The 2019 Kia Stinger has received the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s top honor.
We already love the Kia Stinger thanks to its gloriously powerful engines and incredible performance numbers. A base 2.0-L turbocharged inline 4-cylinder engine puts out 255 horsepower, or a 3.3-L twin-turbo V6 catapults you into the big leagues with 365 horsepower. It also comes in your choice of rear or all-wheel-drive along with Brembo brakes, a limited-slip diff, and grippy Michelin tires.
It’s a zippy car, but now we also know that it’s a safe car. The 2019 Kia Stinger received the IIHS’s “Top Safety Pick+” award, the institute’s highest honor.
However, the award comes with a few caveats. In order to get the Top Safety Pick+ award, the Stinger must rate “good” in all six crash categories, which the Stinger does with flying colors. It also has to receive an “advanced” or “superior” rating in the front crash prevention category, which the Stinger only achieves when outfitted with optional front collision avoidance gear with pedestrian detection.
Also, the car must receive a “good” rating for its headlights. The base halogen bulbs received a “poor” rating, but the LED projector headlamps received a “good”. The LED curve-adaptive headlights, for some reason, earned an “acceptable” rating, so those headlights would also rob the Stinger of the Top Safety Pick+.
But get the front collision avoidance driver assistance package and the LED headlights and you’re golden. The rest of the car is still pretty good at keeping everyone alive, but these features push it over the top.
Which isn’t all that surprising. The Genesis G70 is basically the same car and it also got the same award from the IIHS. Hyundai Motor Group is getting very good and making exceptional cars for exceptional value, and we’re surprised every BMW and Audi sedan in the world hasn’t already been replaced by Genesis G70s and Kia Stingers.