Poll - Cars You Considered Before Deciding on the Stinger

[corradoMR2]

There are several nice cars one can purchase instead of the Stinger.

Did you consider any of the key competitors Kia has taken aim at?

Why did you end up with the Stinger?

 

[corradoMR2]

For me, the Audi A5/S5 Sportback, and the Q50S though the consideration with both was brief.

Got the Stinger because of the quality interior, tech, styling, power, looks, and tremendous value!

 

[Bigserver1]

I am still in consideration, but here’s what I’ve looked at and am considering alongside the Stinger (GT2).

‘18 Accord - liked, didn’t love. Uncomfortable drivers seat knee room for tall drivers, terrible sound system, no 360 camera.

‘18 Camry - hated it.

‘18 G80 Sport - Loved this car. Not as much raw fun as the stinger, but more luxurious and almost as quick, more passenger room, etc. Strongly considering this.

Future vehicles I’ll be heavily looking into are the ‘18 Mazda 6 Signature and the new ‘19 Acura RDX that was just unveiled today. Right now I’m leaning stinger because it’s 8k less than a G80 Sport, but time will tell.

 

[Johnnyfive]

For me it was the Stinger or nothing. I would have stayed with my previous vehicle if I didn't like the Stinger.

 

[CO-bound]

I considered the German trio, the ATS-V and the Q60 RS. The 4GC was too isolated and numb; I didn't even remember anything about it after the test drive. The c43c and S5 sound great but that's about it; both too bland for me. The ATSv made me laugh; fast but thats it, I have nothing else good to say about it. The Q60 is just too quiet and subdued for a sport coupe; I liked it but didn't love it.

I didn't even drive the Stinger, it was love at first sight. It was pretty much like Goldilocks; other than lacking standard remote start, it's perfect for me.

 

[Euljiro1ga]

It looked something like this for me: Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid -> Hyundai i30 (elantra gt) -> Hyundai Sonata diesel -> Samsung-Renault SM6 (renault talisman) -> Hyundai Tucson -> Kia Sportage -> Kia Stinger -> Kia Sorento -> VW Touran -> Kia K5 (optima) -> Kia K7 (cadenza) -> Hyundai Grandeur (Azera) -> Chevy Impala -> Kia Stinger -> Kia Niro -> VW Passart -> Kia Stinger -> Genesis G70 -> Kia Stinger!!!

 

[DCBStingerGT]

Ok, i do not want a car which blends in with the crowd, i have considered a 2017 Holden Commodore SS-V with a LS3 V8, but then Stinger shows up, just as Holden's Vehicle Operations closes down, Stinger's V6TT 272kw engine gives Commodore's 304kw V8 a run for it's money, and even matches or out performs it. Commodore is so common, even in 304kw V8, it carries a body that we have seen for years now.
On the road Stinger is virtually non-existent, i have not seen one yet, and when people do see one, you will snap your neck, saying 'what the f..k was that'..haha, a Commodore will not do that, anyway, what else have i considered, a pre-owned BMW 640d, still quite rare, and i love the Ivory White interior, with dark blue exterior, Audi A5/S5, Alfa Giulia, the only other car that i have liked for years is a Cadillac CTS-V, but not sold here and way out of my budget..haha, but Stinger wins hands down in many ways for me. Case closed.

 

[bluecatsup]

While waiting for lease to end, I have been considering these three: Stinger, G70, RS3. Each has its own pros and cons, but so far, Stinger wins out every time I make a comparison when thinking about real life usage.

 

[Stinger73]

I test drove the list below before getting my Stinger GT1. Never made it to the Ford and Nissan dealers.

The worst handling was the Charger, the best handling was the Giulia. I just didn't like the severe first year issues it was having, let alone the lack of dealership service knowledge as most were Fiat dealers. Plus non touch screen and common knowledge Alfa has a horrible record of reliability in general. The Infiniti Q50 was close to the Stinger as far as comfort and sportiness except for the steering yet has like the worst infortainment system of all automakers. They are heavily discounting them on leases and was hard to turn down, until I got an outrageous quote on auto insurance.

I tested the sound system on all of them. The worst was the Camry as far as the subwoofer in multiple cars had the same weird noise, like the suspension was bottoming out on non heavy bass along with bad rear deck rattling. In fact most of the cars had bad rear deck rattling with the exception of the GTI, Sonata, Regal, Malibu, BMW, and Mazdas. The best for loudest and clarity was the Volkswagen's Fender (Panasonic). Yet it sounded low and mostly from the doors (really left door biased), which ruined the music for me. The Infiniti Bose Premium and the Stinger 15 speaker Harmon Kardon sounded the best well rounded systems to me. (Even though I just realized the floor subs are not working for me, as others have mentioned, and the dealer submitted a trouble ticket to KIA about it. Dealer service guy's Stinger has same issue.)

In the end it was the power, uniqueness, hatchback practicality, CarPlay with touch screen, sound system (Hopefully fixed and improved soon with even more bass ), fun factor, comfortable ride yet sportiness of the Stinger that won me over. The only downside for me is the MPG and maybe not getting ventilated seats

2018 Kia Optima SX Turbo
2018 Kia Stinger Premium 2.0
2017 Volkswagen Autobahn GTI
2018 Infiniti Q50
2018 Audi A3
2018 Audi S3
2018 Toyota Camry XLE
2018 Toyota Camry XLE V6
2018 Toyota Camry XSE V6
2018 Honda Accord Touring 1.5
2018 Honda Accord Touring 2.0
2017 Alfa Romero Giulia Ti
2017 Chevy Malibu Premier (Don't judge )
2017 Dodge Charger SVT
2017 Buick Regal GS
2018 Hyundai Sonata Limited 2.0
2018 Hyundai Elantra GT Sport
2018 Hyundai Elantra Limited
2018 Cadillac ATS Premium Luxury
2017 BMW 340i
2018 Mazda 3 Grand Touring
2017.5 Mazda 6 Grand Touring

 

[Euljiro1ga]

I test drove the list below before getting my Stinger GT1. Never made it to the Ford and Nissan dealers.

The worst handling was the Charger, the best handling was the Giulia. I just didn't like the severe first year issues it was having, let alone the lack of dealership service knowledge as most were Fiat dealers. Plus non touch screen and common knowledge Alfa has a horrible record of reliability in general. The Infiniti Q50 was close to the Stinger as far as comfort and sportiness except for the steering yet has like the worst infortainment system of all automakers. They are heavily discounting them on leases and was hard to turn down, until I got an outrageous quote on auto insurance.

I tested the sound system on all of them. The worst was the Camry as far as the subwoofer in multiple cars had the same weird noise, like the suspension was bottoming out on non heavy bass along with bad rear deck rattling. In fact most of the cars had bad rear deck rattling with the exception of the GIT, Sonata, Regal, Malibu, BMW, and Mazdas. The best for loudest and clarity was the Volkswagen's Fender (Panasonic). Yet it sounded low and mostly from the doors (really left door biased), which ruined the music for me. The Infiniti Bose Premium and the Stinger 15 speaker Harmon Kardon sounded the best well rounded systems to me. (Even though I just realized the floor subs are not working for me, as others have mentioned, and the dealer submitted a trouble ticket to KIA about it. Dealer service guy's Stinger has same issue.)

In the end it was the power, uniqueness, hatchback practicality, CarPlay with touch screen, sound system (Hopefully fixed and improved soon with even more bass ), fun factor, comfortable ride yet sportiness of the Stinger that won me over. The only downside for me is the MPG and maybe not getting ventilated seats

2018 Kia Optima SX Turbo
2018 Kia Stinger Premium 2.0
2017 Volkswagen Autobahn GTI
2018 Infiniti Q50
2018 Audi A3
2018 Audi S3
2018 Toyota Camry XLE
2018 Toyota Camry XLE V6
2018 Toyota Camry XSE V6
2018 Honda Accord Touring 1.5
2018 Honda Accord Touring 2.0
2017 Alfa Romero Giulia Ti
2017 Chevy Malibu Premier (Don't judge )
2017 Dodge Charger SVT
2017 Buick Regal GS
2018 Hyundai Sonata Limited 2.0
2018 Hyundai Elantra GT Sport
2018 Hyundai Elantra Limited
2018 Cadillac ATS Premium Luxury
2017 BMW 340i
2018 Mazda 3 Grand Touring
2017.5 Mazda 6 Grand Touring

That's quite a list of cars you test drove. Glad it's the Stinger in the end. It's quite comforting to hear the Stinger won, considering all the cars you drove.

 

[Gdank]

One I did look at was a 1 year old Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio

If there had been a dealership closer to me, I probably would have gone for that instead!

 

[Kia Stinger]

I test drove the list below before getting my Stinger GT1. Never made it to the Ford and Nissan dealers.

The worst handling was the Charger, the best handling was the Giulia. I just didn't like the severe first year issues it was having, let alone the lack of dealership service knowledge as most were Fiat dealers. Plus non touch screen and common knowledge Alfa has a horrible record of reliability in general. The Infiniti Q50 was close to the Stinger as far as comfort and sportiness except for the steering yet has like the worst infortainment system of all automakers. They are heavily discounting them on leases and was hard to turn down, until I got an outrageous quote on auto insurance.

I tested the sound system on all of them. The worst was the Camry as far as the subwoofer in multiple cars had the same weird noise, like the suspension was bottoming out on non heavy bass along with bad rear deck rattling. In fact most of the cars had bad rear deck rattling with the exception of the GTI, Sonata, Regal, Malibu, BMW, and Mazdas. The best for loudest and clarity was the Volkswagen's Fender (Panasonic). Yet it sounded low and mostly from the doors (really left door biased), which ruined the music for me. The Infiniti Bose Premium and the Stinger 15 speaker Harmon Kardon sounded the best well rounded systems to me. (Even though I just realized the floor subs are not working for me, as others have mentioned, and the dealer submitted a trouble ticket to KIA about it. Dealer service guy's Stinger has same issue.)

In the end it was the power, uniqueness, hatchback practicality, CarPlay with touch screen, sound system (Hopefully fixed and improved soon with even more bass ), fun factor, comfortable ride yet sportiness of the Stinger that won me over. The only downside for me is the MPG and maybe not getting ventilated seats

2018 Kia Optima SX Turbo
2018 Kia Stinger Premium 2.0
2017 Volkswagen Autobahn GTI
2018 Infiniti Q50
2018 Audi A3
2018 Audi S3
2018 Toyota Camry XLE
2018 Toyota Camry XLE V6
2018 Toyota Camry XSE V6
2018 Honda Accord Touring 1.5
2018 Honda Accord Touring 2.0
2017 Alfa Romero Giulia Ti
2017 Chevy Malibu Premier (Don't judge )
2017 Dodge Charger SVT
2017 Buick Regal GS
2018 Hyundai Sonata Limited 2.0
2018 Hyundai Elantra GT Sport
2018 Hyundai Elantra Limited
2018 Cadillac ATS Premium Luxury
2017 BMW 340i
2018 Mazda 3 Grand Touring
2017.5 Mazda 6 Grand Touring

Welcome aboard, @Stinger73! Thank you for signing up (a while ago and finally posting!) And congratulations on your brand new Stinger GT! That's a whole heck of a lot of test drive you did. Where do you find the time? Anyway, thank you for the great comparisons. What did your Stinger replace?

 

[AV8R]

There are several nice cars one can purchase instead of the Stinger.

Did you consider any of the key competitors Kia has taken aim at?

Why did you end up with the Stinger?

Mustang GT, but safety rating was way too low.
Stinger GT has similar grunt and better safety rating.

 

[Stinger73]

Welcome aboard, @Stinger73! Thank you for signing up (a while ago and finally posting!) And congratulations on your brand new Stinger GT! That's a whole heck of a lot of test drive you did. Where do you find the time? Anyway, thank you for the great comparisons. What did your Stinger replace?

Thanks, yeah I know I signed up a while back but have been busy driving the Stinger As far as finding time, I have no life and had plenty of time off work to use to research and test drive cars

BTW the Stinger has hands down the best keyfob of all the cars I test drove. The Camry is the cheapest one I have ever seen and appeared to be like those cheap toys from the bottom of cereal boxes. The Giulia was the biggest, most awkward of them all.

 

[Kia Stinger]

Thanks, yeah I know I signed up a while back but have been busy driving the Stinger As far as finding time, I have no life and had plenty of time off work to use to research and test drive cars

BTW the Stinger has hands down the best keyfob of all the cars I test drove. The Camry is the cheapest one I have ever seen and appeared to be like those cheap toys from the bottom of cereal boxes. The Giulia was the biggest, most awkward of them all.

For God's sake, stop driving the Stinger and spend more time here.

 

[mikeceli]

RX350. Great SUV, but not awe-inspiring like the 365 HP Stinger.

 

[Kia Stinger]

RX350. Great SUV, but not awe-inspiring like the 365 HP Stinger.

Yes. It does its job very well. And I actually like the style of the new/current generation...

 

[mikeceli]

Yes. It does its job very well. And I actually like the style of the new/current generation...

Just doesn't look like a Stinger "Stealth Fighter" vehicle!

I saw a red Stinger on a turntable, accompanied by a beautiful early 40's woman, at the SF Auto Show. Both caused my jaw to drop!

 

[AV8R]

Just doesn't look like a Stinger "Stealth Fighter" vehicle!

I saw a red Stinger on a turntable, accompanied by a beautiful early 40's woman, at the SF Auto Show. Both caused my jaw to drop!

Nice combo! Hubba hubba

 

[Tazztattoo]

I seriously considered two alternatives based on my non negotiable must have features being rear OR all wheel drive and couple style/lift-back design.

VW Arteon was ruled out being $10k more than a GT Stinger for a 4 cylinder with 3 year warranty only. It is a beautiful car but at the end of the day I believe it's more luxury saloon than a true GT sports car like the Stinger.

The Skoda Superb is great value at around $10k less than a GT Stinger and does come with a 5 year warranty. I really had no issue with the car itself. At the end of the day it was more the dealership experience that let me down. It was evidently clear that this is a new brand in our market and there was a clear lack of staff knowledge around the product that gave me little confidence that after sales experience would be a good one.