Kia Tasman teased – new Toyota Hilux-rivalling pick-up truck confirmed for Australia; ASEAN too?

From out of left field, Kia has announced it will be launching a new pick-up truck sometime next year. It’s called the Tasman, named after the island of Tasmania in Australia, and is said to “redefine the concept of a lifestyle pick-up.”

This statement, along with the brand calling it a “C-segment pick-up truck”, initially suggests that this will merely be a rebadge of the passenger car-based Hyundai Santa Cruz. However, it’s been reported that Kia is instead going it alone and building a proper body-on-frame one-tonne truck, similar to the all-conquering Toyota Hilux, Ford Ranger and Mitsubishi Triton. These reports were backed up by spyshots of a far more boxy, high-riding prototype compared to the more road-biased Hyundai.

All this tracks with the confirmation that, unlike the North America-only Santa Cruz, the Tasman will be sold in global markets like Australia, Africa and the Middle East – regions that overwhelmingly prefer ladder-frame trucks over their monocoque brethren. This, of course, raises the possibility that the truck will be offered in Southeast Asia, particularly in Thailand (and yes, Malaysia too) where one-tonne trucks reign supreme.

No technical details have been released, but Kia already has the building blocks for a decent pick-up, not least the 2.2 litre R four-cylinder turbodiesel long used in models like the Sorento and Carnival. In its latest form, it produces 202 PS and 440 Nm of torque, which is competitive – if not class-leading – with other models in the one-tonne truck segment. A lower 177 PS/431 Nm tune also exists, powering the Hyundai Staria. The mill is mated to an eight-speed automatic gearbox as standard.

Kia also has access to a plug-in hybrid powertrain to meet rising demand for electrified pick-up trucks. This pairs a 1.6 litre turbocharged petrol four-pot with a 90 hp electric motor, which in the Sorento develops a total output of 264 PS and delivers an all-electric range of 51 km thanks to a 13.8 kWh battery. Such a powertrain will help the Tasman compete with the Ranger PHEV.

Past spyshots and videos have shown a large double-bed pick-up that bears all the hallmarks of traditional one-tonne models, including an upright design with lots of angular lines and chiselled surfaces. Added to that are the latest Kia design cues, such as a wide “tiger nose” grille and vertical headlights, similar to the facelifted Sorento and Carnival.

There are also some distinctive touches, like thick black body cladding that only covers the upper part of the fenders. Elsewhere, you’ll find a solid rear axle and leaf springs at the back, while a toggle for selecting two-wheel drive, all-wheel drive and low-range all-wheel drive is located on the centre console. This hints at how seriously the Korean carmaker is taking building a rugged truck for harsh environments.

Kia’s new one-tonne truck was first announced back in 2021 as a “strategic” vehicle for emerging markets. This is one of two pick-ups being developed, the other being a pure electric model that will likely take on full-size US rivals like the Ford F-150 Lightning, Rivian R1T, Chevrolet Silverado EV and Tesla Cybertruck.

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