Kia unleashes rear- wheel- drive Stinger

Three Kia Stinger liftback sedans go on sale here before the end of the year, priced from just under $ 55,000 to almost $ 70,000 for the high- spec twin- turbo V6 flagship GT Sport model.

Kia New Zealand has begun a teaser advertising campaign for the much anticipated sporty rear- wheel- drive sedans, which the company says will lift the company into a different league.

“This is a car with the X- factor,” said the general manager of Kia Motors NZ, Todd McDonald.

The company hopes to have the new models available here before the end of the year.

Kia says the Stinger will provide the power and rear- wheel- drive attributes that had become scarce with the demise of the Australian- manufactured Holden Commodore and Ford Falcon sedans.

With 365hp ( 272kW) of peak power and 510Nm of torque available from the twin- turbocharged V6 engine in the GT Sport model, Kia says it can reach zero to 100km/ h in less than five seconds.

McDonald said the five- door liftback styling had the power to turn heads.

“You haven’t seen a Kia like this before. Stinger has the power to surprise in any number of ways, not least through its rear- wheel- drive architecture, which will stamp it as a true driver’s car,” he said.

The V6 model would sell at $ 69,990 plus onroad costs. The two other RWD models would be powered by a turbocharged four- cylinder engine developing 193kW peak power and 353Nm of torque and would propel the car to 100km/ h in six seconds. Recommended retail prices are $ 54,990 plus onroad costs for the EX Turbo, and $ 59,990 plus onroad costs for the GT Line.