- Hyundai and Kia have big ambitions for the ute market in this part of the world.
- Hyundai plans to join Kia in the ute segment very soon.
- Ute-based ladder chassis SUVs are likely to follow.
Fresh from injecting themselves into just about every segment – from micro cars like the Picanto to performance cars like the i30 N and Ioniq 5 N and even big, electric SUVs like the EV9 and Ioniq 9 – Kia and Hyundai have now set their sights on the only unexplored frontier left; the off-road segment.
Ford and Toyota's traditional stomping ground is next on the Korean siblings' hit list, and – given what both have achieved elsewhere – write off their ambitions at your peril.
That begins with Kia, who – acutely aware of the Tasman ute's perceived weaknesses in the all-important engine size and outputs department – sent its new dual-cab bouncing up Beer O'Clock Hill in Queensland, Australia.
For the uninitiated, it's a brutal and often brutalising 4WD climb that, most recently, stopped the BYD Shark 6 in its tracks.
The Tasman – in X-Pro guise and wearing a pair of proper All Terrain tyres – "walked up" the challenging 100-metre, 50-degree climb, no doubt silencing plenty of doubters in the process.
The message is clear; the Tasman means business off-road, and kudos to Kia for putting its money where its mouth is.
"We believed in the Tasman's off-road capability because we were heavily involved in its development," Kia Australia's GM of Product Planning, Roland Rivero, told me.
"Beer O'Clock Hill was an opportunity to showcase that on its incredibly challenging 50-degree incline. We were seriously considering it, but then Lucas (from Team Bree Offroad) dared us, and it further convinced us to put the Tasman to the test."
Team Bree Offroad posted the video to its YouTube page, where it's wracked up more than 100,000 views in two weeks. Mission accomplished, then.
The Tasman will feed an SUV version eventually, squarely taking aim at model's like the Ranger-based Ford Everest and even the Land Cruiser Prado. But it won't be pushing into these unchartered territory alone.
Hyundai globally identified the off-road space as a key growth opportunity and focus back in 2023, developing the XRT Pro badge and affixing it to the Santa Fe and Palisade as a new rugged 4WD performance arm.
And, like Kia, Hyundai will further build its off-road credentials off the back of its own dual-cab, confirming its own ute will soon be "locked and loaded".
"We're the only major brand without a ute," said Hyundai Australia CEO, Don Romano.
"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to go look around and see that most of these cars – whether they go off road or not – are built for off-road with their snorkels and their guards and their roll bars.
"I think it's as much a part of the personality traits – the look, the feel, the who I am – as much as it his going to the outback and going off road. This is the way we plan to get there, and I will expand on that."
Mr Romano suggests everything is on the table, from reusing the Kia Tasman platform to leveraging its partnership with GM to produce what could be a modern and Hyundai version of something like the Colorado.
But again, Hyundai's plan won't end with a ute, with Mr Romano confirming that a ute-based SUV would follow. Asked if there was potential for the new Hyundai ute to deliver a proper ladder-frame 4WD SUV, Mr Romano replied: "Absolutely".
"I leave nothing out. I may never see it, I might not be here long enough for it, but if I can get it in the plan, then I can show it to the dealers, if I can get the dealers to put Hyundai top of mind, I can get their confidence."
- Andrew Chesterton, contributing journalist.