What about the interior?

[Shieldzee]

There have been a flood of articles over the past 24 hours that are a result of Kia having the automotive press to the Nurburgring to drive the Stinger. They are all VERY encouraging about the driving experience. This car sounds like a winner. Not a one of them though, that I can find, talks about the interior, the fit and finish of the interior, the feel of the touchable surfaces in the cabin, the quality of the leather, whether or not the doors, when closed make a BMW-esque solid "thunk" or a Sorento-esque "clink." Has anyone seen anything in-depth on the interior?

 

[hereward]

There have been a flood of articles over the past 24 hours that are a result of Kia having the automotive press to the Nurburgring to drive the Stinger. They are all VERY encouraging about the driving experience. This car sounds like a winner. Not a one of them though, that I can find, talks about the interior, the fit and finish of the interior, the feel of the touchable surfaces in the cabin, the quality of the leather, whether or not the doors, when closed make a BMW-esque solid "thunk" or a Sorento-esque "clink." Has anyone seen anything in-depth on the interior?

One or two comments among the reviews posted after the 'Ring drives said that the interior materials were not up to the standards of BMW and Mercedes. We'll begin to see more specific comments after actual real world driving reviews come out in August ore September.

The whole emphasis by Kia has been on the driving dynamics, the interior and material quality getting scant mention. Even in terms of driving, there was a comment among the reviews that there was discernible turbo lag. If such concerns are at some notable level, perhaps they'll be overcome by the pricing of the Kia in comparison to the equivalent models of BMW.

 

[Shieldzee]

One or two comments among the reviews posted after the 'Ring drives said that the interior materials were not up to the standards of BMW and Mercedes.

Thanks @hereward. Do you have links for any of those? I'd love to give them a read.

 

[hereward]

Thanks @hereward. Do you have links for any of those? I'd love to give them a read.

From Whatcar.com review of Stinger GT :

"Material quality isn’t a match for the premium-brand cars that Kia is seeking to emulate, though. While the Stinger’s leathers are soft and attractive, there is little richness to the plastics and the switches on the car’s dashboard; and while you wouldn’t call the overall ambient effect cheap, it’s not discernably (sic) expensive-feeling either."

Please Google Kia Stinger and then select News; you'll see all the reviews that have come out in the last 48 hrs. Not many mentioned the interior to any degree, but there are two or three comments in passing among the reviews.

 

[Shieldzee]

Thanks @hereward. I must have missed that one. I do Google Kia Stinger from Google news pretty much daily and I have a Google alert set up that send stories to my inbox daily. I'll go check this one out.

 

[Shieldzee]

Here are some encouraging words from motormag.com on the interior:

"The interior also strangely doesn’t match the boldness and attitude of the exterior. This is an aggressive yet handsomely-styled car in the metal, showing off intent with big 19-inch wheels, bonnet vents, quad exhaust pipes, assertive front bar and that fastback roofline. Yet the interior is mature and even conservative by comparison. Don’t get us wrong, it’s exceptionally nice - there’s brushed aluminium, Nappa leather, a chunky, masculine steering wheel, fantastic- and expensive-feeling materials everywhere, including even an Alcantara-style microsuede on the A-pillars. It’s spacious and more German than Korean. But there’s only one GT badge on the steering wheel and that’s it. Even the seats and dials miss out on some GT branding and keep the excitement to a minimum. This is a smart, well-appointed interior, yet somehow too sensible compared to the car’s daring exterior and performance. It’s like a 40-year-old did the exterior and engineering and their father did the interior. Having said all that, some people will like the interior for its classy restraint."

 

[eljay]

I have a feeling that when journalists get the chance to drive the car in more relaxed, realistic situations, rather than trying not to become track roadkill, we'll start getting more detailed reports about the interior. If I'd just driven the Nurburgring, I don't think the interior would be paramount in my reports, either.

So, yet again, we wait . . .

 

[hereward]

Thanks, that sounds good. The reality may be somewhere between the opinions of the two reviewers. Actually I like motormag's comment. It is good to have a sombre interior rather than something flashy , so that the car will age gracefully.There is also the fact that people are used to the BMW/MB badges and may have a bias. I am anxious to see a real Stinger so that I can compare the interior to my BMW 328d.

 

[Shieldzee]

I am in the same boat - 2008 335i. I am really looking forward to seeing how it looks, feels, etc compared to my car.

 

[eljay]

I agree completely with hereward about the a "sombre" (classic?) interior aging gracefully. I find super-luxurious, flashy interiors distracting, and 5 years out they look tacky/dated. Since I keep my cars forever, this is important to me.

 

[Bamm1]

Opinions on driving feel can be a little more objective (if it understeers then it understeers) but interior reviews can be painfully subjective. Take the two almost opposite reviews listed above. I would wait to do the "butt test" yourself. My current car is pretty spartan with a dash of hard plastic thrown in for good measure. So when I sit in a Honda Civic Touring I am very impressed.

 

[lostnspace]

I'll take the least amount of badges all over the interior as much as possible. LOL considering we'll get regular ole KIA badge state side...the less I see of it...the better

 

[seanmccubb]

Opinions on driving feel can be a little more objective (if it understeers then it understeers) but interior reviews can be painfully subjective. Take the two almost opposite reviews listed above. I would wait to do the "butt test" yourself. My current car is pretty spartan with a dash of hard plastic thrown in for good measure. So when I sit in a Honda Civic Touring I am very impressed.

I agree, if it is anything like the 2017 Optima SXL with Nappa leather I drove I am more then happy!

 

[hereward]

Thanks, that sounds good. The reality may be somewhere between the opinions of the two reviewers. Actually I like motormag's comment. It is good to have a sombre interior rather than something flashy , so that the car will age gracefully.There is also the fact that people are used to the BMW/MB badges and may have a bias. I am anxious to see a real Stinger so that I can compare the interior to my BMW 328d.

Here is an article in Motoring which specifically addresses the philosophy behind the sombre (my word) and analog interior. I like what i read here - no flashy innovations, just plain dependability of dials and switches. I am assuming that the designers also took into consideration the quality of the materials for the long haul.

 

[hereward]

Sorry, here is the link to the Motoring article

http://www.motoring.com.au/kia-stinger-interior-eases-fears-107665/

 

[eljay]

Thanks for posting this article.

I keep my cars for a lonnnnng time, so adapting to changes in technology when I buy is always an adventure--in the past, a fun adventure. When I started looking this time, rather than being impressed by all the new goodies I could get, I was appalled that so many of the changes were annoying, distracting, and did nothing to enhance the driving experience. I thought, oh well, I've finally gotten old and set in my ways. But no--I've since been hearing complaints about the same features that bothered me from friends much younger than I am.

I like Kia's idea of keeping what works--and, incidentally, is ergonomically smart and safe--and saving the innovation for things that improve the driving experience and actually might serve to make driving still be fun.

 

[davebo]

Thanks for posting this article.
I like Kia's idea of keeping what works--and, incidentally, is ergonomically smart and safe--and saving the innovation for things that improve the driving experience and actually might serve to make driving still be fun.

The thing I hate most about the Stinger's interior is definitely the "Huge tablet sticking out of the dashboard" approach to infotainment systems that's unfortunately becoming more common these days. I also tend to keep my cars for a long time (aside from this Optima which I'll have only had under 6 years if I end up with a Stinger soon) so I like knowing I can upgrade the radio to accommodate new technology. But when you have a huge touchscreen tablet just sticking up and then a row of buttons like a foot away from it, I assume there's just nowhere to put a normal din sized radio? Really disappointing.

 

[hej]

The thing I hate most about the Stinger's interior is definitely the "Huge tablet sticking out of the dashboard" approach to infotainment systems that's unfortunately becoming more common these days. I also tend to keep my cars for a long time (aside from this Optima which I'll have only had under 6 years if I end up with a Stinger soon) so I like knowing I can upgrade the radio to accommodate new technology. But when you have a huge touchscreen tablet just sticking up and then a row of buttons like a foot away from it, I assume there's just nowhere to put a normal din sized radio? Really disappointing.

Agree 100% hating the huge tablet look, but hoping for double din is unrealistic at this point. No cars anywhere come with upgradable stereos, at least not without replacing other dashboard or console trim.

 

[davebo]

Agree 100% hating the huge tablet look, but hoping for double din is unrealistic at this point. No cars anywhere come with upgradable stereos, at least not without replacing other dashboard or console trim.

That's true but I did look into it for my Optima and the replacement dashboard piece to fit a double din unit was pretty cheap. It'd definitely be worth it if I felt I was gonna hang onto the car another five years. But with the pop-up screens I assume you don't even have that option. Everyone's following Apple's successful model of fewer options for the user.

 

[hej]

One or two comments among the reviews posted after the 'Ring drives said that the interior materials were not up to the standards of BMW and Mercedes.

I haven't sat in a Mercedes for a while, but I recently got rid of a BMW and I've seen their current crop. Suffice to say, BMW's interiors aren't up to the standards of BMW or Mercedes, if you're talking quality of materials..