The all-new 2018 Kia Stinger sports sedan, which just received its Canadian premiere in Toronto, has been exported from the Kia testing centre in Nürburgring, Germany to Arjeplog in the far north of Sweden accompanied by a 100-strong team of engineers, in order to submit the upcoming new Kia model to gruelling sub-zero testing.
The company’s specialists are putting the Stinger through a series of exacting tests to measure and fine-tune its wintertime performance and durability in extreme low temperatures (as low as -35°C) and on different snowy and icy surfaces.
“Testing the car in these extreme conditions allows us to focus on the stability and predictability that the Stinger offers drivers, in every configuration and in all driving conditions,” explained Albert Biermann, Head of Vehicle Test and High Performance Development at Kia. “Crucially, these tests allow us to engineer a car which retains the driving appeal that buyers look for in a sport sedan. We want enthusiastic drivers to be able to enjoy the thrill of driving their Stinger in all conditions without compromising on safety.”
The Stinger will be the first sedan from Kia to offer consumers a choice between rear- and all-wheel drive configurations. The latter will still rely mainly on rear-wheel power, and use an enhanced Dynamic Torque Vectoring Control system to optimize power distribution and maximize road grip in each wheel.
In North America, the 2018 Kia Stinger will be offered with the choice of a 2.0L 4-cylinder turbo engine generating 252 hp or a 3.3L twin-turbo V6 able to produce 365 hp. What’s more, it will be capable of the quickest acceleration (0-100 km/h in 5.1 seconds) of any commercially produced Kia car ever made.
