High Performance Kia Sedan and ‘Stinger’ Coupe Rumored for 2018

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Posted by Zach Doell 

 

                               

                                           

If there’s a region of the world that looks poised to make the biggest waves in the automotive industry, you’d be hard pressed not to pin South Korea as it. 

 

Car-producing powerhouse Hyundai has, as of late, evolved its Equus (now G90) and Genesis (now G80) models to form an all-new and highly luxurious sub-brand, known simply as “Genesis.” And the next addition looks to be a scorcher too—a rumored G70 sedan aimed to take on the BMW 3-series.

But Hyundai isn’t the only one making big moves; sister brand Kia may be looking to establish itself as Korea’s performance car marque, and if the reports are true, it’ll kick that off next year (as 2018 models) with production versions of the Kia GT sedan and possibly Kia GT4 Stinger coupe concepts.

As noted in an Automotive News report from earlier this year and spy photos snagged by Car and Driver, the GT sedan would appear to be the first on the docket for Kia, most likely sharing its rear-wheel drive platform with Genesis’ G70 and aiming similarly for BMW 3-series territory.

 

While that may pose some in-house rivalries, the differences between the two in price, direction, and equipment should be significant enough for both to be viable. C/D predicts the GT sedan to arrive wielding four- and six-cylinder variants, and at least the option of a manual transmission. Internally, the sports sedan project is said to be known as “CK.”

Adding a little more wood to the fire however is a recent article from Australia’s CarsGuide, which reports that a production version of the 2014 Kia GT4 Stinger coupe will bow as well, at least for the Australian market, in mid-2017.

The outlet cites Kia Motors Australia chief Sang-Hyun Cho, who calls this project “CK” as well and notes it will go into production in July 2017, though he didn’t delve further into its specifics.

 Given that both the BMW 3-series sedan and 4-series coupe share the same platform, it’s not hard to imagine a similarly aimed Kia sports sedan and coupe wouldn’t make the same move.

The alleged coupe or sedan’s name? If recent trademark applications are to be believed, it looks like “Kia Stinger” will adorn at least one of the vehicles, as it was registered earlier this year in regards to passenger cars and sports cars.

Of course, none of this has been confirmed by Kia, so we likely won’t know for sure about either alleged car for a few more months. That said, the Paris and Los Angeles auto shows arrive at the tail end of this year, and either of those may provide the launching point Kia’s performance offerings need.