Kia Aus wants ute to spawn Everest SUV rival
BY MATT CAMPBELL | 30th Oct 2024
KIA Australia’s senior management team says it has been “vocal” about its desire to add a ute-based three-row SUV to its ranks, based on the new-generation Tasman ute’s underpinnings.
The hardcore dual-cab pick-up truck has only just been revealed, but it has been in the works for years – and like many ladder-chassis, body-on-frame models, there is potential to adapt the platform to create a more family-focused SUV model, akin to the Ford Everest, Mitsubishi Pajero Sport and Isuzu MU-X.
Kia Australia general manager of product planning Roland Rivero said the brand is eager to add a model such as the aforementioned 4x4 wagons to its range, should something like that become broadly available.
“Look, I think we’ve been pretty vocal,” he said about the brand’s desire for a more rugged three-row model to sit alongside the Sorento seven-seater.
“We’ve said we would love to see (an SUV based on the Tasman platform) – just looking at the success of the Everest, for example, it’d be great,” Mr Rivero said.
“We’ve got our hand up for one, if it was decided – globally – to develop it. And they asked for Australia’s opinion; we would love to bring one in.
“But there’s a lot more than just Australia (that) influences these decisions, so we would need the collective regions to also want it.”
Kia has offered the Mojave ladder-frame model in some markets, but it has never been built in right-hand drive.
The new Tasman ute carries over a new version of the venerable 2.2-litre turbo diesel four-cylinder engine seen in the Sorento, with 154kW and 441Nm – less than many rival utes.
But, Kia says, the additional transmission cooling and reworked gearbox calibration for the Tasman allows the rigid new truck to cope with up to 3500kg braked towing, as well as a payload in excess of 1000kg for all models at launch.
The three-row ute-based SUV segment is strong in 2024, with the first three-quarters of the year seeing the Ford Everest dominate with 18,613 sales, up almost 80 per cent year-to-date. It is followed by the soon-to-be-updated Isuzu MU-X (14,228 YTD), and 5901 units for the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport, year-to-date.
Kia’s softer Sorento SUV has also seen a strong sales year so far, with 7748 vehicles sold to the end of September, on the back of a recent facelift for that family-focused soft-roader.
