Currently reading: Kia unlikely to directly replace Stinger GT
Korean firm's sports saloon will essentially be replaced by quickest versions of the electric EV6

The Kia Stinger GT is unlikely to be replaced for a second-generation, Autocar has learned.

The Stinger GT, first launched in 2017 and recently overhauled, has been hugely successful in the transformation of Kia ’s image towards making sportier-looking and more dynamically oriented models, but it has not been a big sales hit.

The baton is already being handed to the Kia EV6 for the role in the range as a sporty flagship, as part of Kia’s wider push towards electric cars. To that end, the EV6 will be getting its own GT version next year.

When asked by Autocar at the LA motor show if the Stinger GT would be replaced, Kia design boss Karim Habib said: “The spirit of Stinger remains and will remain. I like to think that the EV6 has the genes of the GT. We’re doing to do a GT of that, and it has the Stinger in it.

“Stinger has been a transformational car, and opened a whole new perspective as to what Kia can be, sporty and a precision driving tool. EV6 is now doing similar.”

The Stinger GT will remain in Kia’s range for a while to come in the meantime, however, after its recent facelift, and is expected to be on sale until at least 2023 or 2024.

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Kia’s most dynamically adventurous model yet, the Stinger targets BMW, Audi, Mercedes and the rest of the executive saloon set

Mark Tisshaw

mark-tisshaw-autocar
Title: Editor

Mark is a journalist with more than a decade of top-level experience in the automotive industry. He first joined Autocar in 2009, having previously worked in local newspapers. He has held several roles at Autocar, including news editor, deputy editor, digital editor and his current position of editor, one he has held since 2017.

From this position he oversees all of Autocar’s content across the print magazine, autocar.co.uk website, social media, video, and podcast channels, as well as our recent launch, Autocar Business. Mark regularly interviews the very top global executives in the automotive industry, telling their stories and holding them to account, meeting them at shows and events around the world.

Mark is a Car of the Year juror, a prestigious annual award that Autocar is one of the main sponsors of. He has made media appearances on the likes of the BBC, and contributed to titles including What Car?Move Electric and Pistonheads, and has written a column for The Sun.

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xxxx 18 November 2021

With such poor sales, in the UK at least, it's hardly a surprize