The Kia Stinger is a superb sedan and a worthy rival to German premium sedans like the BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe, Audi A5 Sportback, and Mercedes-Benz C-Class. It looks great, is well equipped, and has excellent performance and handling. We can't praise it enough. And now there's now another great reason why you should buy a 2019 Kia Stinger.

After subjecting the Stinger to some extensive crash tests, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has awarded the Korean sports sedan with its Top Safety Pick Plus award, which is the highest possible rating. There is a caveat, though: the sedan only earned the reward when equipped with optional Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist with Pedestrian Detection and LED headlights. The Stinger's TSP+ rating brings the total number of Kia vehicles with 2019 Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick Plus ratings to 10.

"No detail was too small to be obsessed over during the Stinger's development process," said Michael Cole, chief operating officer and EVP, Kia Motors America. "Stinger was engineered to be the fastest and highest performing vehicle in Kia's history, undergoing the company's most intense R&D effort to date, but it also continues Kia's tradition of offering advanced collision avoidance systems. Earning another TSP+ award is just one more piece of evidence demonstrating our commitment to 'Give it Everything.'"

To qualify for a 2019 TSP+ award, a vehicle must earn "Good" ratings in six crashworthiness tests: driver-side small overlap front, passenger-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength, and head restraint – as well as earn "Advanced" or "Superior" ratings for front crash prevention and a "Good" headlight rating. The Stinger earned "Good" ratings for all six crashworthiness tests, and a "Superior" rating for the optional front crash prevention system, which helped it avoid collisions in the IIHS's 12-mph and 25-mph track tests. The "Good" rating for the headlights applies to the Stinger's static LED projector headlights.

The Stinger was also the first Kia to introduce two new available safety technologies: Driver Attention Warning and Lane Keeping Assist. Driver Attention Warning is designed to help combat distracted or drowsy driving in certain conditions. The system monitors a number of inputs from the vehicle and will sound a warning chime as well as display a graphic alerting the driver to take a break if it detects unattentive driving. Lane Keeping Assist, on the other hand, is designed to detect and monitor the vehicle's intended lane and in certain situations, alert the driver with an audible warning along while providing steering input to help maintain the vehicle's position.