KIA has given a hint at the type of buyers who are lining up to jump behind the wheel of its new rear-drive Stinger sports sedan – and they’re not all disaffected Falcon and Commodore owners.

Instead, about two in every three buyers pre-ordering the car are stepping out of Euro brands, according to Kia Motor Car Australia chief operating officer Damien Meredith.

“We do know some [of the brands buyers are coming out of], but we don’t know the whole lot.”

According to Meredith, there were “a lot of Euros” in the early inquiries about the Stinger. “There’s quite a few Benzes, which surprised us, not too many BMWs, quite a few Audis; but you do get Ford and Holdens,” he said.

“In the initial orders that we saw, there were not as many [inquiries from Ford and Holden owners] as we expected, but I think that will grow over time.”

However, just getting one may be a problem for some buyers, with demand in Korea – Australia is the first market outside Kia’s homeland to add the sedan to its showroom – severely capping the number of cars that can land here over the first year on sale.

Imports will be capped to about 200 a month as the car launches into other international markets, with initial orders weighted three-to-one in favour of the 272kW V6 version.

The Stinger officially goes on sale on October 1.