but make it a little more appealing to get one than just picking between a Forte or a Stinger. My experience was above and beyond what I expected, but it fit the uniqueness and class of car I was purchasing.

That's just my 2 pennies, but I think it would give Kia a leg up to helping out with the Stinger as a truly class changing sports car and not 'just an expensive Kia'.

I agree with everything you just said. I also think the Stinger is better looking than the G70. I think the Stinger looks best, followed closely by the G80 sport, and the G70 I think looks good.

The dealer experience is big. Hyundai dealers are now using “Genesis specialists” at their dealers and making it as separate of an experience as possible for that upmarket clientele. It’s not perfect, but it’s better. Where genesis has nailed it imo is in two ways - 1, pricing (premium but accessible), and 2, lifestyle benefits that are better than anything else on the market. Need an oil change? Great, they’ll come to you, drop off a car, service yours and bring it back. And it’s free. That’s a huge selling point in an of itself.

I’d love to see Kia start to offer “stinger/Cadenza/K900 specialists” in their dealership, and create an experience for those buyers. Me walking in knowing what I’m talking about while they try to tell me the stinger is 800 a month to lease is just a shitty experience all the way around.

 

[gilthanis1]

I agree with everything you just said. I also think the Stinger is better looking than the G70. I think the Stinger looks best, followed closely by the G80 sport, and the G70 I think looks good.

The dealer experience is big. Hyundai dealers are now using “Genesis specialists” at their dealers and making it as separate of an experience as possible for that upmarket clientele. It’s not perfect, but it’s better. Where genesis has nailed it imo is in two ways - 1, pricing (premium but accessible), and 2, lifestyle benefits that are better than anything else on the market. Need an oil change? Great, they’ll come to you, drop off a car, service yours and bring it back. And it’s free. That’s a huge selling point in an of itself.

I’d love to see Kia start to offer “stinger/Cadenza/K900 specialists” in their dealership, and create an experience for those buyers. Me walking in knowing what I’m talking about while they try to tell me the stinger is 800 a month to lease is just a shitty experience all the way around.

LOL, exactly. When they mention lease payments that are as expensive as a purchase then they may as well not even say anything else because we walk out. Here's to hoping Kia actually listens and pays attention to what Genesis is doing and makes a fix quick.

Back on topic though, I like the Deep Chroma Blue but what in the HELL where they thinking with Brown??? That would fit in white or black, but I don't like that combo at all with the Deep Chroma Blue. I will seriously recommend anyone who wants one to contact Jason from Kia of Muncie. They won't BS you or jerk you around. And they are an awesome group of guys to hang out with and talk about cars.

 

[Rufus]

Brown and blue are considered a classic pairing, sartorially speaking...dark blue suit/Brown shoes, etc. But different strokes for different folks. Speaking of strokes, I'll take mine as a 2.2l stroker

 

[weew]

I could almost guarantee you the wiring is there for the 360 camera

I CAN guarantee that the wiring exists for a 360 camera because the top trim Canadian Stingers get one.

 

[KiaofMuncie]

KIA does have K900 specialists. We have two sales staff trained on them. I would think the Stinger will eventually go that route. People who buy these cars are not your average customer. KIA stressed the importance of the buyer in the training we had at our store and it was a well rounded class on just about everything that could come up. Except for restricted top speed, Canadian options, and insane dealer mark up's!

 

[RobertPaulson]

Stage Five Stinger: Kia Introduces 500-Unit Atlantica Edition

This should create some feisty feedback.

 

[Clearly Canadian]

Here’s an unpopular opinion on this forum.

...

Again I’m glad it exists for those that want to buy it. New features will come out every year, if you always wait for the next model year you’ll never have the car.

Don't want to start a flame war but sometimes I feel as thought people take it personally that a feature was given to one market but not to another. Yes, Canadians were lucky but let's face it, Canadians usually get shafted so for myself I'd say I'm used to it. (Look up Amazon's Alexa if you want one example of many)

You could assume Kia America is greedy, but I think this is more likely:

• Kia global wants to move their brand upmarket
• Kia global gives marching orders, particularly to one of their huge markets, the USA
• Kia America makes a Grand Marketing Plan [GMP(tm)] to keep the stinger in the eyes of average consumers for as long as possible
• Auto enthusiasts and early adopters get irked because they were there since the beginning but the GMP was not directed towards them
• Insert @DaJackson comments here, which I agree with

What do you think?

 

[DaJackson]

Yes I got a Sunset Yellow Stinger...they need to know we are unhappy.

You bought the car, you are not THAT unhappy. If the cars start sitting on lots for extended periods of time then KIA will start listening.

 

[gilthanis1]

You bought the car, you are not THAT unhappy. If the cars start sitting on lots for extended periods of time then KIA will start listening.

Correction, I got the car after *5* other dealers tried to screw me over with ridiculous pricing and bullshit. The 6th, Kia of Muncie, reached out to me on here after reading about my issues. I was fed up with Kia as a company, and still let them know this is an issue and needs to be fixed.

I am thrilled with the car, but had resigned myself to the fact that i was not going to be able to get one because of the shitty dealers. This is still an issue, the way they are doing these cars is turning people away and I know we don't want to see this car go away after 2-3 model years.\

Thats the unhappy fact I was trying to get across. Your dam right I'm happy with mine, LOL

 

[Deep Chroma Blue]

I agree with you @gilthanis1 and @Bigserver1 on the KIA USA dealership experience overall. I had a terrible experience with the actual salesman assigned to me when I test drove a Stinger here in northern California. Driving the vehicle was fantastic, as long as I tuned out his complete lack of knowledge and focused on performance. I walked out of there feeling like I sold them on the Stinger.

Speaking on the phone and going to the All-Star Genesis dealership in Antioch to test drive a G70 Sport was on par with my BMW dealership experiences. The salespeople were incredibly well-informed and hospitable, but the car's performance didn't put a smile on my face like the Stinger's did later on.

It just so happens that these were the int/ext colors and badge alterations I was keen on when viewing the KIA World website in December, and kinda sorta bummed that they didn't offer here stateside in 2018. But c'est la vie. I'll casually inquire with a few agents about the LE model's availability..at least curious about the OTD price on them.

 

[RJStinger]

I CAN guarantee that the wiring exists for a 360 camera because the top trim Canadian Stingers get one.

Wiring may exist but wouldn't it require significant mods to install multiple cameras? Is something like that really worth it?

 

[RJStinger]

I agree with you @gilthanis1 and @Bigserver1 on the KIA USA dealership experience overall. I had a terrible experience with the actual salesman assigned to me when I test drove a Stinger here in northern California. Driving the vehicle was fantastic, as long as I tuned out his complete lack of knowledge and focused on performance. I walked out of there feeling like I sold them on the Stinger.

Speaking on the phone and going to the All-Star Genesis dealership in Antioch to test drive a G70 Sport was on par with my BMW dealership experiences. The salespeople were incredibly well-informed and hospitable, but the car's performance didn't put a smile on my face like the Stinger's did later on.

It just so happens that these were the int/ext colors and badge alterations I was keen on when viewing the KIA World website in December, and kinda sorta bummed that they didn't offer here stateside in 2018. But c'est la vie. I'll casually inquire with a few agents about the LE model's availability..at least curious about the OTD price on them.

My local kia is a joke. The sales people are clueless. When i first went in, the person couldn't even tell me what trim levels they had in stock (and they only have 3 stingers there so it's not like they are holding 20 cars). And then he mistook a premium for a GT and then went on to tell me that they are the same. Some of them were dressed quite disheveled as if they just woke up an hour ago and came to work in the same clothes. These is quite a contrast with my experience with any other dealership in town (and i've been to Audi, Toyota, Honda, BMW, and FOrd). Even the Hyundai dealership was 100percent better.

As