Kia announced a new limited-edition stinger, as a final farewell to an underrated model.

The stinger had to wait until last year to get the power bump it deserved, finally becoming a true performance model, boasting no less than 300 hp. But despite that, experts were convinced that the car’s fate is already sealed, and its end is coming sooner than we expected. Kia didn’t take too long to confirm that, announcing a final “Tribute Edition”, some sort of “honorable discharge” before the Stinger retires for good.

The updated stinger was decent. It made reviewers regret that the initial model was not that powerful. If they had it their way, the car would have sold a lot more than the 57,580 units it actually had in 2017.

Some may think that the new update would breathe new life into the stinger, but Kia sees otherwise. In the carmaker’s eyes, the car belongs to a bygone era, it should now give way to new more powerful, and more technologically developed cars, mainly electric ones like the EV6.

 

But for now, let’s examine the tribute edition. The new 2023 Kia Stinger runs on a GT-like engine, a powerful 3.3-liter twin-turbo V-6, good for 368 hp and 376 lb-ft of torque. The shell comes with either an Ascot Green color or a Moonscape matt gray, combined with black mirror caps and brake calipers, sitting inside 19-inch gloss black wheels.

The main theme of the cabin is a bespoke Terracotta brown leather covering the seats, steering wheel, door trim, and door handles. Speaking of seats, the headrest will feature an original wasp-shaped emblem referring to the stinger model name.

Carbon fiber accompanies the brown leather across the dashboard and doors. Appearing mainly on the upper console and door panels. The door sills will feature the unique unit number among the 1000 units limited edition. The model’s price is not yet announced, but as a reference, the GT2 V-6 model has an official price tag of $51,790.

 Kia Stinger Production Fades Into Sunset With Limited Tribute Edition

Some cars get outdated quickly while others linger around longer. Either way,

Resources

• https://www.motortrend.com/news/2023-kia-stinger-exclusive-tribute-edition-first-look-review/