Is the Stinger stung? Kia's performance sedan dropped from the UK market, but what does that mean for Australia?

Kia’s flagship sports sedan, the Stinger, might not be long for this world, with one key right-hand drive (RHD) market pulling the model from its line-up.

The Stinger has been dropped in the United Kingdom, with the Korean car maker stating that it will be replaced in its line-up with the high-performance all-electric EV6 GT.

So, what does that mean for the Stinger’s future in Australia, given it’s also a RHD market?

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A statement from Kia Motors Australia said it was “business as usual” for the Stinger, unless the company is told otherwise by its Korean parent company.

“Kia UK’s decision will have very little, if any, impact on Australia. As you know, the UK has CO2 regulations and effectively Stinger is not a big seller in that region. We don’t anticipate their decision resulting in any dramatic changes to our supply,” the Kia spokesperson said.

That means the Stinger is safe in Australia, for now.

The writing has been on the wall for some time that the Stinger won’t last beyond its current generation, given Kia’s shift to an electric future.

There have been reports that the Stinger will end production in 2023, which would mark six years since its reveal in 2017.

The Stinger hit Australian showrooms in September 2017, which was an opportune time for the brand. It went on sale just one month before Holden shut its Australian manufacturing plant where it built the Commodore, and a year after Ford Australia closed its factory where it built the Falcon.

That provided Kia with an opportunity to fill the gap left by the Commodore and Falcon with a powerful V6 turbocharged sports sedan.

While it has never reached the sales highs of the two Aussie favourites, the Stinger has at least been consistent.

In its first full year on sale 2018, the Stinger racked up 1957 registrations, before dipping to 1773 in 2019. The in 2020 it nearly matched that result with 1778 before another decline in 2021 when it found 1407 homes - its slowest year of sales so far.

The Stinger has proven popular with some of Australia’s police forces.

However in year-to-date 2022 sales to the end of October, Kia has already recorded its best ever Kia sales, with 2054 units shifted, marking a 57.7 per cent increase year on year.

The best-selling version of the Stinger is, unsurprisingly, the V6, which makes up a whopping 98 per cent of Stinger sales. Of that total, 95 per cent are for the top-spec GT, while the more affordable 330S makes up the rest. It uses a 274kW/510Nm 3.3-litre turbocharged V6 petrol engine, driving the rear wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission.

It’s also available with a 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder petrol unit paired with the same transmission and pumping out 182kW/353Nm.

Stinger pricing ranges from $51,250 before on-road costs for the four-pot 200S to $64,960 for the V6 GT.

The Stinger has proven popular with some of Australia’s police forces, including the Northern Territory, Tasmania, Queensland, Western Australia and New South Wales.

The model that is replacing it in the UK, Kia’s EV6 GT, pumps out 430kW/700Nm, and can cover the 0-100km/h sprint in a supercar-beating 3.5 seconds - faster than the Stinger V6’s 4.9-second time.

The EV6 GT is expected in Australia in 2023.