The Kia GT4 Stinger concept was revealed back in 2014, the year when Kia's design renaissance really went into full gear. While a production version of the stunning coupe has yet to materialize, we recently learned that Kia was considering an all-electric sports car based on the GT4's design.

Sitting down with Michael Cole, COO of Kia North America, at the 2019 Detroit Auto Show, we wanted to find out if that was still the case. Sadly, it sounds like the GT4 project is dead before it could even get started.

"There is nothing in the plan right now for that. The Stinger GT sedan is the big focus in terms of really strong performance," he said. "It's our halo vehicle. It was the right time to bring it two years ago and it's doing really well. It also has this great brand-building effect for us." But what about the GT4 Stinger coupe? Could a production version potentially become a future rival for, say, the new Toyota Supra?

"There are no plans for any other sports vehicle at this stage." What about an all-electric variant? "Again, no plans at this stage," we were told. The GT4 Stinger concept was a stunning concept design study and that's it. There was a time, perhaps, when Kia considered production but the brand's focus is apparently elsewhere these days.

Prior to the new Supra, Toyota didn't really have an enthusiast high-performance sports car (the 86 isn't exactly "high-performance"). However, the Stinger GT fastback has quickly become Kia's enthusiast image builder, and so it makes little business sense to launch a coupe variant. There's no question Kia's design studio could easily handle the task, but the business case just isn't there.