As the Korean automaker’s most ambitious car in years, the 2018 Kia Stinger wants to take some names in the high-performance game. And apparently, the high-speed pursuit one as well—the Queensland Police Service in Australia just unveiled what appears to be the first official Kia Stinger patrol car.
‘Straya has always had a reputation for high-speed antics thanks to its huge expanses of empty land and long, straight highways. To combat this, police in the country have turned to a variety of big, V8-engined cruisers like the Ford Falcon and the Holden Commodore. Unfortuantely, production for both of those cars ended in the last two years, leaving departments searching for a suitable replacemen, not unlike what happened in this country when the Ford Crown Victoria finally retired from the force.
In June, Kia confirmed to Australian media that most of the country’s police departments were evaluating the Stinger as a possible replacement for both high-speed pursuit and general purpose duties when the Fords and Holdens cycle out of use by the end of the decade. The early results were strong, both for base models with the turbocharged four-cylinder engine and the larger GT version with its 3.3-liter twin-turbo V6. Importantly, it passed the demanding cooling and braking tests that reportedly nixed a Ford Mustang GT from the shortlist when it was tested last year.
“The brake package meets their requirement, the wiring meets their requirement, it can be upgraded simply without drama” Kia communications manager Kevin Hepworth told CarAdvice at the time. “Performance figures are what they want, [along with] enough boot, control—and now they have to assess if they can steer it or not.”
In September, a report emerged that the Queensland Police Service wanted to “beat every other state to it” and deploy the first Kia Stinger police car in their active fleet. And earlier this week, pictures emerged of the Stinger wearing its official police livery on its way to officially being sworn in to the force.
It might not be evocative enough to serve as the next-generation Mad Max Interceptor, but with a 0-60 mph time of 4.6 seconds and a limited top speed of 167 mph, the Kia Stinger GT will probably make a formidable adversary for any wanna-be War Boys out there on the road.