Kia Tasman vs Toyota HiLux

What's the difference?

Kia expects its all-new Tasman to be a key player in Australia’s highly competitive ute segment. And to its credit, the Korean manufacturer has created its contender from scratch, rather than taking the easier platform-sharing route favoured by some rivals.

However, judging by feedback from numerous locals during our test, the jury is out on whether Aussies will warm 'en masse' to its bold styling and confronting appearance, which tends to distract from the capable vehicle beneath.

So, given our tradie focus, we recently spent a week in the lowest-priced entry point for Tasman dual-cab ute ownership, to see how it measures up as a tool-of-trade for tradies, farmers or fleets wanting a back-to-basics workhorse.

Toyota claims its first HiLux BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) has been designed primarily with mining, business and government fleet customers in mind, by combining the iconic ute’s 4x4 all-terrain capability with zero tailpipe emissions only a full-electric drivetrain can deliver.

To prove its suitability for harsh Aussie conditions, Toyota claims the HiLux BEV has undergone more than two years of testing on site with major mining companies, covering thousands of kilometres in ambient temperatures up to 50 degrees.

We recently sampled the HiLux BEV as a daily driver in metropolitan use, to see if its mining-focused credentials translate to being a practical alternative to traditional diesel power for tradies working in busy urban environments.