Kia Reveals Broader Range of Stinger Flavors, New Engine

by Steph Willems

Published: August 27th, 2020

kia reveals broader range of stinger flavors new engine

The unlikely Kia Stinger enters the coming year with mild design and content changes in tow, but one thing that isn’t disappearing is choice. Come 2021, there’ll be more of it, at least as far as powertrains are concerned.

Rather than swap out the model’s base engine for a more potent — but pricier — mill, Kia decided to leave well enough alone and slot something hotter between the entry-level 2.0-liter four-cylinder and twin-turbo 3.3-liter V6.

Details about the refreshed sedan’s reworked front- and rear-end lighting, as well as molded plasticky bits, can be found here. When the new car appeared in Korea earlier this month, we speculated that Kia might make use of new Hyundai Motor Group engines found in the Genesis stable. Sure enough, it did, though not at the expense of the model’s base MSRP.

Keeping the 255 horsepower, 260-lb-ft entry-level mill is key to generating sales for this value-laden sports sedan. Rather, Kia added a stepping stone — a happy medium in the form of the turbocharged 2.5-liter four-banger found as standard kit in the Genesis G70 and new-for-2021 G80, as well as the Hyundai Sonata N Line

Making 300 hp and 311 lb-ft (and mated to an eight-speed automatic), the 2.5L nicely splits the difference between the 2.0L and the 3.3L, the latter of which sees a slight power boost for the coming year. Ponies are up by 3 thanks to a rejigged exhaust system, meaning an output of 368 hp and a unchanged 376 lb-ft.

Pricing and all-wheel drive availability are things we can’t share with you yet, as Kia’s keeping those details under wraps until closer to the car’s on-sale date. Global sales are said to begin this quarter.

[Images: Kia Motors]

#2021KiaStinger #Engines #Kia #KiaStinger #ProductPlanning #Stinger

Steph Willems

More by Steph Willems

Comments

Join the conversation

2 of 23 comments

Inside Looking Out on Aug 27, 2020

Nothing compares with Telluride, nothing.

Like Reply
PrincipalDan on Aug 28, 2020

I would be shocked here in the United States to see THREE engine options. It is remarkable at this point when a car (not a truck) even has 2 engine options. Stinger 2.5T RWD with LSD and the premium interior would be lots of fun - ditch the 2.0 and keep the current trim levels more or less.

Like Reply

Recent Comments

Jkross22 Their bet to just buy an existing platform from GM rather than build it from the ground up seems like a smart move. Building an infrastructure for EVs at this point doesn't seem like a wise choice. Perhaps they'll slow walk the development hoping that the tides change over the next 5 years. They'll probably need a longer time horizon than that.
Lou_BC Hard pass
TheEndlessEnigma These cars were bought and hooned. This is a bomb waiting to go off in an owner's driveway.
Kwik_Shift_Pro4X Thankfully I don't have to deal with GDI issues in my Frontier. These cleaners should do well for me if I win.
Theflyersfan Serious answer time...Honda used to stand for excellence in auto engineering. Their first main claim to fame was the CVCC (we don't need a catalytic converter!) engine and it sent from there. Their suspensions, their VTEC engines, slick manual transmissions, even a stowing minivan seat, all theirs. But I think they've been coasting a bit lately. Yes, the Civic Type-R has a powerful small engine, but the Honda of old would have found a way to get more revs out of it and make it feel like an i-VTEC engine of old instead of any old turbo engine that can be found in a multitude of performance small cars. Their 1.5L turbo-4...well...have they ever figured out the oil dilution problems? Very un-Honda-like. Paint issues that still linger. Cheaper feeling interior trim. All things that fly in the face of what Honda once was. The only thing that they seem to have kept have been the sales staff that treat you with utter contempt for daring to walk into their inner sanctum and wanting a deal on something that isn't a bare-bones CR-V. So Honda, beat the rest of your Japanese and Korean rivals, and plug-in hybridize everything. If you want a relatively (in an engineering way) easy way to get ahead of the curve, raise the CAFE score, and have a major point to advertise, and be able to sell to those who can't plug in easily, sell them on something that will get, for example, 35% better mileage, plug in when you get a chance, and drives like a Honda. Bring back some of the engineering skills that Honda once stood for. And then start introducing a portfolio of EVs once people are more comfortable with the idea of plugging in. People seeing that they can easily use an EV for their daily errands with the gas engine never starting will eventually sell them on a future EV because that range anxiety will be lessened. The all EV leap is still a bridge too far, especially as recent sales numbers have shown. Baby steps. That's how you win people over.