Hyundai, Kia and Genesis, have laid out their expanded electrification plans and there’s some exciting news for ute fans.
Kia announced that it will increase its previous battery electric vehicle roll out from 11 EVs to 14 by 2027, and that includes a pair of new all-electric pick-ups.
One will be a “strategic model for emerging markets” – that’s likely to be a compact ute in the vein of the Fiat Toro to compete in South America, South-East Asia and more.
But Kia has described the other model as a dedicated electric pick-up, meaning it will likely be a full-sized model that will compete with the Ford F150 Lightning, Chevrolet Silverado EV, Rivian R1T, Tesla Cybertruck and the future RAM EV.
While this is indeed exciting news, it does leave a question mark over the one-tonne diesel-powered Toyota HiLux rival that Kia Australia was desperately hoping its parent company would build.
It’s been a case of ‘will they’ or ‘won’t they’ build a traditional ute for a while now. Kia Motors Australia chief operating officer Damien Meredith told CarsGuide in January that is tricky balancing the brand’s sharpened focus on EVs while pushing for a relatively old-school model like a diesel pick-up.
This expansion of Kia’s electrification could well be the final nail in the coffin of the diesel Kia ute.
Hyundai also confirmed that it would up its EV output to 17 models by 2030, including 11 Hyundai-branded models and six for the Genesis luxury arm.
Kia’s next EV will be the EV9 large SUV.
Curiously, Hyundai said one of the Hyundai-badged EVs would be a “light commercial vehicle”, which suggests it could be a twin to Kia’s electric pick-up.
Hyundai has also investigated the viability of a Ford Ranger-rivalling diesel ute, but with little success.
It is also possible that the Hyundai commercial model could be an electric delivery van to rival similar offerings from Peugeot, Mercedes-Benz, Ford, Volkswagen and more.
Hyundai also made reference to one of the freshly added EVs being a “new type model”, which could point to a future Hyundai-badged electric sports car.
The other Hyundai models are three sedans and six SUVs, with the next cab of the rank the swoopy Ioniq 6 sedan, followed by the Ioniq 7 large SUV.
The Ioniq 6 will be based on the design of the Prophecy concept.
Kia confirmed a 2023 launch date for its EV9 large SUV that was revealed in concept form last November. The five-metre-long SUV has a 0-100km/h time of five seconds and a driving range of 540km on a full charge, according to Kia. It will also usher in Kia’s next-generation autonomous driving tech dubbed AutoMode.
The other newly announced model from Kia will be an “entry-level” EV model.
Kia, which has bold plans to be the world’s leading EV maker, also announced that it has increased its 2030 EV sales target by 36 per cent compared with its original announcement last year. It now expects to sell 1.2 million EVs by that time.
The Genesis EV range will include two passenger cars, four SUVs, including the upcoming GV60 and GV70 Electrified. All new models from Genesis launched after 2025 will be electrified.
Hyundai will develop a new Integrated Modular Architecture (IMA), which is an evolution of the electric global modular platform (E-GMP) that underpins the Ioniq 5, Genesis GV60 and Kia EV6.
Keyword: Kia ute finally confirmed - but it's electric! Could the official EV pick-up spell the end for a diesel-powered Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux rival?