Stinger good as a family car or should I stick with an SUV?

[Dan00Hawk]

I'm 6'2", and my "tall for her age" 10 year old daughter fits fine behind either my driver seat or my wife's passenger seat unless my wife wants to recline to nap. Plenty of room in the hatch for luggage unless your family packs like they are going on the Oregon Trail. I've also got a hitch and cargo carrier, as well as a roof top box available for those infrequent times where we need a bunch more cargo capacity (bringing the dogs, Christmas presents, camping equipment, etc...). I'd rather deal with that on a rare occasion than live regularly with a boring SUV/minivan draining my soul on a daily basis.

As for safety, I'd rather be in a Stinger with better ability to brake, maneuver, and accelerate my way out of a potential accident than an SUV that has marginal abilities in those areas.

As a teen, my mom and dad had 2 door coupes as our family vehicles in the 80's (Buick Regal, Mercury Cougar, Ford Thunderbird, Mustang GT, Acura Legend), and we always managed for long trips and vacations. Stinger is far larger and capable than those for transporting back seat passengers and cargo.

 

[Oryan]

I don't have kids but I've been able to carry around several very drunk adults, with their crap in the back, on multiple occasions with no issues..that the car caused, at least.

On the whole "safety" argument. Low does not equal unsafe. I actually hate the driving positions of SUVs and I honestly don't get the appeal of them from that aspect. I feel much better in something that feels more planted and connected to the road, and is capable of avoiding other idiots out there, than a high-riding, unwieldy box that can hardly turn or change speed with any type of haste when needed.

 

[MerlintheMad]

I feel much better in something that feels more planted and connected to the road, and is capable of avoiding other idiots out there, than a high-riding, unwieldy box that can hardly turn or change speed with any type of haste when needed.

Which can kill you if you try. My late friend's wife rolled her Jeep on a two-lane highway heading out of Utah into Arizona. The End.

 

[Devin]

Something to also bear in mind is if you want to tow stuff. A small SUV can probably tow a bit more than a passenger car.

 

[vipeboy2000]

It's really a question of how often do you want to take long trips with it with everyone.. I've done it with 4 adults about a 3 hour trip one way is when it starts getting a little tiresome for the folks in the back. The two people in the back were 6'1" and 6'2" and they were comfortable enough for that long of a drive. It starts getting uncomfortable since headroom is a little lacking once you get that tall of a person back there and you can really only sit kinda slouched.

 

[bgstewar]

It's really a question of how often do you want to take long trips with it with everyone.. I've done it with 4 adults about a 3 hour trip one way is when it starts getting a little tiresome for the folks in the back. The two people in the back were 6'1" and 6'2" and they were comfortable enough for that long of a drive. It starts getting uncomfortable since headroom is a little lacking once you get that tall of a person back there and you can really only sit kinda slouched.

Thanks - this is a very helpful thread. I wouldn't have adults in the back seat really ever - just my 4 and 9 year olds. I don't take long car rides with them often, and when we do it'll be 3-4 hours tops. I like the convenience and space of an SUV but hate driving them for all the reasons mentioned. I recently rented a Nissan Altima and despite it not being quick, driving a sedan reminded me why I love driving them so much. Having test driven a GT2 Stinger, I had never had as much fun driving a car as I did driving that. I did test drive a GV70 3.5T sport and though I liked it, it didn't compare to the Stinger in how connected I felt to the road. I was considering a G70 until I saw how tiny the back seat is and small trunk space - this is where the Stinger makes a lot more sense IMO.

 

[vipeboy2000]

Thanks - this is a very helpful thread. I wouldn't have adults in the back seat really ever - just my 4 and 9 year olds. I don't take long car rides with them often, and when we do it'll be 3-4 hours tops. I like the convenience and space of an SUV but hate driving them for all the reasons mentioned. I recently rented a Nissan Altima and despite it not being quick, driving a sedan reminded me why I love driving them so much. Having test driven a GT2 Stinger, I had never had as much fun driving a car as I did driving that. I did test drive a GV70 3.5T sport and though I liked it, it didn't compare to the Stinger in how connected I felt to the road. I was considering a G70 until I saw how tiny the back seat is and small trunk space - this is where the Stinger makes a lot more sense IMO.

I think the stinger will work for you, I'm assuming you will need to use a booster possibly? make sure you can easily get it in and out/and your kids into it. The stinger can hold quite a bit with the cargo cover removed and the seats folded down. obviously with the lower trunk height, some objects may not fit but we've moved shelves, entertainment console furniture for 65 inch tv's in the stinger with no issues!

 

[bgstewar]

I think the stinger will work for you, I'm assuming you will need to use a booster possibly? make sure you can easily get it in and out/and your kids into it. The stinger can hold quite a bit with the cargo cover removed and the seats folded down. obviously with the lower trunk height, some objects may not fit but we've moved shelves, entertainment console furniture for 65 inch tv's in the stinger with no issues!

Yes, my 4 year old is in a booster. I wanted to drive one with my kids but the dealership doesn't have any to drive. I also saw this might be the last year for the Stinger?

 

[Sabs]

I think the Stinger makes a great choice for a family vehicle. It's worked out very well with my two kids, even though I'm tall and need the seat pretty far back.

The liftback and removable cargo cover make a world of difference compared to a sedan, and get it close in cargo capacity to a compact SUV for road trips.

Your kids are at the age that I assume they're in forward-facing seats (or if not, the 4yo soon will be). There will be plenty of legroom in the Stinger and they'll have no problems climbing in. If you had an infant in a removable rear-facing seat, the height of an SUV or van would be lot easier on the back. Since you'll at most be reaching in for a moment to fasten/unfasten the buckles, the height is much less of an issue so long as you don't have back problems.

In terms of safety, the Stinger has great crash ratings and a nice set of active safety features. It also is a pretty heavy vehicle at around 4000 pounds which works in its favor. A big SUV would be even heavier and would put more space between occupants and the exterior, which works in the SUV's favor. On the other hand, a Stinger would be much less likely to roll over. Its manueverability, grip, and stopping power may even help you to better avoid an accident. Just a friendly reminder - buy a dashcam, whatever you end up with!

To me it's great having a car that I look forward to driving each time and love the look of. I don't think I could find the same in an SUV without spending a lot more money for something like a Macan S.

It sounds like you really prefer sedans, and a Stinger wouldn't put you in a "penalty box." As you saw with the G70, most fun sedans aren't very roomy. Cars like the S7 and RS6 Avant are roomy with great performance, but cost a fortune. If you'd like to do comparison shopping, the CT5-V non-blackwing and Charger Scat Pack are also spacious and in a similar price range. If I were buying today, though, I'd still go with the Stinger.

 

[Sabs]

I also saw this might be the last year for the Stinger?

Still just rumors at this point. I personally think we'll see at least 1-2 more model years since Kia spent the money to refresh the Stinger for 2022 and sales have held fairly steady.

 

[bgstewar]

I think the Stinger makes a great choice for a family vehicle. It's worked out very well with my two kids, even though I'm tall and need the seat pretty far back.

The liftback and removable cargo cover make a world of difference compared to a sedan, and get it close in cargo capacity to a compact SUV for road trips.

Your kids are at the age that I assume they're in forward-facing seats (or if not, the 4yo soon will be). There will be plenty of legroom in the Stinger and they'll have no problems climbing in. If you had an infant in a removable rear-facing seat, the height of an SUV or van would be lot easier on the back. Since you'll at most be reaching in for a moment to fasten/unfasten the buckles, the height is much less of an issue so long as you don't have back problems.

In terms of safety, the Stinger has great crash ratings and a nice set of active safety features. It also is a pretty heavy vehicle at around 4000 pounds which works in its favor. A big SUV would be even heavier and would put more space between occupants and the exterior, which works in the SUV's favor. On the other hand, a Stinger would be much less likely to roll over. Its manueverability, grip, and stopping power may even help you to better avoid an accident. Just a friendly reminder - buy a dashcam, whatever you end up with!

To me it's great having a car that I look forward to driving each time and love the look of. I don't think I could find the same in an SUV without spending a lot more money for something like a Macan S.

It sounds like you really prefer sedans, and a Stinger wouldn't put you in a "penalty box." As you saw with the G70, most fun sedans aren't very roomy. Cars like the S7 and RS6 Avant are roomy with great performance, but cost a fortune. If you'd like to do comparison shopping, the CT5-V non-blackwing and Charger Scat Pack are also spacious and in a similar price range. If I were buying today, though, I'd still go with the Stinger.

This is very helpful - thanks so much. Yes both kids are forward facing. I also considered a Macan S but couldn't get past the price and the cost of maintenance on a Porsche. Most luxury brands when out of warranty are insane to maintain, and I love the Kia warranty. I know their dealerships are terrible, but I did find one that isn't charging over MSRP and seems to get good reviews.

My 2016 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport turbo has sh*t the bed at 80k miles - turbo replaced twice, transmission replaced, radio stuck in endless loop of restarting and won't function. Local Hyundai service dealer is horrible with customer service. Hopefully Kia/Hyundai have come along further in regards to reliability and service...

 

[MerlintheMad]

Hopefully Kia/Hyundai have come along further in regards to reliability and service...

Customer satisfaction surveys put Kia at c. three out of four satisfied. It could be worse, but also lots of room for improvement. Coming up on four years I am still in "honeymoon" mode with my dealership: they haven't disappointed me yet.

 

[JSolo]

@bgstewar We can re-evaluate kia/hyundai dealer service in 5-10 years. I doubt much if anything has changed today from few years ago. Until corporate starts pushing shitty dealers to do better this won't change. Also, folks who get surveys should respond honestly to them.

 

[stingerstevo]

I think you should be fine. I just bought a 2022 gt1 last weekend. I made sure my son's booster fit in the back before buying, which was kind of a pain installing, especially with the wind and negative 11 below temperature. Im 6 ft and my boys are 5 and 9 and average height. We have plentry of room. We made an hour trip with 3 bags of groceries and 3 backpacks and there was still a ton of room in the hatch. You can always rent an SUV for longer trips. I rent a truck for work every couple of months. I had an acadia before which was good, but not nearly as fun as the Stinger. We love it so far.

 

[Devin]

Customer satisfaction surveys put Kia at c. three out of four satisfied. It could be worse, but also lots of room for improvement. Coming up on four years I am still in "honeymoon" mode with my dealership: they haven't disappointed me yet.

They would get a solid C unless you grade on the curve

 

[JSolo]

Curve based on other kia dealers or dealers in general? Because if the former, that would be one hell of a curve. Relative grading is for pussies!

 

[777David]

I regularly transport 3 young'ns in the backseat (11, 12 and 14). None of them are big or overly tall, but they have plenty of leg room for 3 in the back. Our situation may be a little different as wife does have a mini-van that is the main grocery getter. This car is the dad-mobile. The 2 older daughters always vote to go in the stinger.

I can relate to the decision to sink that much money in a car that you want to be practical for a family and also have great curb appeal with fun factor. The Stinger checked all boxes for my situation. Granted, we take the mini-van on road trips.
I'd say go for it!

 

[EHRD]

We have our fist little one on the way and ordered a Stinger and Sportage last year.
Recently we have been looking at child safety seats and the one we picked is quite a big seat.
The staff at the baby store said to make sure first that it actually fits in the cars as it, according to her, does not even fit in a Mazda CX5.
So yesterday we picked up the demo cars from the dealer to take to the baby store and fit the seats.

The seat fits easily in the Sportage but even the Stinger was no problem.
Now are both me and my wife not that tall (1,70m for me) so it might be a different story if you have tall person in the front passenger seat.

Long story short, I was happy with how much space there was on the back seat for the Stinger.

 

[Chark]

Telluride is a bit too big for what I'm looking for, and it takes 6+ months to get one anyway. I was considering a Sorento but really love driving sedans.

The Sorento has a very tiny trunk. If you need to fold the seats down to haul anything, it's not very practical as a family vehicle.

 

[Maljey]

The way I see it is that people have been using sedans as family haulers for decades. The Stinger is just as big, if not bigger than the previous mid sized, and even full sized sedans. Yes, you'll probably need to remove the cargo cover if you're packing luggage for 4 people but you can make it work. Even then, sometimes you don't even need to fully remove the cargo cover. Just unlatch it from where it connects behind each back seat. Leave the strings connected to the hatch itself. It can still partially cover your luggage/items. It will just rest on top of whatever is poking upwards. I do this pretty often whenever we take family on a big Costco run. No need to remove the cargo cover or store it elsewhere.