New Kia Stinger To Take On Holden Commodore

Kia plans to fill the void left by the departure of the Australian-made Commodore later this year with its biggest, most powerful car ever.

The South Korean car maker took the covers off its stylish new Stinger at a preview event in Detroit ahead of its official debut at the 2017 North American International Auto Show, promising the big rear-drive sedan-cum-hatch will offer the kind of performance, style and driving engagement of a muscle car like the Commodore SS.

Coincidentally, Kia's new flagship is due to arrive in Australian showrooms around September, roughly the same time as production of the V8-powered Commodore ceases before the nameplate switches to the European-designed and fully-imported model in early 2018. It will also come with a similar sticker price, starting somewhere in the $40,000 bracket for an entry-level model with a 2.0-litre turbo charged four cylinder and topping out around $50,000 for the flagship GT variant with its twin-turbo V6.

"We certainly see an opportunity there and genuinely believe this car will appeal to similar buyers," said Kia Australia spokesman, Kevin Hepworth.