Ute News

Toyota has slashed the price on some of its Tundra full-size pick-up models in Australia. The brand is offering its Tundra units from the 2025 model year without on-road costs and as well as a $10,000 cashback offer. Before on-road costs pricing for the Tundra starts from $155,900, with the top grade variant costing $172,990, so this deal represents a sizeable drop. The deal lasts until the 30th of June this year. The brand is looking to clear out stock of its older Tundra units, with the 2026 Tundra model now in showrooms. Ford is also offering a stock-clearing deal on its rival F-150 pick-up. Its 2024 model year stock is available from $115,000 (drive-away), which essentially cuts out the on-road costs.The Tundra has had a tough battle up against its rivals such as the F-150, Chevrolet Silverado and Ram pick-ups, trailing all three in the sales charts. This latest price cut is part of a broader plan from the brand to increase its competitiveness in the market. The Tundra has been subject to several big advertising campaigns in the past few months, and the brand told CarsGuide last month it remained confident of making inroads in the segment. “The Tundra is a great truck. I get a lot of feedback from reviewers or customers about the performance of the vehicle,” Toyota Australia Vice President of Sales and Marketing John Pappas said.  “The fact is that we need to get the awareness out there, and that's really our prime motive right now. And then we're very confident that once people are aware of it and they test drive it, then we're confident that it will be successful.”The Tundra has a 3.5-litre turbo-petrol engine and electric motor as part of a plugless hybrid set-up, producing 326kW and 790Nm. This is a similar set-up to the one introduced on the recently-unveiled hybrid LandCruiser.  

Electric cars are finally having their moment. As petrol and diesel prices soar, it appears everyone on the fence about buying an electric vehicle (EV) have taken the plunge.Having steadily hovered around the 10 per cent total market share for the past 18 months, EVs accounted for more than 16 per cent in April. That means approximately one-in-six cars sold last month were battery-powered.But perhaps even more interesting than just the total number of EVs sold, was who was selling them. The days of Tesla dominating the electric market appear to be over, with several new names emerging as popular options for Australians.Here are five of the most in-demand EVs in 2026.BYD Sealion 7For all the hype around BYD’s Shark 6 ute and cut-price Atto 1, the real star for the brand is its mid-size SUV. The Sealion 7 isn’t just a popular EV, it’s also one of the most popular SUVs on the market and was the seventh best-selling vehicle in April.Sales are up 342.2% year-to-date, but it isn’t just a sudden surge in the wake of the fuel crisis. The Sealion 7 has been a popular choice almost since it arrived. It was the eighth most popular SUV in its segment in 2025, behind some of the biggest names in the market - Toyota RAV4, Mitsubishi Outlander, Kia Sportage and Subaru Forester.So regardless of what happens with fuel prices in the coming months, the Sealion 7 looks set to remain a popular choice for anyone looking for a mid-size SUV, electric or otherwise.Geely EX5 If there is a biggest winner of the current surge in EV sales it is the Geely’s EX5. Sales are up 415.4% year-to-date, peaking with 1202 in April alone. That’s up from an average of just 328 sales per month in 2025 and its jump demonstrates that it is genuine demand in EVs, not simply availability, that is driving this current boom. The EX5 was already one of the most affordable EVs on the market, starting at just $41,990, so if it was simply price and choice creating this sales increase in electric options there’s no reason it wouldn’t have started last year.Instead, Geely is taking advantage of its appealing price and benefiting as Australian buyers look for a way to beat the pain at the pump.Zeekr 7X While it doesn’t have the sheer volume of others on this list, selling only 2698 examples so far in 2026, the 7X is proving to be consistently popular while growing in sales.It’s not surprising that it isn’t selling in bigger volumes like the BYD and Geely, as it is positioned as a more premium offering with a starting price of $57,900  that stretches to $72,900 for the flagship Performance AWD model.But averaging nearly 675 sales per month to start 2026, with a spike of 973 sales in April, it’s clear that the 7X is an EV with a growing following.Kia EV3 You may have noticed a theme with the previously mentioned models, as the newer Chinese brands have claimed the role of EV leaders. But one of the established brands holding its own is Kia.Not all of its EVs are proving a sales hit, with the larger EV6 and EV9 still returning relatively modest sales numbers, but the smaller EV3 is doing well. Sales are up 150.2 per cent year-to-date, helping it become the most popular small electric SUV in its price range.The EV3 has garnered critical acclaim and has been slowly building a customer base, likely appealing to those looking to make the electric switch with a brand they know and trust.Sales of the larger EV5 are also up in 2026, but nowhere near to the same level, increasing only 28.7 per cent as it competes directly against the Sealion 7, EX5 and even the 7X.Toyota bZ4XCompared to the other cars on this list the total 2026 sales of just 1323 looks a bit poor, but when you consider how the bZ4X has performed previously it is having a breakout moment.Toyota’s first EV averaged less than 87 sales per month in 2025 but in 2026 it is averaging 330 sales per month so far; peaking at 483 sales in April.This is likely thanks to a renewed marketing push from Toyota, the RAV4 changeover and the high petrol prices leading Australian buyers to give it another look. How long this continues remains to be seen, but given the struggle Toyota has had with this model so far, this is a definite bright spot for the bZ4X.

We’ve hit peak ute and the only way is down as Aussies abandon the diesel-guzzling workhorses.

Kia is readying a major update to its Tasman ute to hopefully fix sales that have been softer than originally anticipated in Australia.The Tasman, which was revealed in 2024 and launched locally last year, was one of the most anticipated new vehicle launches for the South Korean carmaker to date, especially from an Australian perspective.The ute’s exterior design has polarised the public with some loving its boxy looks and plush interior, whereas others lament the awkward headlight placement, among other points.So far Australian sales haven’t met targets. Initially it was targeting 20,000 sales per year, but after the first four months of 2026 it’s on track to only sell around 5000 examples this year.Kia has already confirmed a mid-life update is in the works and this may be fast-tracked. No exact timeframe has been provided yet, but it could be as soon as next year.It’s unclear what exactly is set to change in terms of the design with this update, though the Tasman Weekender concept revealed at last year’s Seoul motor show could preview what’s coming.It featured custom front and rear bumpers with lime green accents, body-coloured wheel arches, among a litany of off-road accessories.As previously reported, focus groups and surveys have been sent out to Tasman owners in Australia on what they like and what they’d like to see improved."We've been quite vocal, and we always have been with this car in particular," a Kia spokesperson recently told CarsGuide."We're very vocal with our superiors, and up front. We're definitely being very deliberate in what we think might be hampering its sales performance."If we want to be a third of the total production volume, they've got to be receptive.”As it currently stands, the Tasman is only powered by a 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine in Australia. In South Korea there’s a 2.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine.It’s understood a hybrid is in the works and it could feature the aforementioned 2.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine with dual electric motors.This ‘TMED-II’ engine already features in the Hyundai Palisade and is expected to roll out to other models within the Hyundai Motor Group.For now we’ll need to wait and see whether more information about this update to the Tasman arises in the coming months.

JAC has joined the race to be the new Chinese Holden in Australia, raiding the the now-defunct homegrown brand's former engineering stocks to deliver an Aussie-feeling ride and handling tune to its vehicl

Chinese carmaker BYD is making history as it rockets its way up the Australian sales charts that could see it finish in second place by the end of the year.Year-to-date BYD has sold 25,243 vehicles in Australia. Perennial top five seller Hyundai has recorded 25,103 so far, while Ford, the second-best selling brand in Australia last year, has managed 25,920.What’s so impressive is not just how many cars BYD selling, but the speed of its conquest of our market. This time last year BYD had sold 11,974 cars and somehow in the space of a year the brand has pushed past nearly every other carmaker in the country and looks to be headed to finishing second in 2026.The brands that still stand in BYD’s way are Kia with (27,080 cars sold so far in 2026), Mazda (27,526) and of course Toyota (59,675).Toyota is like the final big boss of the Aussie car game and BYD is one hundred per cent not going to beat it this year or possibly ever. It would be fun to entertain the idea that BYD could beat Toyota at some point in the future, but the only way that could happen is if Toyota tripped so badly in the sales race it couldn’t get back up again.We have seen huge brands rise and fall. Holden was once Australia’s top selling brand and today… well, it doesn’t exist.So Toyota’s is a lock for top spot this year, and the reality of BYD taking the silver medal is a very real possibility.That would send shock waves through the industry and mark the end of time for established brands such as Ford, which relies almost entirely on one model — the Ranger ute — to keep it on top.Ford would be anxious and brands such as Mazda, Kia and Hyundai would be feeling the heat, too.   Monthly sales for BYD show just how quickly the brand is striding ahead. In April BYD sold 7702 cars in Australia. Kia sold 6450, Hyundai 6002, Ford 5748 and Mazda 5636.Toyota, by the way, sold 15,185 cars in April.Are we living in unusual times? Interesting times, but not unusual. It seems that every 10 to 15 years a new big force arrives. Kia and Hyundai were the previous big force. Now it’s the Chinese brands' turn, and they're currently elbowing each other out the way to get to the front while the old guard scratches its head wondering what just happened. The catalyst for change has been the switch to electric cars and with Toyota, Ford, Mazda, Nissan and Mitsubishi hardly having an EV between them, Chinese brands have swooped in to offer what people want.BYD, Chery, MG, GWM, Geely and Zeekr are offering outstanding and affordable electric cars and hybrids from hatches and sedans to SUVs and utes.MG and GWM were first on the scene, and both have become a part of Australia’s automotive landscape.BYD has won over Aussies even quicker.Four years ago almost nobody in Australia had heard of BYD, or Build Your Dreams as it was known then. As motoring journalists we were aware of the new brand from China, but hardly saw it as an immediate threat to the likes of MG, which had already won over Aussies with models such as the MG ZS. Nope, in 2022 BYD appeared to be just another Chinese brand hoping to ride the wave of interest in EVs that had taken off in Australia.The popularity of BYD models such as the Shark 6 plug-in hybrid ute, Atto 3 small electric SUV and Sealion 7 electric SUV have been central to the brand’s success. Crucial to the brand’s continued rise is bolstering its line-up with a multitude of other models, such as the Atto 1 electric hatchback, Atto 2 electric small SUV, Sealion 5 compact plug-in hybrid SUV, Sealion 6 mid-size plug-in hybrid SUV and Sealion 8 seven-seat plug-in hybrid SUV.BYD could just make it to second spot this year, but how long it can stay there is another story. Hyundai or Kia could make a comeback, but what is looking even more likely is a challenge from a fellow Chinese brand such as Chery. Chery only has five models but sold 4322 cars in April, and this year it will launch its diesel hybrid ute to rival the BYD Shark 6 and that could add an extra 1000 sales a month. Then again the ute market appears to be headed into troubled waters - again, another story for another day.For now it’s BYD time in the sun and while that might not mean being number one, number two would do.

We know that Hyundai is working on a new dual-cab ute, with the brand confirming an in-house-developed workhorse model that will arrive before the end of the decade, both in the USA and in Australia.What we don’t know, or at least not entirely, is why.It’s long been Australian automotive lore that to be successful in Australia, a ute has to be a part of the line-up.Toyota, Ford, Mazda, Nissan, Mitsubishi and Volkswagen, Jeep – amongst others – have all heeded the call and found a dual-cab for their line-ups.But that was then and this is now.These days, the ute market is contracting. Mid-size SUVs are the vehicle of choice in our market again. Auto giant Toyota forecasts that the new normal won’t be changing again anytime soon.Then there’s the other pressure – China.Our market has never before been so flooded with affordable ute offerings from brands like BYD, GWM, JAC, Foton, LDV and MG. Chery will join the party shortly with its diesel plug-in hybrid.Despite the influx of new brands, fewer people overall are choosing utes. In fact, the segment has shed more than 2500 sales since the beginning of the year, compared with the first three months of 2025.Swollen segment, shrinking sales. Not a great combination.Whatever the reason, there’s no doubting the Kia Tasman hasn’t delivered the sales it was expecting to, though hopes are still high that it will eventually reach its lofty annual sales target of around 20,000 vehicles, with the help of a facelift, new powertrain options and a stronger focus on fleet customers.Other newcomer brands have fared even worse.What will the market look like in 2028 and beyond? Fuel prices won’t be going down, at least over long-term trending, that’s for sure. And customer tastes seem to already be trending in the opposite direction.  In the US, where the market is massive (though dominated by the Toyota Tacoma), and where Chinese brands so far don’t exist, is no doubt the global motivator, but the going in Australia could prove tougher than they might be expecting for the Korean giant.I have no doubt the Hyundai ute will be impressive. The Boulder concept unveiled in New York looks spectacular, and the brand has been on a tear of quality products of late.But it could be timing, not the product itself, that presents the biggest headwinds.

Diesel utes have been one of the categories hit hardest by rising fuel prices in Australia, compounding an already slowing segment of the market. Even the best-selling Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux are experiencing sales declines, with month-on-month drops for April.Ute options have grown substantially in recent times, with the addition of several new Chinese competitors. The BYD Shark 6’s success is well-documented, but it is somewhat of an anomaly in a segment where Chinese utes have experienced stuttering sales performances.One of these utes is the Foton Tunland, which was recorded in sales data for the first time in April, managing 97 registrations for the month.The Tunland returned to Australia after a more than eight-year absence Down Under, with a starting price of just under $40K, before on-road costs. The MG U9 is another experiencing a tough sales run, having amassed only 94 units in April and less than 700 units over the course of 2026 so far.With a drive-away price of $52,990, it is not priced too dissimilarly to the segment leaders like the HiLux and Ranger in the dual-cab category. JAC’s T9 also continues this trend, mustering only 56 registrations in April, and only 359 sales so far in 2026.The brand recently released a new cheaper dual-cab chassis ute, starting from $38,990 (before on-road costs) to try and boost its market appeal. One other Chinese ute falling into a similar category, bucking the wider market trend, is the LDV T60, with just 214 sales in April 2026. This number is better than many of its rivals, but still a decent chunk less than the established pack. It is priced from $45,253 (before on-road costs).Meanwhile, many Chinese brands are turning to plug-in hybrid power for their ute offerings, with many announcing new models launching before the end of the year. JAC unveiled its Hunter petrol PHEV ute, which is already open for orders, while the GWM Cannon PHEV will also join the competition soon alongside its larger Cannon Alpha sibling. Later in the year, Chery will enter the ute race with a first-ever diesel PHEV, as a point of difference to the successful Shark 6.Whether this flood of hybrid offerings can change the tide for many of these brands remains to be seen.

Chery has just dropped a huge hint on what the name for its incoming plug-in hybrid diesel ute might be.Currently codenamed ‘KP31’, the brand has whittled down 20,000 submissions to a shortlist of nine potential names for the ute. This list includes Bushwalker, Ironbark, Longreach, Mate, Orca, Outrider, Ridgeback, Stockman and Terra.It has trademarked all nine of the names in line with Australian regulations, but none of them have been officially registered yet. Orca stands out of from the rest because it was filed for trademark back in June 2025, while the rest of the names were filed over the past few weeks of 2026. This was part of the brand’s standard process of reserving potential names for future vehicles, according to Chery Australia. Orca has been filed for trademark by Chery under the SUV and pick-up truck category, showing the brand's desire to use the name for a ute for about a year.An orca is another name for a killer whale and the brand said it is one of the most powerful predators in the ocean, mightier even than the shark - a reference perhaps to the BYD Shark 6.Could a filing of a name nearly a year ago and its subsequent appearance on the shortlist be more than a coincidence?Voting on the name of the Chery ute will close on the 19th of May.The KP31’s official launch remains on track for the fourth quarter of this year, with the petrol plug-in hybrid variant expected to join the lineup later on next year. A name for the petrol PHEV ute has not been confirmed yet, meaning it could get an entirely different name to its diesel sibling. Chery’s diesel PHEV was revealed earlier this year, featuring a segment-changing 2.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine and electric motor duo.Chery claims it will have a 1000kg payload as well as a 3500kg braked towing capacity, which matches many of its diesel-only competitors. These figures also trump the base variants of the BYD Shark 6, although there is a new Performance variant of BYD’s ute capable of towing 3500kg. It will join an increasingly busy Chinese electrified ute segment. This includes petrol PHEV rivals such as the GWM Cannon and Cannon Alpha, as well as the recently-announced JAC Hunter.

JAC is taking the plug-in hybrid ute game to the BYD Shark 6, unveiling its cheaper Hunter rival. It will start from less than $50,000 (before on-road costs), making it around $8000 cheaper than the base dual-cab pick-up variant of the Shark 6. It is not just BYD’s ute the Hunter will take on, with the GWM Cannon also confirmed to be gaining a PHEV set-up to compliment the more expensive Cannon Alpha. There is a PHEV version of the best-selling Ford Ranger on sale in Australia, which is in excess of $20,000 more expensive than the Hunter. The Hunter will also have company from Chery’s codenamed ‘KP31’ diesel PHEV ute coming before the end of the year, with a petrol example following in 2027. JAC’s PHEV ute is powered by a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine and dual electric motors, producing 360kW and a likely near 1000Nm. These figures eclipse even those of the new performance variant of the Shark 6, which launched earlier this year with a price tag of nearly $13,000 more than the Hunter. The Hunter boasts a highly-sort-after 3500kg braking towing capacity, with a payload of 915kg, highlighting its towing potential is in line with diesel rivals, while carrying capacity is little behind. According to the brand, the car has been tested extensively in Australia, facing harsh conditions such as extreme heat and rough unsealed roads.  In conjunction with a 31kWh battery, the ute offers more than 1000km of total driving range, at least according to more generous NEDC testing. Fuel consumption sits at 1.6L/100km, so long as the battery is charged. It has also been given some serious off-roading ability, with a full-time four-wheel drive system as well as front and rear differential locks. Other useful features include vehicle-to-load capabilities, which enables large devices to be charged and powered directly from the car. The Hunter gives JAC an alternative to its diesel-powered JAC T9 ute, which has endured a slow sales return in the competitive ute segment. Reservations on the car open later today.