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Kia Stinger GT2 - My impressions and review after 7,000 miles. via /r/cars

Kia Stinger GT2 - My impressions and review after 7,000 miles.

I bought a 2018 Kia Stinger GT2 for $38,000 before TTL. It was leftover on the lot and the owner had driven it for approximately 5,000 miles. I got a new title at used price. MSRP was ~$52,000.

For some background, my last two cars were a 2014 Audi S4 Prestige and a 2015 Mustang GT Performance Package. I also have driven a 2018 Audi Q8 and a 2015 Audi RS5 enough to give a comparison to those cars as well.

TLDR. I have gotten more compliments, window roll downs, honks, waves, and questions about my Stinger GT2 in 7,000 miles than I did in over 100,000 combined miles of my S4 and Mustang GT. A Stinger GT2 is a very competent grand touring car. It is a pleasure to drive around town, has gobs of power, is very comfortable, and has precise and sporty turn in and balance even if it has low overall grip and balance when at the limit. The features and interior quality are not quite enough to match a brand new mid-level Mercedes, Audi, or BMW, but it's right behind.

I'd say a good comparison is the GT2 is just behind a mid-level mercedes, bmw or MB that has come out in the last 2-3 years, but ahead of anything older than that.

What's Good

Interior. The interior of the GT2 punches above its $52,000 MSRP. It does not quite rise to the level of a new mid level audi, bmw or mercedes, but it far exceeds the interior in my 2014 Audi S4 Prestige. That's not exactly a fair comparison, given the Audi B8.5 platform came out in 2013, but it gives you an idea of where it falls. There are no blank switches in the interior. Every switch is solid, feels good to press, and doesn't look cheap - even the plastic ones. The interior is intelligently laid out and all of the important every day controls are physical buttons, not buried in the infotainment system. The interior is a mix of padded leather, brushed aluminum, and soft touch plastics. Use of hard plastic is very limited, but there are two key areas that I wish were not hard plastic - the airbag cover on the steering wheel and the side of the center console where your knee can touch the console. Other than that, every important touch surface is high quality materials.

Seats. The front seats do not come close to a true luxury car like Lincoln, but are nicer than what you would expect from a sports focused car. The seats in my GT2 are heated and cooled. Adjustments include independent left/right thigh extenders, lumbar support, adjustable side bolsters, and your typical back and seat adjustments. They are more comfortable than the seats in my Audi S4 while also managing to be more supportive. Compared to the Audi Q8 I find them just as comfortable as the Audi Q8.

Features. Adaptive cruise control, lane assist, blind spot monitoring, cross traffic monitoring, automatic lifting tailgate, and a heads up display are the highlights of this car. Get a 2019 or newer and you also have a 360 degree parking camera. The only major modern feature the GT2 is missing is a full digital and configurable dash. Kia did a lot of good things with features that just make sense. For instance, when you change the wiper mode the screen between the tach and speedometer shows you what mode you are in. When you change the auto wiper sensitivity, that screen shows you that too. Simple things like that show that Kia has put some thought into everyday usability.

Powertrain. Stock a Stinger GT will dyno anywhere between 350-375hp and lb-ft. Add a $500 piggyback tune and you will dyno close to 400hp and 470lb-ft. These numbers are more than enough for someone who just wants their car to be fun to drive. The transmission is a competent 8 speed automatic that I have no qualms with. Not as fast as a dual clutch, but much smoother and calmer at low speeds than a dual clutch. There is a launch control, but it's nothing to write home about in terms of how violent your launches will be. At least it's easy to engage.

Handling. Turn in is immediate and precise. The car is balanced when under control, but understeers heavily when you begin your four wheel drift. The car apparently does not actually perform as well as it feels. Look at Lightning Lap Results at VIR and you will scratch your head wondering why the lap time is so slow for a car that feels so precise and balanced. The answer is that overall levels of grip and balance deteriorate at the very limit and there is not much you can do with the throttle to fix it except lift. Steering weight and feedback is not as good as my Audi S4, but on par or better than the Mustang GT. Overall, it's a pleasure to take this car on an off ramp, but it's not going to light your hair on fire at a track day or autocross. Big red Brembos are a nice visual touch.

Infotainment. The speakers in my GT2 are superb, on par with the speakers in an Audi Q8. If you are someone who likes good audio but not enough that you would spend money on an upgraded aftermarket system, you will not be disappointed. The infotainment is unintrusive and highly customizable - even some stuff that you might scratch your head and wonder why anyone would customize it (for example, you can customize the relative sound levels of almost every audio input). Android auto works flawlessly and seamlessly. The screen between the tach and speedometer has a lot of useful information and is easy to navigate. If you opt for Kia's navigation, I found it to be very competent and I like the overall design.

Incentives. Incentives on these cars are ridiculous at the moment. Especially lease incentives. Lots of cash back, and you can buyout your lease right away and still keep the lease cash benefit. They simply cannot move these cars so you will get a lot off MSRP. I wouldn't buy one for more than 85% of MSRP. 80% of MSRP is a killer deal that some people claim they have gotten, but those are very rare.

Kia Warranty. No comment needed. Great warranty.

What's Bad.

Badging. The Kia badge is hideous. I don't mind that it's a Kia, and I'm not embarrassed to say it is a kia, but the badge is hideous. Luckily there are some replacements available which cure this problem if you are willing. I'm running the stinger script out back and the international kia logo on front and on my steering wheel. Unfortunately that looks a lot like a lexus badge, so people get confused often.

Heads up display. The heads up display does not have the option to show a gear position indicator or display shift lights, even when you are in sport mode. Kia, please patch this into the firmware! You let me have my blind spot monitoring and turn by turn directions show up in my HUD, but not a gear position indicator? C'mon.

Manual mode. When in sport mode and manual shifting, the transmission will revert to default "Drive" when you come to a stop - even if it's a momentary stop like a red light. If you call for a downshift while stationary it will revert to manual shifting, but there's no reason that the transmission should exit manual shifting just because you come to a momentary stop. Kia, please patch this into the firmware!

Range. The gas tank is too small and fuel economy is not stellar. I average between 20 and 24 mpg on mixed driving and that nets me about 300 miles between fillups.

Dealerships. Kia dealerships. I consider myself an informed purchaser and I went into the dealership with a number in mind to buy the car. They got close, we made a deal, that was that. I didn't have a bad experience, but I have seen a lot of posts and stories about people who are less informed than me who have a less than stellar experience at the dealership. It can be a bit weird to shop for a $50,000 car next to people who are trying to spend less than $20,000 for a brand new car.

Exhaust. The exhaust note is meh. It's not bad, but it's not great either. The V6 in my Audi S4 had a better exhaust note and I was happy to get a louder and more expressive exhaust on my S4. To give you an idea of what exhaust tone I like, AWE touring was perfect on my S4. I want a louder exhaust on my Stinger, but I'm also very very cautious about getting one that drones or is too farty. MBRP's new release seems to be the right thing for me and I will probably head that direction.

Why Buy a Stinger

The Stinger GT2 is the perfect car for someone who needs to put a car seat in the back seat and some stuff in the trunk, but doesn't want to be bored when they drive the car. Realistically the only car that is comparable is the Dodge Charger. For me the Charger is preferable if you want that raw v8 sound and more power, but the Stinger GT2 is more preferable if you want a more refined and comfortable ride.

Other comparable cars in this class are either too expensive or do not have the same power and sportiness. An Audi A5 Sportback is competitively priced but can't touch the GT2 in terms of power. Step up to an Audi S5 Sportback and you've blow the budget trying to get similar features.

I modified my Audi S4 and my Mustang GT, not to a crazy extent, but enough that you could tell they weren't stock. I've gotten more complements, window roll downs, honks, waves, and questions about my stock Stinger GT2 in 7,000 miles than I did in over 100,000 combined miles of my S4 and Mustang GT. Everyone loves this car, but no one is willing to spend the money to buy it. I suspect the reason no one wants to buy the Kia Stinger is because they would rather be seen in an Audi, MB or BMW. The other lawyers in my office gave me shit for "downgrading" from my Audi S4 to my GT2. I give them a ride and then they are surprised at how nice it is. Doesn't mean they'd buy one, but at least they understand after being in one.

I see myself holding on to my Stinger GT2 for a long time. I sold my Mustang GT because I needed a functional back seat. I thought my S4 would give me the same grins plus more functionality, but I never really connected with my S4 and it didn't make me look back at it after I parked it. The Stinger GT2 gives me the grins I miss from my Mustang GT while having the back seat, comfort, and trunk space that I need at this stage in my life.

I cannot recommend the GT2 highly enough to someone in a similar spot in life. It's a steal at the prices dealers are letting them go for.

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