LIKES
- Potent turbo-4
- Sharp fastback looks
- Sharp handling
- Good standard features
- Relative value
DISLIKES
- Better on road than on track
- Expensive update
- Relatively big and heavy
BUYING TIP
- The 2022 Kia Stinger goes on sale this spring.
The refreshed 2022 Stinger upgrades with the latest technology and a more potent base engine, for a price.
What kind of vehicle is the 2022 Kia Stinger? What does it compare to?
The 2022 Kia Stinger is a five-door hatchback refreshed for 2022 to seat five in more comfort and with the latest tech, and to keep pace with the BMW 3-Series and Mercedes C-Class.
Is the 2022 Kia Stinger a good car?
Since it launched for 2018, the Stinger excelled at being a lovely touring car with enough pop from its twin-turbo V-6 to light up the long and winding road. More standard features, and the attendant increase in price, stress the value proposition the Stinger had against other luxury sedans. We won’t render a verdict until we drive it.
What's new for the 2022 Kia Stinger?
A more potent base engine, more standard driver-assist features, and a standard 10.3-inch touchscreen highlight the changes of the Stinger’s mid-cycle refresh.
The Stinger fastback’s long nose and muscular rear sport a sharper light signature front and rear. LED headlights come standard, underscored by more drawn out daytime running lights, but the many air intakes in front and behind new 18-inch and 19-inch wheel designs remain the same. At the rear, LED taillights bridge the hatch in a more horizontal design, and the quad exhaust pipes are wider.
A new variable exhaust system enhances engine noise and output by 3 hp on the twin-turbo 3.3-liter V-6 for a total of 368 hp. An 8-speed automatic transmission sends up to 376 lb-ft of torque to the rear wheels or to all four wheels via available all-wheel drive on GT1 and GT2 models. Those models also come with Brembo brakes to stop the Stinger once it hits 60 mph in 4.7 seconds. With either rear- or all-wheel drive, V-6 Stingers get an EPA-rated 20 mpg combined.
New for 2022 is a larger turbo-4 on the entry-level GT-Line. Last year’s 2.0-liter turbo-4 that made 255 hp gets shoved aside for a 2.5-liter turbo-4 that makes 300 hp and 311 lb-ft and goes 0-60 mph in 5.2 seconds, yet maintains the same EPA-rated 22 mpg city, 32 highway, 25 combined with rear-wheel drive; all-wheel drive drops it to 21/29/24 mpg.
The interior adds ambient lighting and new stitch patterns on available nappa leather seats, and more chrome and black gloss trim on the instrument panel. Dimensions remain the same, and they lean more toward mid-size sedans than compacts. That translates to roomy power-adjustable front seats shod in leather, and the rear seats don’t compromise heads despite the sloping roofline. The hatchback body style enables 23 cubic feet of cargo room, as large as many compact crossovers, and folding down the rear seats opens the cargo area to 41 cubic feet of space.
The Stinger already had strong crash-test ratings, but Kia improves safety with more standard driver-assist features, including automatic emergency braking, active lane control, and blind-spot monitors. Optional safety upgrades include navigation-based adaptive cruise control and an advanced emergency braking system that can stop the car when an oncoming vehicle is detected during a left-hand turn.
The standard convenience features also improve on the 2022 Stinger, which now comes equipped with a 10.3-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, a larger 4.2-inch digital instrument cluster, and an updated UVO operating system. Available upgrades include wireless smartphone charging and a 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster that projects a live blind-spot view as well as views from a surround-view camera system.
How much does the 2022 Kia Stinger cost?
The larger turbo-4 on GT-Line models starts the bidding at $37,135, including $1,045 destination, which represents a $3,000 increase over 2021 models. At the other end of the lineup, the 2022 Stinger GT2 costs $54,535 with the twin-turbo V-6, which is a $900 increase over last year. A special-edition Scorpion package to be released later this year will cost $1,295, according to an order guide tracked by Cars Direct; it adds black elements on the fenders, exhaust tips, and wheels, as well as a rear spoiler and carbon-fiber interior trim.
In South Korea.
Kia and Hyundai Motor Group operate independently, but Hyundai is the parent company of Kia Motors. The difference between Kia and Hyundai is that both companies have their own brand philosophies to uniquely produce their vehicles. landmarkdodge.com
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