Compare the2023 Kia StingerVS 2022 Acura TLX

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Stinger are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The TLX doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Stinger has standard Active Headrests, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Headrests system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The TLX doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The Stinger has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. A system to reveal vehicles in the TLX’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Stinger has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Rear cross-path warning costs extra on the TLX.

Both the Stinger and the TLX have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Kia Stinger is safer than the Acura TLX:

	Stinger	TLX
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	18.3%	20%
Neck Stress	137 lbs.	175 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	97/355 lbs.	258/267 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	220	358
Neck Stress	173 lbs.	186 lbs.
Neck Compression	32 lbs.	66 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	53/25 lbs.	416/473 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Kia Stinger is safer than the Acura TLX:

	Stinger	TLX
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	119	128
Hip Force	252 lbs.	279 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	310	464

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

The Stinger comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire car and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The TLX’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Stinger 4 years and 30,000 miles longer than Acura covers the TLX. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the TLX ends after only 6 years or 70,000 miles.

There are almost 3 times as many Kia dealers as there are Acura dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Stinger’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Acura vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in initial quality. With 53 more problems per 100 vehicles, Acura is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Acura vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in reliability, above the industry average. With 99 more problems per 100 vehicles, Acura is ranked 28th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Acura vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Kia 13 places higher in reliability than Acura.

Engine

The Stinger GT-Line’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 28 more horsepower (300 vs. 272) and 31 lbs.-ft. more torque (311 vs. 280) than the TLX’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Stinger GT2’s standard 3.3 turbo V6 produces 13 more horsepower (368 vs. 355) and 22 lbs.-ft. more torque (376 vs. 354) than the TLX Type S’ standard 3.0 turbo V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Stinger GT-Line 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Acura TLX turbo 4 cyl.:

	Stinger	TLX
Zero to 60 MPH	5.7 sec	7 sec
Quarter Mile	14.1 sec	15.4 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	101.8 MPH	91.5 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Stinger gets better mileage than the TLX:

			MPG
Stinger
	RWD	2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/32 hwy
	AWD	2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	21 city/29 hwy
TLX
	FWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/31 hwy
		A-Spec 2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/30 hwy
	AWD	3.0 turbo V6	19 city/25 hwy
		Perf. Tire 3.0 turbo V6	19 city/24 hwy

Transmission

The Stinger GT2’s launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s at 2250 in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The TLX doesn’t offer launch control.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Stinger’s standard brake rotors are larger than those on the TLX:

	Stinger	TLX
Front Rotors	13.6 inches	13 inches

The Stinger GT2’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the TLX are solid, not vented.

The Stinger stops much shorter than the TLX:

	Stinger	TLX
70 to 0 MPH	156 feet	177 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	104 feet	127 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

The Stinger GT-Line’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the TLX’s standard 50 series tires.

The Stinger has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the TLX; it requires you to depend on roadside assistance and your vehicle will have to be towed.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Stinger’s wheelbase is 1.4 inches longer than on the TLX (114.4 inches vs. 113 inches).

The Stinger’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (51.9% to 48.1%) than the TLX’s (57% to 43%). This gives the Stinger more stable handling and braking.

The Stinger GT2 handles at .91 G’s, while the TLX A-Spec SH-AWD pulls only .83 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Stinger executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 2.1 seconds quicker than the TLX A-Spec SH-AWD (24.8 seconds @ .79 average G’s vs. 26.9 seconds @ .64 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Stinger’s turning circle is 3.4 feet tighter than the TLX’s (36.7 feet vs. 40.1 feet). The Stinger AWD’s turning circle is 1.8 feet tighter than the TLX Technology/A-Spec/Advance/Type S’ (38.4 feet vs. 40.2 feet).

Chassis

The Stinger is 4.4 inches shorter than the TLX, making the Stinger easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

As tested by Car and Driver while cruising at 70 MPH, the interior of the Stinger is quieter than the TLX Type S (70 vs. 71 dB).

Passenger Space

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Stinger a Mid-size car, while the TLX is rated a Compact.

The Stinger has 1.1 inches more front headroom, .1 inches more front legroom, .7 inches more rear headroom, 1.5 inches more rear legroom and 1.5 inches more rear hip room than the TLX.

Cargo Capacity

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Stinger GT2’s power liftgate can be opened just by waiting momentarily behind the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Stinger’s power liftgate can also be opened or closed by pressing a button. The TLX doesn’t offer a power or hands-free opening trunk.

Servicing Ease

The engine in the Stinger is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the TLX. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because there are no rear spark plugs and the accessory belts are in front.

Ergonomics

The power windows standard on both the Stinger and the TLX have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Stinger is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The TLX prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The Stinger’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The TLX’s standard intermittent wipers change speed with vehicle speed, but can’t turn on and off or change speed based on changing rainfall.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Stinger GT2 has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The TLX doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The Stinger’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The TLX has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Kia Stinger has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the TLX A-Spec/Advance/Type S offers wireless charging.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Kia Stinger and the Acura TLX, based on reliability, safety and performance.