I am a big fan of Kia StingerSo much so that I think it one of the best Introducing cars of the past decade. It’s awesome: a four-door sedan with GT-like proportions and a liftback powered by a twin-turbo V6 — And You can have it with four-wheel drive. Unless you’re spending big bucks on one of the German brands, where else will you find a car like this? What’s even more amazing is that it comes from such an unexpected place, Kia.
It’s sad that low salesbuyers are still caught up in badge awareness and the market is largely moving away from the unique, fun stuff for the boring crossovers that killed the Stinger and it was dropped. stop working for the 2023 model year. Luckily, Dodge has replaced the Stinger in the new Charger. Yes, I’m about to compare a discontinued Korean performance sedan to a brand new Dodge that isn’t even on sale yet.
When announcing the technical specifications and details of Brand new Dodge Charger, it suddenly occurred to me that Dodge was giving us almost the exact same car that Kia took from us. At the most basic level, they are the same. The Stinger is available with a base 300-hp 2.5-liter turbocharged I4 or an optional 365-hp 3.3-liter V6 with optional all-wheel drive for both engines.
With the new Charger, Dodge will give it the option of two different versions of the 3.0-liter twin-turbo Hurricane I6 engine, but based on the wording Avoid website is making it seem like the high-output engine will only be available in the two-door Charger; we will have to wait and see. Either way, you can have the I6 with 420 horsepower or an impressive 550 horsepower in the high-output version. Both are paired with standard 4-wheel drive and an 8-speed automatic transmission.
Both the Stinger and the Charger sedan are four-door liftbacks (or hatchbacks if you want to call them that. Dodge calls the Charger’s hatch a “hidden hatch.” Anyway.) Size-wise, the sedan Charger has the old Stinger rhythm. The Charger is huge, with a 121-inch wheelbase and an overall length of 206.6 inches. This means the Charger’s wheelbase is 6.6 inches longer than the Stinger (114.4 inches) and its overall length is 16.4 inches longer than the Stinger (190.2 inches). Oddly, those large dimensions don’t translate into large cargo space.
The Stinger has a Charger that is slightly superior in terms of cargo capacity. With the rear seats folded up, the Stinger has 23.3 cubic feet of cargo space, compared with 22.8 in the Dodge; that increases to 40.9 cubic feet with the seats folded in the Stinger and 37.4 cubic feet in the Charger. Add another 1.4 cubic feet for the EV Charger with its tank.
But you get the idea. Dodge has accidentally given us a follow-up to the Kia Stinger in the US, which is honestly one of the most ideal body styles you can buy – which is made even better by the fact is that you can get the same powertrain setup on the coupe. Sure the quirky Hemi V8s are gone, but where else will you find a full-size, all-wheel-drive sedan with a powerful inline-six and six-cylinder engine? ? Certainly not from any other American automaker. If the price is right — and I pray it is — once the gas-powered Charger goes on sale in 2025, Dodge will likely attract some enthusiasts.
