Kia Stinger GT Coloring Page: Free Printable PDF Sheet

Kia Stinger: History & Fun Facts

A 2017 Debut After Years of Concept Teasers

Kia revealed the production Stinger in 2017 and put it on sale for the 2018 model year, a full six years after showing the GT concept car that first hinted the brand wanted a proper sport sedan. That long gap let engineers refine the chassis long before a single customer car reached a dealership.

A Liftback Body Style, Not a Trunk

Instead of a conventional trunk lid, the Stinger uses a rear hatch that lifts the entire glass and bodywork as one piece, a five-door liftback layout that gives it a wide, useful cargo opening most rival sport sedans do not offer. That fastback-style roofline traced in this outline is the single easiest way to spot a Stinger from any angle.

Tuned on the Nurburgring

Kia sent Stinger prototypes to Germany's Nurburgring race circuit for extensive chassis tuning, the same brutal test track used by Porsche and BMW to sharpen their own performance cars. Engineers logged thousands of laps there refining the steering and suspension before the car ever reached production.

A Twin-Turbo V6 in the GT Trim

The top Stinger GT trim uses a twin-turbocharged V6 engine sending power through either rear-wheel drive or all-wheel drive, giving the liftback enough punch to compete directly with German sport sedans on paper as well as on a track. A smaller turbocharged four-cylinder powered the base trims for buyers who wanted lower running costs.

Designed Under a Former Audi Stylist

Kia's design chief at the time of the Stinger's development had previously shaped cars at Audi, and that European sport-sedan sensibility shows up clearly in the long hood, short front overhang, and cab-rearward proportions drawn into this artwork. It was a deliberate departure from Kia's more upright, family-focused SUV styling.

A Single Generation Sold From 2018 to 2023

Kia never launched a second generation of the Stinger, selling one basic body style with running updates for its entire six-year run before quietly ending production after the 2023 model year as Kia shifted more of its lineup toward electric SUVs. That short lifespan has already made clean, unmodified examples more sought after among enthusiasts.

Quad Exhaust Tips as a Performance Signal

The four round exhaust tips grouped in pairs at the Stinger's rear, visible in this outline, signaled its performance intent at a glance, a styling cue borrowed from the same high-performance European sedans Kia was chasing on the sales floor.

A Frameless Window Design

Stinger doors use frameless glass that drops slightly when the door opens, a detail more common on coupes than four-door cars, adding to the liftback's sportier, lower-slung silhouette compared with a boxier Kia sedan.

Named for Its Own Sharp Handling

Kia chose the name Stinger to suggest quick, sharp reflexes rather than raw straight-line power alone, positioning the liftback as a car built for winding roads and on-ramps rather than only drag-strip runs.

A Rare Rear-Biased Kia

Unlike most other Kia models sold with front-wheel drive as the default layout, the Stinger sends power rearward as its base configuration, a deliberate handling choice that lines up with the rear-drive sport sedans it was built to challenge.

Adaptive Suspension on Higher Trims

Upper Stinger trims added electronically controlled adaptive dampers that read the road surface many times per second and adjust firmness on the fly, letting the same car soak up a bumpy commute and still stay composed through a fast corner on a curving mountain road.

A Large Analog-Style Gauge Cluster

Inside, the Stinger kept large, clearly marked analog-style gauges even as many rivals moved to fully digital displays, a cockpit choice enthusiast reviewers often praised for keeping the driver's focus on speed and revs rather than a busy touchscreen.