The Stinger is a great car if you like a big dollop of performance with your motoring. The twin-turbocharged V6 engine really packs a punch and there’s not much else around at the price that feels as potent.

But your budget gets you into some pretty impressive vehicles including mid-spec versions of the BMW 3-Series and Audi A4, both of which offer plenty of performance, equipment and pizzazz. It all depends on how you prioritise performance versus luxury and whether you place much value on the car’s badge. If not, then the South Korean Kia Stinger starts to look even more like a match for the European establishment.

The NSW Office of Fair Trading has a Disciplinary Action Unit (DAU) which, on the surface, appears to be able to sanction companies or enforce findings by the department. Which leaves me wondering how Kia has managed to brush off that authority by refusing the refund recommended by the department. Perhaps you would be wise to contact the ACCC (the old Consumer Affairs Department) as this organisation has some real teeth.

The question, however, is whether you’ve given Kia sufficient opportunity to fix the problem. Form what you’ve said, that’s probably the case, but all disputes of this nature rely on the car-maker being given every chance to make things right. That said, your frustration is understandable and, even if the problem is eventually rectified, your opinion of the vehicle will probably be permanently coloured.

For the record, plenty of other owners of the Kia Stinger have complained about exactly the same problem, so it appears that it’s a real concern and not one of which Kia could possibly be unaware. I’ve heard of some owners having the sunroof frame replaced and that fixing the problem. So perhaps there’s a tolerance problem in the manufacturing of the sunroof frames. The point there being that replacing the original frame with another one that is out of spec will simply reproduce the same problem. Perhaps that’s what’s happening to your car.

Without actually hearing the noise in question it’s not possible to speculate on what it might be. It’s under warranty, so take it back to your dealer and have them check the brakes for you.