Kia Stinger GT on Highway Patrol radar

THE KIA Stinger GT could be hiding in some bushes on a freeway near you if chosen by Australian police forces as their next highway patrol car.

Kia says its new 272kW/510Nm twin-turbo V6 hero car has attracted interest from every state and territory bar the NT, with some police having already put a prototype car through its paces in secret testing.

“We are starting to loan them to the police now,” said Kia Motors Australia’s Kevin Hepworth. “They’ve had people in-house looking at the car, getting all the tech details on it, and now they’re starting to get an opportunity to test drive.”

Hepworth said police forces were happy with its Brembo brakes, size and power and that it met requirements for wiring, but that it would need to ditch the 19-inch wheels for the 2.0-litre’s 18s in order to carry a full-size spare, which the standard Stinger GT does not have. The Stinger GT’s standard 19-inch wheels are a staggered fitment, 8.0-inch front and 9.0-inch rear.

The Stinger GT was also well positioned to meet police criteria for value, resale, boot space and the ability to easily fit a second battery.

Some states were also considering the less powerful 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder for general duties, said Hepworth.

The news comes as police forces around the country continue to weigh-up replacements for the Falcon and Commodore, other cars considered for highway patrol use including the Ford Mustang and Chrysler 300 SRT.

The Kia Stinger GT is officially on-sale in Australia from September with pricing still to-be-announced.