Kia has come a long way from the dark ages, known as the 1990s and early 2000s, and is now one of the major players in the car world, alongside sister company Hyundai. One might think that having become successful, the Korean company can finally rest on its laurels. But they'd be wrong, as they have quite a few brand-new models in the making. And if you missed one of the biggest news, one will be a body-on-frame pickup.
Actually, make that two, as the upcoming Tasman, which is expected to rely on dead dinosaurs for fuel, will be joined by a second model, and this one might have battery-electric power. The rumor mill places the latter against the likes of the Rivian R1T, Ram 1500 REV, Ford F-150 Lightning, GMC Sierra EV, Chevrolet Silverado EV, and one of the most controversial-looking products in this class, the Tesla Cybertruck.
Nevertheless, this story isn't about the alleged open-bed electric model from the Korean automaker but the Tasman, which is edging closer to production as we speak. We've seen a few rendering takes of it and a fully camouflaged prototype that revealed some of its secrets, so it is now time to cast the light on the workhorse that's expected to challenge the Jeep Gladiator, Nissan Frontier, Ford Ranger, Toyota Tacoma, and others.
What Can You Tell Me About the Looks and Features?
Quite a few things, actually, starting with the face that should have an upright styling, an intricate lighting signature, and perhaps a very special grille. We expect the corporate logo to decorate the hood, and the vehicle should have black cladding on the lower parts of the body. Spy shots have revealed it will have roof rails, unlike the renderings shared by the peeps at Kolesa that we covered a few days ago. The window line looks spot-on, and so do the door handles, which have fortunately evaded the flush-mounted design that’s becoming a bit too common in today’s industry.
Photo: Kolesa
The scooped prototype we wrote about at the end of January was kind enough to provide a glimpse of the cabin. Well, glimpse may be too small a word, as we saw the entire interior. Unfortunately, the dashboard, steering wheel, center console, and parts of the front door cards were under wraps, so we cannot tell you much about it. However, we could quote the rumor mill, which speaks about a minimalist overall layout, with a wide curved display mixing the infotainment system and digital gauges behind a single pane of glass, each display supposedly measuring 12.3 inches in diagonal.
The Kia Tasman tester mentioned above had a dual-cab body style and could sit five adults, two at the front and three on the rear bench. It was a nicely specced copy, too, with black leather upholstery that will likely be part of the options list. Elsewhere, we expect it to get the usual smartphone integration, Bluetooth connectivity, sat-nav, and perhaps Wi-Fi hotspot and over-the-air updates. A plethora of safety systems should air drivers on their daily commutes, including a 360-degree camera system and maybe a semi-autonomous system, alongside the usual hill-start assist and maybe snow/sand/mud driving modes.
Body-on-Frame Platform and Internal Combustion Power
There is nothing official about the underpinnings yet, but word on the street is that the Kia Tasman will use the same platform as the Mohave/Borrego. Thus, it will be a body-on-frame truck capable of taking on the great outdoors when fitted with the proper rubber. Naturally, a four-wheel drive system will be on deck, yet we wouldn't be surprised if the company offered the lesser flavors with two-wheel drive to keep the costs down. We also expect it to feature an automatic transmission, perhaps a dual-clutch unit for quicker gear changes.
Photo: Kolesa
Power-wise, it has been reported that it might get a 2.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engine. The Sonata N-Line's mill is good for 290 hp (294 ps/216 kW) at 5,800 rpm and produces 311 pound-feet (422 Nm) of torque from 1,650 to 4,000 rpm. A 2.2-liter CRDi turbodiesel is also understood to be part of the engine family with some 200+ horsepower, albeit outside of North America, obviously, and we wouldn't be surprised if Kia upped the ante with a partially electrified unit to make it more popular with the tree-hugging pickup crowd.
Launch Date and Availability
We're venturing farther into the unknown here, but there are a few unofficial details when it comes to this aspect, too. The first one speaks about a potential unveiling sometime this year, with the order books perhaps opening close to the end of 2025. As for the availability part of the story, it is said to become available in South Korea and Australia. Nonetheless, some believe the Kia Tasman might also arrive in North America, yet we wouldn't bet on it just yet. Would you want it in our market?
After a series of unfortunate events put an end to Cristian's dream of entering a custom built & tuned old-school Dacia into a rally competition, he moved on to drive press cars and write for a living. He's worked for several automotive online journals and now he's back at autoevolution after his first tour in the mid-2000s. Full profile
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