Kia GT4 Stinger

[JfuckinC]

Originally posted by ercchry
Kind of a departure from this concept... but damn! Not bad Kia, not bad

http://jalopnik.com/the-kia-stinger-...eel-1790949403

That thing is sharpppp.....

[NoPulp]

Big meh from me.
I guess it's cool for a kia... but a big disappointment from the concept.

[carson blocks]

Originally posted by MGCM

I always thought if you had a good solid design you make the car and then use 2nd gen to fix defects/problems that were overlooked. Then your 3rd gen can have some of the "updates" that were missed in 1st gen. Now they screw us time and time again on great concepts because its "not perfect" and the concept dies. I thought making cars was a compromise no matter what, so whats the problem? Brakes too expensive, make it a brembo option and charge out the ass for it, engine too expensive, same thing, downgrade and charge out the ass for better motor, design too wild, who cares do it anyway ppl will buy it if the foundation is solid. Car companies are a bunch of babies who missed their 2pm nap and didnt get their 5pm bottle........and we let them build cars

A couple key points to consider;
First, the vast majority of cars (even fun ones) aren't purchased by enthusiasts. They're purchased by simps who get their car info from consumer reports, and don't understand things like 'platform' or 'foundation', and are easily turned off by the kind of unfinished or glitchy things found on rushed first-gen cars. This demographic isn't going to modify anything, live with anything, or work around anything, they expect the car to be a finished appliance, not an awesome platform. The majority of consumers won't give you a second chance if the first generation is a rushed hack job with poor reviews and problems.

Secondly, consumer expectation has never been higher. The cool cars we loved in the past were completely terrible in many ways, but we lived with them because they were awesome, and that would never fly today. The modern consumer expects a higher quality, more problem-free owning experience than ever before, and has more platforms than ever before to voice their displeasure should the product not perform 100% to their expectations. There was a time when warranties were 12 months, some breakdowns were expected, and cars were routinely worn out in the 5-10 year range. Modern consumers of even the cheapest cars expect an appliance that will run perfectly for 5 years with basic maintenance and a powertrain that will make it to at least 10y/200k without needing major repairs.

Last but not least, between today's litigious climate and stricter regulation than ever before, manufacturers can't afford to put out a 'draft' version of a car like they could in the 'good old days'. If your initial version of the car has some flaw, you'll be forced to recall it and spend gazillions of dollars buying off consumers and/or paying fines to the government. In the 50s-60s-early 70s, you could have a 12-18 month design cycle, put any old piece of shit on the market and see what happened. If it was terrible, you either made changes or scrapped the program and moved on. Now, you have automakers being held liable for faulty products for as long as 8 years (I think the VW recall goes back to '09 models). Nowadays you have to extend the design cycle, test everything 10 different ways, then get it to meet all the regulatory tests. That's one of the reasons that back in the day you'd get a new car every 1-3 years, while now you're lucky if you get a minor refresh at 3-4 years, and a major at 6-8 years, with the same platform lasting 2-3 gens just because R&D costs and the cost of meeting regs is so damned high.

TL;DR: Manufacturers simply cannot afford to gamble with releasing half-baked products in the hopes that enthusiasts will flock to them, it isn't the 60s anymore.

[carson blocks]

On topic, I like the style of this, and Kia's other 'upscale' cars like the K900. The problem I have, at least in the K900s case, is when you sit inside you're immediately reminded you're sitting in a Kia as the buttons, fonts, switches etc. look like they're straight out of one of the $20k econoboxes. They look good in pictures, but when you get your hands on it, it's just not nice.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Looks awesome but there seems to be a few drastically different concepts floating around. The Koreans have far surpassed the Americans, and are just as good as some of the Japanese/German stuff when it comes to fit & finish. Just need to fix the driving dynamics which they are always improving. That big "KIA" badge is pretty difficult to get over, but once you're past that I bet it will be a great little car. So many people I talk to still think Hyundai/Kia is the exact same junk from 15 years ago and I don't think anything will ever change that for them.

Originally posted by rage2
365hp, available AWD, mimicking a S5 at probably 2/3 of the price. Damn Koreans are getting good at this. Will be interesting to see how it handles, I believe Kia nabbed a key BMW M guy to make sure Kias can handle.

They hired Albert Biermann, who I think was running the M division.

[Xtrema]

Still that much power, awd and still over 5s 0-100km/h?

[schocker]

I don't normally like any kias, but this is sharp. The influence of the people they have been picking up from the euro brands is really showing.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by Xtrema
Still that much power, awd and still over 5s 0-100km/h?

Hopefully a conservative measurement. A lot of american cars are like that too, they have tons of HP but are weirdly slow given the numbers. Gearing maybe?

[schocker]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt
Hopefully a conservative measurement. A lot of american cars are like that too, they have tons of HP but are weirdly slow given the numbers. Gearing maybe?

This is korean horse power, usually <hp/khp

[Strider]

Originally posted by schocker
This is korean horse power, usually &lt;hp/khp

Korean HP notwithstanding, 3.3L TT V6 should be capable of 0-60 times better than 5.1s

[corsvette]

Kia/Hyundai are well known to over-hype their HP numbers. Looks to me like they hired all the unemployed Pontiac stylists, way overdone and busy, plus it pretty much looks like a stretched and flattened Optima. No thanks.

Really though, who's going to buy a performance kia sedan? Unless this thing is 30% cheaper than any mainstream luxury make it's going to sell as well as every other expensive Kia has....poorly

You know it'll be a good value used though as Kia resale values are terrible.

[jacky4566]

Any news from team Toyota about the FT-1 Supra?

[carson blocks]

Originally posted by Xtrema
Still that much power, awd and still over 5s 0-100km/h?

I think RWD is standard, and that little 2.0 turbo probably makes the rated power way high up in the rpm range. Combine that with probably tall gears for a decent highway mpg rating, a 6 speed, and likely an aggressive traction control to keep wheelspin down, and it makes sense. Launching a high strung turbo stick car and keeping it in boost without spinning too badly or frying the clutch can be a bit tricky on some cars and likely hurts the 0-60 a bit plus who knows what torque management or computer nannies are in it to keep Paul Walker wannabes from spitting the drivetrain out the bottom.

[ercchry]

It's a 3.3L V6

[Thaco]

i think this is my midlife crisis car, now i just need the kids to move out so i can afford it.

[Sugarphreak]

...

[carson blocks]

Originally posted by ercchry
It's a 3.3L V6

According to Kia.ca, the GT is the 3.3L V6 and auto, the GT4 Stinger is a 2.0L turbo 4 and 6 speed stick.

GT4 Stinger
http://www.kia.com/us/en/content/veh...rs/gt4-stinger

GT
http://www.kia.com/us/en/content/veh...oncept-cars/gt

[atgilchrist]

This side angle to me ruins the rest of a pretty nice looking car:

[flipstah]

I think it looks good. I would've bought one, if it drove well.

[ercchry]

Originally posted by carson blocks


According to Kia.ca, the GT is the 3.3L V6 and auto, the GT4 Stinger is a 2.0L turbo 4 and 6 speed stick.

GT4 Stinger
http://www.kia.com/us/en/content/veh...rs/gt4-stinger

GT
http://www.kia.com/us/en/content/veh...oncept-cars/gt

Uh, yeah... the GT is what everyone is discussing since it's the new news today

Not to mention it would be expected for a 315hp 6spd to be slower to 60 than 5s