Chery Stockman 2026 News

Three new cut-price challengers are on the way to hunt down some of Australia’s favourite dual-cab utes.These newcomers pack some enticing gear with plug-in hybrid power, rugged off-road capability and likely sharp prices in their arsenal to put Ford Ranger, BYD Shark 6 and Toyota HiLux on the menu.Success isn’t guaranteed.Some recent big names such as the Kia Tasman and MG U9 have failed to fire, but these three have a red hot chance.The Chery Stockman is due to arrive at the end of this year, and is the first ute to pack a diesel plug-in hybrid set-up.The Stockman combines a 2.5-litre turbo-diesel engine with an electric motor to deliver 350kW and 800Nm to all four wheels.It can drive up to 100km under electric-only power, but this is calculated via the more lenient NEDC test cycle. Expect closer to 80km when tested to the benchmark WLTP protocol.This combo will be ideal for off-roading and load-lugging, two areas plug-in hybrid workhorses often struggle with.It will have a 750kg unbraked and 3500kg braked towing capacity. Chery has not revealed payload yet.Chery has also previously said it would have front, centre and rear diff locks and it should have low gearing for proper off-roading.Chery has had remarkable success in Australia thanks to its sharp pricing, expect no different from the Stockman. This will be backed up by a rapidly expanding dealership network.It also looks mean. Watch out big boys.The Indian brand’s follow-up to the much-maligned Pik-Up has just been revealed and it is a shoe in to come to Australia, with a late 2027 arrival date likely.It is based on a new ladder frame platform, which means it'll be built for hard work.Mahindra hasn’t revealed any official details on the new ute, but it is likely it’ll share a fair bit with the rugged Scorpio SUV.This means a 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine, six-speed automatic and part-time four-wheel drive are likely.Inside will be plush, with plenty of hi-tech features and top-end finishes.In India it will launch with a starting price of less than 1.98 million Indian Rupee (A$29,300), which is more expensive than the Scorpio, but expect it at less than $50,000 drive-away in Australia.Nissan is going all-in on rugged 4WDs and utes in the next few years, and a big chunk of them will be sourced from China and its partner Dongfeng.The Nissan Frontier Pro ute hasn’t been confirmed for Australia, but it is highly likely the ute will arrive next year to sit alongside the recently launched new Navara.Former Nissan Oceania Managing Director Andrew Humberstone suggested to CarsGuide last year both models would be sold here.It is also believed the Frontier Pro will be called Navara Pro when it lands, following on from its recent reveal in the Philippines.It uses a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and a transmission-mounted electric motor producing a potent 320kW and 800Nm combined. The EV-only range is around 100km WLTP.There is a chance it could spin-off an SUV, so watch out Toyota Prado and Ford Everest.

Chery has confirmed its all-new Stockman ute will arrive later this year with all the “bells and whistles” but has revealed to CarsGuide plans for a more work-focused variant to target the tradie audience.Chery Australia Chief Operating Officer Lucas Harris has laid out the plan for the initial Stockman offerings, ruling out plans for a single cab variant with the new ute set to stick with a dual-cab design for the foreseeable future.“ So the launch model will be all of the bells and whistles,” Harris confirmed.“And then early next year we would look at introducing a lower tier variant to try and make it more accessible. “At this stage won't do a cab chassis. We'll look at potentially doing a flat deck tray. It's more straightforward from a homologation point of view. So basically just a flat tray with no sides on it.”He added: “We’ll focus on more of a conventional bed, which has been designed to be easily removable. So if people want to pull it off they can.” While single-cab, cab chassis utes are popular for many trade and fleet buyers, Harris indicated it would be too complicated and expensive for Chery to create too many variations of the Stockman. But he was adamant that, despite launching in a high-level trim, it will not be simply a ‘lifestyle’ ute and there is already interest from potential fleet buyers.“There is but if we want to capture any of the fleet volume, I think we'll need to go down and have that offering,” he said, referencing the customisable tray back.“We've had a huge amount of inquiry from fleets. I think we're just shy of 80 fleets who have put their names down for a demo. So you know, largely driven, I think, out of that plug-in hybrid diesel is a very unique option and can solve a lot of problems.” As previously reported, Chery will give the Stockman a unique edge against its extensive list of ute rivals by offering it with first-in-class diesel plug-in hybrid powertrain, as well as a a petrol-engined plug-in hybrid.Harris also explained the role of Premcar, the Melbourne-based engineering firm, in the development of the Stockman. Premcar, which has worked on the Nissan Navara ‘Warrior’ program, can trace its origins back to the Ford Performance Vehicles (FPV) days, where it established its local expertise and reputation.“ It's not the first time that we've worked with Premcar,” Harris said.“So we know them… Premcar is very well-known and very experienced around our market and what's required. And, I know they're quite famous for what they did with the Warrior, and some stuff with FPV, in the old days."But actually it does a huge amount of engineering and development work outside of that stuff with carmakers all around the world, and sometimes not even just for Australia, for other markets."So they're very experienced guys. It's good for us to be able to use a local company which understands our customers and understands the way customers in Australia think. So what better partner could you find to give you very candid and unfiltered feedback about what they like and what they don't,” said Harris.However, Premcar’s involvement is noteworthy as Harris has previously dismissed the need for a local ride and handling program to tailor the suspension and chassis to Australian conditions, but the Stockman appears to be a different case.“ So for this particular project they're doing assessment and validation across many different aspects of the vehicle and many different driving situations,” he said.“So it's not just off-road, but it's also on-road performance, and they'll give feedback on ride and handling and how the infotainment system works, and NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) and how the ADAS (advanced driver assist systems) works. So they'll give feedback on the whole vehicle across all those various systems and all different scenarios.”The Stockman is due to launch in the fourth quarter of 2026, when full pricing and technical specifications for both powertrains will be announced.

Chery’s comeback from zero to hero in Australia is truly remarkable, but what has been the secret to its second-time lucky success?  Did Chery stumble onto a genie’s lamp while it was lost in the wilderness and wish for sales success? Because somewhere between 2015 and 2026 the car company, which left Australia with a reputation for low-quality, unsafe vehicles, returned a decade later with a line-up of outstanding cars that have won over Australia.Australian sales until the end of July show Chery to be the eighth best-selling car brand in Australia, with 29,579 vehicles sold. The Tiggo 4 small SUV was the fifth most popular car in Australia last month.This means Chery has overtaken mainstream brands such as Nissan, Mitsubishi, Volkswagen, Honda and Subaru. It is even starting to creep into the Mazda (currently on 46,960), Hyundai (45,581) and Kia (48,399) bracket.Chery will get even closer to these brands, as they are losing sales and Chery’s market share is increasing. And its ute hasn’t even arrived.When the Chery Stockman arrives it won’t just be another ute, it’ll likely have the same success as BYD’s Shark 6 because it’ll offer the benefit of being a plug-in hybrid (PHEV). The edge the Stockman will have over the Shark 6 is it’ll be a diesel PHEV, not a petrol, which will make it popular for off-road use and towing. The addition of Stockman will increase Chery’s sales by at least 1000 per month. Whether it catches Hyundai, Kia and Mazda before the end of the year is yet to be seen, but Chery has come from a lot further back.This time last year Chery had sold only 17,272 cars, and the current year-to-date sales represent a doubling in market share to 4.2 per cent.Toyota is the final boss of the Australian car market and its year-to-date sales of 115,550 make everybody else’s results seem minuscule, even BYD that has reached 60,192. Chery is probably not gunning for the top spot right now, unless that was specifically wished for when it found the magic lamp.For Chery to even reach where it is today in the three years since it returned to Australia in 2023, with one car and no sales in almost a decade seems nothing short of magical.The truth is Chery’s stellar comeback is down to five factors: elevating quality perception through design but keeping retail pricing low; hiring outside automotive designers and engineers from European, United States and Korean car companies; investing big in next-gen electric and hybrid platforms, and mostly important and the reason for all of this - focussing on exports.That’s it! Oh, and just add excellent timing and money, lots of money.The importance of Chery’s export focus can’t be overstated. Exports bankroll the business. Not a lot of profit is made in Chery’s local Chinese market, while bigger than our Australian brains can comprehend, it’s so cut-throat that vehicle manufacturers are struggling to make a decent profit. So ruthless was the price war that in February this year the Chinese government banned car makers from selling below production cost, which they had been doing just to compete with each other. The stomach was eating itself.Chery realised this and put most of its energy into exports and this meant lifting the quality to a standard oversea markets had become accustomed to set by Japanese car makers such as Toyota, Honda and Mazda.This meant hiring designers and engineers from outside China, senior executives from European, Korean, Japanese and American car companies    Steve Eum, Korean born but raised in the United States, is now Chery’s Vice President and General Manager of Global Design having worked for Kia, Hyundai, General Motors and even Ford where he was based in Australia and worked on the Falcon.Eum succeeded Kevin Rice, who had worked on the MX-5 and helped develop the BMW 3 Series and 4 Series.Keeping that premium feel but pricing the vehicles to be among the most affordable vehicles offered in a market is guaranteed to be a sales winning combination anywhere, especially in Australia.Chery’s been smart enough to add sub-brands such as Jaecoo, Omoda and Lepas, which bring more luxury, sportiness and premium electric choices. The Jaecoo J5 for instance is often mistaken for a Range Rover when spotted on the road. That the hybrid and electric technology is outstanding, was also important. Chery’s super hybrids such as the Tiggo 9 and Tiggo 8 are incredibly fuel efficient.   Chery’s timing of having a wide range of affordable electric and hybrid vehicles at precisely the same time as Australian buyers were switching to EVs in record numbers was also key. The fuel crises caused by the war in Iran pushed EV sales to more than 23 per cent of all new cars sold in June and continued through July when it was above 21 per cent.In July 2026 Chery became the first Chinese car maker to surpass 20 million global sales. Sales in Europe for Chery were up by more than 200 per cent and in the UK Chery came in at No.2 for sales in July beating local favourite Ford.And the company hasn’t even started selling in the United States yet, but it will within the next two years.Chery has been very fortunate this time around, but luck is only when opportunity meets skill as they say.Or maybe Chery did find a genie’s lamp. In which case I wonder what its two other wishes were? 

Chery’s new Stockman diesel plug-in hybrid (PHEV) ute is arriving soon, but we’ve been given a hint about what to expect from its follow-up act.The Chery Stockman will initially arrive with the headline-grabbing 2.5-litre turbocharged diesel engine with an electric motor set-up, which will deliver 350kW and 800Nm to all four wheels.It can drive up to a claimed 100km under electric-only power and is packed full of tough off-road hardware.But this is just the beginning according to Chery Australia’s Chief operating officer Lucas Harris.Harris has told CarsGuide previously the Stockman will add a petrol plug-in hybrid to its line-up in 2027.The new petrol plug-in ute promises to match the diesel’s capabilities with a 3500kg braked towing capacity, which matches the BYD Shark 6 Performance.It will likely be a more urban-focused ute, while the diesel option will be better for off-roading and long-range touring.But we now have an idea what might be lurking under the bonnet of this petrol plug-in hybrid, thanks to one of Chery’s many sub-brands.Jetour is Chery’s tough, off-road focused sub-brand and it has a new petrol plug-in hybrid ute based on the Stockman.Dubbed the Jetour F700, it has been revealed in China with an enticing price equivalent to about $63,000, and the petrol Stockman will likely use its plug-in hybrid set-up.The F700 packs a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine matched to two electric motors - one on each axle for all-wheel drive - that combine for a monster 665kW and 1135Nm. That leaves the BYD Shark 6 Performance’s 350kW/700Nm in the rear-view mirror.It can drive up to 150km on electric power, but this is calculated on the generous CLTC cycle. Expect closer to 100km on the benchmark WLTP test.It can drive a claimed 1300km on a full battery charge and tank of petrol.A front and rear locking differential shows it can handle the rough stuff and it will use an off-road battery developed by Chinese battery giant CATL.