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2019 Kia K900 First Drive Review | The Stinger GT grows up

The Kia K900 has been an afterthought in the luxury market almost since it was launched about 4 years ago. Or maybe a never-thought. Through September of this year, Kia sold just 260 examples, which was about 90 fewer than the same time last year. And with sales like that, most of us figured Kia would just let the model quietly disappear into the ether, especially with the launch of the new Genesis luxury brand, and Kia's new halo, the Stinger. Considering the car's yacht-like demeanor and forgettable looks, we wouldn't have missed it. Yet Kia is determined to keep the K900 alive in America, and has introduced a completely redesigned model. Perhaps even more surprising than the fact that the model is back, is that it's actually quite good. Think of it as a bigger, more plush Kia Stinger. That may be hard to believe by just looking at it. While it's certainly better proportioned than its predecessor, with a body that highlights its rear-drive bones, it's boring. It hides its roots well, not getting the onlooker excited or leaving a major impression. There's hardly a sharp crease or bold character line to be seen – a stark contrast to the fierce, outre Stinger. It doesn't even look much like other Kias, which all share a family resemblance in their grilles and athletic stance. The K900 is a lot larger than the Stinger, too. The wheelbase is about 8 inches longer, and overall length is up by nearly a foot. Width and height are greater by roughly 2 and 3 inches respectively. This all puts the K900 in the size territory of full-size luxury flagships, but Kia says it's targeting buyers of midsize luxury sedans such as the Audi A6 and BMW 5 Series with a price of around $60,895 for the base model, and $64,895 for the VIP model. These are close estimates. It's a "more for your money" sort of argument, but there are more direct competitors to the K900 that muddy the water, like the Volvo S90, Lincoln Continental, and Cadillac CT6. On paper, all three seem to be compelling options to the K900 with lower base prices, similar size, and more distinctive styling. But the K900 has a major power advantage with its standard 365-horsepower twin-turbo V6. The S90's standard engine makes just 250 horsepower, and the optional non-hybrid engine just makes 316 horses. To beat the Kia, you have to get the hybrid S90 with 400 horsepower, and a base price of over $64,000.

K900 probably won't be last time Kia goes alphanumeric

This is part of an effort to ensure that the vehicle brand itself registers with consumers more than the model name.
The new Kia K900 luxury sedan stands as a four-wheeled flag in the ground of the financially fertile turf of the world's premium automakers. It's a bold move for a Korean manufacturer that was best known for inexpensive MSRPs and easy credit only a few years ago. The company has made sure it has the requisite trappings of premium motoring: indulgent size, rear-wheel drive, a powerful V8 engine, real wood trim and rich leather seats. It has also ensured the model has another important earmark of luxury - an alphanumeric name. These days, everyone from Audi to BMW to Cadillac to Lexus to Volvo rely on a jumble of letters and numbers to make up their model names. We've been told this is all part of an effort to ensure that the vehicle brand itself registers with consumers more than the model name.

BMW, Hyundai score big in JD Power's first Tech Experience Index

While automakers are quick to brag about winning a JD Power Initial Quality Study award, the reality, as we've pointed out before, is that these ratings are somewhat misleading, since IQS doesn't necessarily distinguish genuine quality issues. JD Power's new Tech Experience Index aims to solve that problem. The new metric takes the same 90-day approach as IQS but focuses exclusively on technology – collision protection, comfort and convenience, driving assistance, entertainment and connectivity, navigation, and smartphone mirroring. It splits the industry up into just seven segments, based loosely on size, which is why the Chevrolet Camaro is in the same division (mid-size) as Kia Sorento and the Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class is in the same segment as the Hyundai Genesis (mid-size premium). It makes for some screwy bedfellows, to be sure. Still, splitting tech experience away from initial quality should allow customers to make more informed and intelligent decisions when buying new vehicles. In the inaugural study, respondents listed BMW and Hyundai as the big winners, with two segment awards – the 2 Series for small premium and the 4 Series for compact premium, and the Genesis for mid-size premium and Tucson for small segment. The Chevrolet Camaro (midsize), Kia Forte (compact), and Nissan Maxima (large) scored individual wins. Ford also had a surprising hit with the Lincoln MKC, which ranked third in the compact premium segment behind the 4 Series and Lexus IS. This is a coup for the Blue Oval, whose woeful MyFord Touch systems made the brand a victim of the IQS' flaws in the early 2010s. But Ford and other automakers might not want to celebrate just yet. According to JD Power, there's still a lot of room for improvement – navigation systems were the lowest-rated piece of tech in the study. Instead, customers repeatedly saluted collision-avoidance and safety systems, giving the category the best marks of the study and listing blind-spot monitoring and backup cameras as two must-have features – 96 percent of respondents said they wanted those two systems in their next vehicle. But this isn't really a surprise. Implementation of safety systems from brand to brand is similar, and they don't require any input from users, unlike navigation and infotainment systems which are frustratingly deep.