Kia Teases a New Concept that Could Become an Electric Successor to the Stinger

• Since the Stinger was discontinued after the 2023 model year, Kia hasn’t had a true performance car.

• Rumours say that this model will get an electric successor in the coming years.

• A teaser video gives a glimpse at a new concept that could be this very successor.

Back in 2017, Kia launched the Stinger, a four-door fastback that was intended to show the world what the brand was capable of doing in terms of performance cars.

Developed and designed by talent hired away from BMW and Audi by Kia, the Stinger proved Kia was capable of making more than mainstream sedans, SUVs and minivans.

The Stinger stayed on the market for six model years in North America, before being discontinued after the 2023 model year.

Since then, the automaker hasn’t had a true performance car in its lineup.

Indeed, while the EV6 GT is certainly impressive with its 576-horsepower output and can be quite fun to throw around, it is a high-performance version of a regular electric crossover, not a standalone sports car.

This could soon change, however, as Kia indicated last year that it was thinking of adding a dedicated electric performance car to its lineup.

Few details about this project are known at the moment, but the company released a short teaser video earlier today that shows a concept which could easily turn out to be this electric Stinger replacement.

From what we can see, this upcoming model features a sleek roofline and wide, angular wheel arches, triangular alloy wheels, and unique daytime running lights that seem to follow the contours of the arches.

The front end is very pointy, with the hood seamlessly integrating with the raked windshield.

At the rear, the tail lamps look similar to those found on some of the brand’s other models, but they are joined by a vertical third brake lamp at the top of the rear window and a similar vertical element at the bottom of the bumper, recalling rally and F1 cars.

The overall look of the concept is not too dissimilar to the upcoming EV4 electric liftback sedan, but it is clearly not just a modified version of it either.

This should be true under the skin, too, with the potential Stinger successor expected to house the 800-volt electrical architecture of the EV6 and EV9 rather than the 400-volt system found in the EV4 and the EV5.

This would allow greater power and torque to be delivered by the motors for longer at a time and significantly faster DC charging speeds.

First Drive of the 2026 Hyundai IONIQ 6 N: The New South Korean Missile, Anything but Stealthy

It would not be surprising to learn that this future performance car from Kia is to be based on the Hyundai IONIQ 6 N, the highest-performing electric sedan from Kia’s sister company.

As a pointer, the new IONIQ 6 N delivers 641 horsepower and 568 lb-ft of torque, allowing it to reach 100 km/h from 0 in only 3.2 seconds.

It is possible that this model will become an equivalent of the IONIQ 6 in the Kia lineup rather than a dedicated sports car, but it is too early to tell.

Fortunately, the E-GMP platform on which that sedan is based (along with Kia’s EV6) is rear-wheel drive biased and capable of handling significant power, which should make even a tamer version of the upcoming Kia model more engaging to drive than most mainstream EVs.

We expect to hear more about this future car in the months to come.