When the Stinger first hit the scene, it breathed fresh life into a rather staid lineup and, importantly, showed the world Kia could do performance sedans just as well as anybody. It's been a perennial favorite of the CarBuzz team so you can imagine just how disappointed we were when rumors of its discontinuation surfaced.

The Korean sports sedan isn't long for this world and, together with the Sonata and K5, will face the chopping block in the coming years. This is very disappointing as the Stinger is a superb alternative to the ubiquitous Germans. Even more strange is the fact that Kia recently told us the range-topping sedan is going nowhere.

There's more evidence to suggest the Stinger isn't long for this world. Kia is offering hefty discounts on the 2023 Stinger before it's even been released. A dealer bulletin shows a discount of up to $2,800 is available, along with appealing financing and lease deals.

Kia could want to shift inventory quickly, explaining the significant discount on an already palatable price tag. As a reminder, the 2022 Stinger has a starting MSRP of $36,290 - not bad for an RWD sedan with 300 horsepower on tap. The Stinger is privy to different financing deals which vary according to the chosen payment term.

MY2023 units can be had with 1.9% APR for up to two years. More traditional payment schemes (60 and 72 months) are available at 2.75% and 3.75%, respectively. Buyers also have the choice of an 84-month finance plan at a far higher 4.75%.

It's the leasing incentives that prove most appealing, with the top-spec derivatives receiving the tempting deals. The range-topping GT2 is available with a $2,500 incentive on a 24-month lease. This is increased to $2,800 for the all-paw derivative. Lesser models aren't as lucky - the GT-Line comes with a $1,200 incentive, while the AWD model gets $1,650 off.

Interestingly, the 36-month lease doesn't bring greater savings. GT2 models receive just $350 and $500 off for the RWD and AWD models, respectively, while the GT-Line AWD gains a $400 saving. There's no lease cash for the entry-level model under the three-year deal.

Hopefully, interested buyers won't be plagued by the dreadful dealer markup. This would make the discount pointless and won't do the Stinger any favors; we've already seen a Kia retailer engaged in this undesirable practice. These discounts could point to the Korean manufacturer wanting to get rid of inventory quickly before the nameplate is discontinued.