Kia’s much-anticipated dual-cab ute, the Tasman, is already known to be coming with both diesel and electric motors, but Kia has now confirmed two distinct fully electric utes: one for the global audience and another tailored for the US market.
While we don’t know for sure, we suspect the second EV, most likely assembled in North America, may resemble the larger pickups that Americans are accustomed to, such as the Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado, and Ram 1500. The question of whether Australia will receive one or both models remains open.
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In a nod to performance enthusiasts, Kia has confirmed that all its battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) will have a high-performance GT variant, including the upcoming utes. These models are anticipated to prioritize on-road performance, akin to the EV6 GT’s rapid acceleration (0-100km/hr in 3.5s), rather than off-road prowess like that of the Ford F-150 Raptor or Ranger Raptor. This move is part of Kia’s broader strategy to offer 14 electric vehicles globally by 2027, expanding from the previously stated goal of 11 due to the addition of the two utility vehicles and another undisclosed model.
These announcements come alongside Hyundai’s declaration of launching at least one electric “light commercial vehicle” by 2030, which we suspect will actually be two utes, the recently trademarked IONIQ T7 and IONIQ T10, with the T representing utility. Given the standard IONIQ 7 is a small SUV concept, we expect that the IONIQ T7 will be a successor to the unibody Santa Cruz “compact pickup truck”. Meanwhile, the IONIQ T10 will be more substantial, competing with the Ford Maverick and the Toyota Tundra.
This would mean that Hyundai, targeting the segments above and below, will leave Kia’s Tasman ute to be Korea’s sole representative in the mid-size utility segment, competing with Aussie favourites such as the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger. Kia has already made clear that a 4-cyclinder diesel will come first in 2025, while we expect 6-cyclinder and EV models, including a BEV and HEV or PHEV, to arrive a year later.
Given that the mid-size electric ute will be heavily related to the EV9, we can see what this ute may look like thanks to renders by SRK Designs.
In this render we can see Kia’s trademark vertical headlights and DRL’s, which have already been spied during testing and resemble those on the newly announced K4 (Cerato). There is a tiger-nose grille that is bigger than we’ve seen on Kia EV’s, though it does look sleek and we hope to see it feature on the diesel.
We can also see the suicide doors from the EV9 concept, though these were replaced with standard doors in the final model. The rotating chairs did make it to production on the EV9, just not to Australia. “Australia won’t apply outboard swivel seats as it will forego seatbelt reminders, which are necessary for a five-star ANCAP rating.”
While not certain, the mid-sized ute will most likely borrow components from the EV9’s drivetrains:
- RWD single-motor delivering 160kW / 350Nm, 0-100km/h in 8.2 seconds, and 76.1kWh battery with a WLTP range of 443km.
- AWD dual-motor delivering 283kW / 700Nm, 0-100km/h in 5.3 seconds, and 76.1kWh battery with a WLTP range of 505km.
Both utes are expected to feature over-the-air software updates, similar to the new Ford Ranger, and for the US market model, the inclusion of ‘AutoMode’ semi-autonomous driving technology.
Kia expects to sell 20,000 utes in its first year in Australia, representing ~10% of the market. Globally, Kia has set an ambitious goal to sell 807,000 electric vehicles by 2026, with plans to boost sales to 1.2 million by 2030. This represents a significant 36% rise from the sales target declared previously.
