2014 Kia Forte Koup Ex on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Rumormill again says Kia Stinger is on the ropes

The Kia Stinger hit the market in 2017, spending the first year of its life earning plaudits for terrific handling at an unbeatable price. Although the Stinger could shake the competition, starting in 2018 and ever since, the Stinger couldn't shake rumors that it won't get a second generation. In fact, tangential questions about the Kia began in late 2017, with the assertion that Kia needed to upgrade its dealer network if it really wanted to take on the Germans. Once sales in the key North American market began to soften, then slide, that put blood in the water. Kia's head of design couldn't put off the sharks in October 2018, telling Australian outlet Which Car that the sedan wasn't selling as well as expected in North America. He returned with the same dolor the next year when speaking to Aussie outlet Car Advice, and followed that a month later by sharing the same hesitations phrased differently with Aussie outlet CarsGuide. Now The Korean Car Blog, sourcing "a new report of the South Korean sales," alleges the situation has gotten worse thanks to the coronavirus catastrophe and the need to conserve resources. Kia had already opted not to put a new powertrain into the 2021 Stinger refresh, saving money by adding more power to the current 3.3-liter twin-turbo V6 with a revised exhaust. Everyone who appreciates the Stinger has clear ideas about why it doesn't sell well in certain markets, like these Canadians, this guy in the UK, and these folks from the U.S. and other countries. TKCB believes one of the major issues is the in-house Genesis G70 competition, which has just about everything the Kia could want: A premium brand with premium touchpoints, marketing and advertising, a more rational equipment mix, near constant tweaking, and again, marketing and advertising. Does anyone remember when LeBron James and Aerosmith's Steven Tyler fronted the Stinger movement? Of course, the rumors of axing are still only rumors, and the Stinger is still only three years old. Anything can happen, apparently including the remote possibilities the Stinger morphs into a different kind of vehicle or goes electric. If the sales numbers continue as they've been going, however, something will need to happen; after an 18% dip from 2018 to 2019 in U.S. sales, the Stinger's already down 21% so far this year. Or we'd think something needs to happen — the Kia K900 remains on sale having tabbed 102 sales all of last year in the U.S., and 65 so far this year.

Next-gen 2021 Kia Sorento shown inside and out in leaked pics

We’ve seen spy shots of the next-generation Kia Sorento in both heavily camouflaged form and running laps around the Nurburgring (!), where it was wearing a more form-fitting wrap. Today, Instagram user CocheSpias leaked photos of the redesigned midsize SUV with the cover partially pulled back, giving us our best look yet inside and out. Kia has given the front fascia a thorough and stylish overhaul. It looks much more muscular and chiseled, with a crisp, curved line defining the hood and grille and a much more squared-off shape to the lower bumper. The clustered trio of LED headlights are more integrated with the grille by removing the chrome strip that formerly separated them. The exposed taillights that featured on the mule spotted on the ‘Ring have been resolved as double vertical hash marks. The lower bumper is still concealed. Inside, the seat stitching is similar to the pattern found on the larger and more upmarket Telluride, introduced last year. The cluster and center stack have been redesigned, with a larger touchscreen that is now separate from the heat vents. The shifter has been replaced by a dial shifter. Kia has reportedly confirmed that the new Sorento will be offered a plug-in hybrid variant. The Korean Car Blog, citing an unnamed source, reports the new Sorento will debut as early as mid-February in Korea, with hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions coming in May, though itÂ’s not clear whether all versions would come to the U.S. The current version of the three-row crossover comes in a choice of two engines: a 2.4-liter inline-four making 185 horsepower and 178 pound-feet of torque, or a 3.3-liter V6 offering 290 hp and 252 lb-ft of torque. We should get a more official rundown about what's in store soon. Related Video:    

Audi, Jag, Kia and Tesla top Strategic Vision 2014 Total Quality Index

A couple weeks ago, J.D. Power released its latest Initial Quality Study, which gave high marks to Porsche, Hyundai and General Motors, with the latter earning more individual IQS awards than any other manufacturer. Now, it's Strategic Vision's turn, and it's doling out its praise not to Porsche, but to Tesla, which wasn't even included in the JD Power IQS.
The Model S was named the best vehicle overall in total quality, while Porsche's corporate brother and endurance-racing rival, Audi, was named the best premium brand, alongside Jaguar. Strategic Vision cited the Q5 and the ancient Q7 for individual segment awards, as well as the A5, which was a mere point off the top of its segment. SV also handed out compliments for the Audi's interior work. The win for the German brand is a nice improvement over its IQS score, with which it landed above the industry average, but solidly mid-pack.
Jaguar was without a segment winner, although SV did say that the Indian-owned English brand had a number of vehicles very near the top of their segments. This is the second significant win for Jag in two weeks, after it finished second overall on the JD Power IQS a few weeks ago.