BROTHERS FROM ANOTHER MOTHER

HYUNDAI MOTOR SIBLINGS SHOW YOUR CAR CAN BE SPORTY OR LUXURIOUS FOR THE SAME PRICE

- SCOTT EVANS

They used to rule the road, these nimble, compact rear-drive sedans, ready to shred Angeles Crest upon request and zip across states with swift composure.

But with SUVs now the first choice of the majority of Americans, a shrinking number of these performance-minded sedans reside in showrooms in hopes that someone might be smitten with a design that is more sleek than chunky.

Case in point are two of the newest performance sedan players: the mainstream Kia Stinger GT and the premium Genesis G70.

Comparing similar mainstream and luxury cars can’t get much closer than this. Kia and Genesis are both part of the Hyundai Motor Group. The two cars are built on the same platform. They share the same engines and transmissions and countless other bits and bobs.

In the industry’s distant past, lazy, cynical product planning would mean they’d be literally the same car with different badges. Today, they demonstrate just how different the same hardware can be tuned and tweaked to accomplish different missions.

“They’re very different cars,” road test editor and co-judge Chris Walton said. “It is remarkable that they can start from the same template and come out the other side so different.”

The Stinger GT’s mission is right there in its name. Kia boldly launched its sport sedan at the Nürburgring, we then invited it to our annual Best Driver’s Car competition, and it has proven itself to be a worthy, sporty, powerful grand touring car.

This particular as-tested car has all the performance parts—but despite stiff springs to improve handling, the Stinger still has plenty of suspension travel and somewhat soft anti-roll bars. This provides a more relaxed demeanor, a distinct sporty edge rather than a full-time sport sedan.