Kia Tasman News

With dual cab ‘pick-up’ versions of its just-released Tasman ute now in local showrooms, Kia has confirmed pricing for cab chassis variants of the much-anticipated newcomer.

The hottest ute battle of 2025 looks like it will contain two new faces, with the battle between Ford and Toyota overshadowed by the race between two relative – and unexpected – newcomers.

The Kia Tasman ute has been awarded a five-star ANCAP safety rating based on the current 2023-2025 testing protocols.It achieved 85 per cent for Adult Occupant Protection, 85 per cent for Child Occupant Protection, 74 per cent for Vulnerable Road User Protection, and 80 per cent for Safety Assist.It’s worth noting the Tasman’s five-star rating only applies to certain 4x4 dual-cab pick-up variants. The X-Line and X-Pro, as well as the entry-level S 4x2 dual-cab pick-up remain unrated.This also applies to the forthcoming single-cab and dual-cab chassis variants that are due to arrive later this year.ANCAP noted the Tasman “performed well” across the crash protection and collision avoidance tests.Specifically, high scores were achieved for the low risk of injury the adult and child dummy occupants received during the frontal offset crash test.The safety authority also noted the Tasman has a “moderately low” crash compatibility risk, which for its size and mass it did “very well”. This test assesses the risk the test vehicle has to potential crash partner vehicles and their occupants.A penalty was applied, however, in the full width frontal crash test when the pelvis of the driver dummy slipped beneath the lap section of the seatbelt.“Fleet buyers and potential Tasman customers across the country have been eagerly awaiting the Tasman’s safety rating, and this five-star result will be welcome news,” said ANCAP CEO Carla Hoorweg.“With such strong market presence and consumer demand, it’s pleasing to see manufacturers continuing to prioritise safety in this segment.“The dual-cab shopping list is already healthy, and we expect to see it grow further with other new contenders entering the market in the coming months.“Consumers and fleets should check the ANCAP website regularly to ensure they have all the information they need to make an informed, and safe, purchasing decision.”As standard the Kia Tasman receives safety features like seven airbags, autonomous emergency braking (AEB), blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, safe exit warning, adaptive cruise control, intelligent speed limit assist, driver attention monitoring, reversing camera, as well as front and rear parking sensors.All models also receive an emergency SOS calling function.Stepping up to the SX gets you Highway Drive Assist 2 which combines adaptive cruise control and lane centring. It also includes an assisted lane change function.Opting for the X-Line and above gets you additional features like reverse AEB, a surround-view camera and side parking sensors.The flagship X-Pro variant also gains a Ground View Monitor, which is helpful to see under the car when off-roading.It’s worth noting that all Tasman variants also have ISOFIX points and top-tether child seat anchorages on both outboard rear seats.There’s no top-tether point on the middle rear seat, so ANCAP doesn’t recommend installing child seats in this position.

The Kia Tasman dual cab-chassis has a price-tag ahead of its August arrival.

Kia Australia concedes the ute market is more crowded and competitive than ever before, but the number of new players and products hasn't dampened its expectations for the Tasman, with the brand saying it welcomes the competition.

The Kia Tasman is gearing up for a fight.

Will these local additions give the Tasman additional visual flair?

Kia Australia appears to have confirmed the future direction of its Tasman ute, conceding a plug-in hybrid powertrain was "on the radar" as the brand prepares to officially launch the diesel variant of its first-ever ute.Kia Australia chief Damien Meredith was quick to point out that no timelines were currently in place, and the focus was squarely on the launch of the diesel-powered Tasman, which has so far accrued close to 2000 orders."I think it's on the radar, but let's get the 2.2-litre diesel up and firing, and then we can talk about other engine options," he said.His comments follow similar suggestions from Kia Australia General Manager of Product Planning, Roland Rivero, who recently told CarsGuide the Kia Tasman platform had been future-proofed.“It’s a modular platform and it can accommodate numerous powertrains,” he told CarsGuide, when asked about the possibility of a plug-in hybrid.“Tasman will have a long life as most light commercial vehicles will, and we’ll do what we need to do from a market perspective.Plug-in hybrid petrol powertrains have emerged as the saviour of the ute segment, at least in terms of capability, as pressure on the continued sale of diesel engines mount.The Ford Ranger PHEV, for example, maintains its 3.5-tonne towing capacity, while the BYD Shark 6 and GWM Cannon Alpha both promise off-road capability.Toyota, too, has confirmed it is working on a plug-in hybrid solution as the future of the HiLux."If we can get to a situation where a PHEV has the capability of doing 200-plus kilometres on BEV alone — so in other words, if I've got a HiLux I can just go around town, I can run that on BEV and be carbon-neutral pretty well, providing I'm using renewable energy to do it," Toyota Australia's Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Sean Hanley, told CarsGuide last year.“Now the issue is of course can it tow? Can it take a heavy load? Well, to be able to flick a switch and say, well, for those moments where I'm going out off-road or for those moments where I need to tow a heavy load, I've got the convenience of going to a normal hybrid engine and I can get 500 or 600 kilometres and it's convenient, then I see a role for PHEV in that space."Asked directly whether Toyota is working on a 200km-range PHEV, Mr Hanley told us: “Of course we are. And so that to us would represent two things. It's practical (and) it can do things that the customer wants it to do.”

Kia has just made a surprise confirmation that its new Tasman ute is currently being evaluated by police forces around Australia, and that had us thinking: what police vehicles are out there that aren’t the usual suspects?That's right, we're not talking police versions of the Kia Sorento, nor the Hyundai Tucson, or the Volkswagen Passat and Tiguan. We mean the left-of-field police cars. The ones you really might not have known were out there on the roads.So, with a little bit of help from Australian Police Vehicles Facebook group, here are our top five favourite police cars you might not have seen coming. Hyundai’s big eight-seater SUV is doing some undercover work for Victoria Police. This one spotted recently by Issacc Brown from IB Emergency Photography in the regional Victorian town of Sale happens to be the Calligraphy Black Ink edition of the Palisade. Exclusive to the Calligraphy Black Ink edition are 20-inch black glossy alloy wheels, tough looking dark-tinted radiator grille and black suede seats inside. The Palisade comes with two drivetrains and all-wheel drive which is powered by a 2.2 liter 4 cylinder turbo diesel or a front-wheel drive variant which uses a 3.8-litre V6 petrol. Oooh! NSW Police has got themselves a Chevrolet Suburban RST and this one spotted and snapped by Clinton J Down Photography is serving with the Tactical Operations Unit TOU. The RST grade means the large SUV comes with a 5.3-litre petrol V8, air suspension, 22-inch alloy wheels and luxurious interior features.The TOU role is “the safe resolution of high risk situations without loss of life, injury to persons or damage to property.”While this unmarked SUV is doing its best not to be noticed it’s hard not to miss something so enormous and rare on our roads.The Northern Territory Police are using an unmarked Ford F-150 as seen here snapped by an anonymous poster to the Australian Police Vehicles Facebook.While this full-sized American pickup truck is so large it almost blocks out the sun, it’s looking pretty inconspicuous as a police vehicle. The giveaways that this F-150 is serving on the force are the tiny LED emergency lights integrated subtly into the grille. You’d never know… well, almost.From what we can see this looks like the XLT grade which comes with a 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo petrol engine and part-time four-wheel drive.Here’s one Kia kept quiet - Tasmania’s police has a Carnival people mover on its force as seen here in a photo taken by Taliesan Sharman.We’re big fans of the Carnival at CarsGuide with it not only being practical but great to drive making it the perfect big family car. This one seen here looks like just another suburban family hauler especially with the roof box and awning, but on closer inspection you’ll see emergency LED lights integrated into the grille and radio aerials.  There have been some tough looking police vehicles, but not many can claim to being as tough as a Police Rescue Squad Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series as snapped here by Fleet Street Photography.This is a 2019 70 Series, which sports a 4.5-litre diesel V8 and was only available with a five-speed manual gear box. While more uncomfortable to pilot than a camel, if you did happen to have got yourself into an accident somewhere incredibly remote the chances of one of these vehicles making it to you and getting you out of there is 100 per cent.

Kia has confirmed to CarsGuide its Tasman ute is currently being evaluated by police forces around Australia.