So yesterday I finally had a chance to check out the Top of the Range Kia Stinger 3.3 twin turbo and take it for a short drive. I guess I did about 10 kms as a passenger and about 20 as a driver.
I initially just wanted to check out access (ease of getting in and out with my reduced mobility) and how useable the 406 litre boot was. The Boot is shallow but long and a reasonably usable space. The getting in and out was better than my previous Calais. Not ideal, but better than I probably expected.
Edit: I found the seating position not exactly to my liking because I like to set the seat up fairly high to get a good view of the end of the bonnet and the road, but even at only 176 cm I couldn't have the seat fully up without my head touching the roof lining and then I found it a little hard to get the electrically adjustable wheel at the perfect height to sit my arms and still view the dials easily. I found a reasonable compromise in the end, but not ideal.
Sitting in the driver's seat was a bit spooky, as to me it felt a bit like being in a Commodore/Calais that had been "Hyundaized". That is, Seating, room and general ambiance felt like my old Calais, but instrumentation and switchgear was more like that in my SR. It was fairly dark with the black seats and dark grey headlining. Not a fan of the colour of the car I tested (see pix below) I would get a Pearl White with Red Leather seats if I ordered one.
Due to the Generic Hyundai/Kia way of doing things it was an easy transition to get used to what to press and where to look etc. So no problems there.
Now for the driving. The Auto gear selector was interesting. Basically just N, D and R to choose from. Park is a separate button.
Not quite sure why they have done that. So you put the car in N, then press the park button and pull the electronic brake switch. One extra unnecessary step in my opinion, but no deal breaker. Electronic brake released when you select drive. Same as my SR.
Salesman TIm (more about him later) came with me and drove a few winding bits which was fine as it gave me a chance to experience what it felt like in the passenger seat. When we got back to the dealership later I noticed the car was set to comfort mode, but ride still at least as firm if not more so than my SR (on 18" wheels) or My Calai (on 19" wheels)
First impression at sub 80 kph speeds on back roads was fairly quiet for a sporty car (road and engine noise) Later, on coarse bitumen it did get about as noisy as my Calais and almost as noisy as the SR.
I then took over for a drive from Camdale to Wynyard and back along the Scenic Drive for those that know the area. Had a couple of opportunities to gun the engine to merge on to the highway and although very linear wasn't as brutal as I expected. Now I wasn't in sport mode and wasn't being a lair. My 6 cylinder Calais was no slouch and either is the SR, although the Stinger doesn't have any hesitation or lag low down like the DCT in the SR does in Normal or Eco mode.
So as you would expect, steering, ride and handling similar to my Calais, but with a little more poke.
So, sorry, but I wasn't wowed. Very nice all round package which will appeal to a lot of buyers. I am a big Kia/Hyundai fan and we may still consider the new Sportage or even a new Optima next year when Trish's car approaches 5 years of age.
I always reckon a good test of a car is how your own car feels afterwards. If your own car feels lacking or disappointing when you get back in it that is a worry, but my SR still felt great.
Must say I was extremely impressed with Tim Rees of Jackson Kia in Cooee. He is a very genuine and helpful guy who was happy to spend well over an hour with me despite being told nothing was going to happen this year. If anyone in northern Tassie is considering buying a Kia, he is definitely worth catching up with.
