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2018 Kia Stinger GT AWD Review: A 1,400-mile grand tour in Kia's grand tourer

They call the 2018 Kia Stinger a GT. It's powerful and sleek with a low-slung seating position, quick steering and, even with all-wheel drive, a tail-happy nature. It looks killer in red. And with its V6-powered engine, the letters GT are even festooned upon its liftgate. Well, that's nice, but how does it actually deliver on the grand-tourer formula of rapid, comfortable and stylish transportation? Well, to find out, I put the Stinger GT to a grand-touring test. Starting in the western Rockies and the remote ski town of Crested Butte, Colo., my destination would be home in Portland, Ore. The Google-suggested way is 18 hours on mostly Interstates 70, 15 and 84. However, interstates are boring and are better suited to a perfectly capable but utterly soulless family transportation appliance. A proper grand tour should include two-lane highways and scenic detours, so that's exactly what I'd do. It would add hours and miles, but also, most hopefully, a vastly more memorable experience. Well, as my photos will attest, the scenery didn't disappoint. And, as you'll see in the videos, neither did the Stinger. Episode 1: Setting Off Episode 2: It's a hatchback! Crested Butte, Colo., to Moab, Utah Crested Butte is way off the beaten path, a charming mountain village deep in the western Colorado Rockies mostly free from the usual uber-commercial, Disney-like feel of ritzier, easier-accessed ski towns. Its main street thoroughfare, authentically Western rather than engineered to be so, is surrounded by scattered subdivisions and majestic mountains beyond. It had been buried in 9 feet of snow just a few weeks prior. The local citizenry didn't seem particularly bothered by that. Though most of that 9 feet had melted, the ground was still very much white, requiring the Stinger GT to shed its usual summer rubber in favor of Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4 winter tires. These are specifically intended for performance car applications like the Stinger, sacrificing just a smidge of icy traction in favor of superior handling and steering feel when on dry pavement. There's no need to delay the verdict here: after 1,400 miles, the Stinger felt just as generally compelling and dynamic on the Alpins as when I drove it last November in Southern California on summer tires. The other half of the Stinger's snow defense is the GT's optional all-wheel-drive system, which adds $2,000 to its price tag (as-tested $52,300).

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:    

Kia hopping on the 48-volt ultra-mild hybrid bandwagon

Kia has announced that it will join an expanding line of automakers, including Audi, Ram, Volvo and others, adding ultra-mild 48-volt hybrid systems to their engines. The system works like other systems in that it has a combination starter and generator connected to the engine crank via a belt. It allows the engine to be shut off earlier than simply at a stop, and provides a bit of electrical assistance to reduce how much the engine has to work on takeoff. The system will first be implemented in Europe with the Kia Sportage and with its diesel engine in 2018. In 2019, the Kia Ceed small car will also be offered with the system. Kia says the system will also appear on gasoline engines in the near future. However, a representative from Kia's U.S. branch wouldn't comment either way on whether the technology will come to America. We think it's a pretty safe bet that we'll see the technology offered in the U.S. soon. Kia makes it clear that this system is designed to be easy to implement. It says there are hardly any packaging issues, usually putting the battery under the trunk floor, and the starter/generator motor doesn't typically require reworking the engine bay much. It also should work with rear-, front-, or all-wheel-drive layouts and with manual and automatic transmissions. If it were only going to be on diesel engines, we could see how Kia might not bring it, but since it will also be featured on gas engines, we're sure it will show up on our shores soon. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.