Where is the Hyundai ute?

As excitement builds ahead of the arrival of the first Kia ute as soon as 2025, the chances of a similar pick-up coming from sister company Hyundai around at the same time now appear low.

carsales understands Kia’s long-awaited answer to the top-selling Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger has been given the green light for Australia, but Hyundai’s local division has been unable to nail down a business case.

It is now understood that if the Hyundai version of the ladder-frame diesel ute currently under development and regularly appearing in spy shots comes to Australia, it will be 18 months to two years behind the Kia’s local release – meaning a 2027 launch at the earliest, if at all.

Hyundai Australia’s difficulty in getting the tick of approval to localise and launch the new ute here is understood to be based on sales forecasts, which are believed to be more conservative than Kia’s.

That’s despite Hyundai historically selling more vehicles than Kia – albeit not in 2022, for the first time – and having more dealerships and showrooms Down Under.

Kia Australia COO Damien Meredith has pointed toward an expected annual sales rate for the first Kia ute of around 20,000-25,000 in Australia, which would instantly make it a potential top-three player in the segment and the Korean brand’s top-selling model.

But Hyundai’s sales forecasts are said to be much lower and have been rejected as unviable by head office in Korea.

Hyundai Australia could even elect to forego the diesel ute, which is expected to be slightly larger than the new Ford Ranger, and wait for the electric version under development on the same platform.

Or it could abandon this model all together and opt for a separate EV ute that’s believed to be larger still and currently under developed by both Hyundai and Kia, with the US market predominantly in mind.

Hyundai Australia was asked a series of questions about its ute plans by carsales but declined to comment.

The anticipation around a dual-cab one-tonne ute from the Korean twins has been steadily building since the compact Santa Cruz pick-up (pictured) was unveiled at the 2015 Detroit motor show.

But that is a light-duty monocoque (Tucson-based) ‘lifestyle’ ute intended for the US and not originally expected to come to Australia, although that could change.

Spy pics of the Korean ladder-frame ute confirm it is well into its development phase. It is set to offer at least a four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine when it launches in 2025 or early 2026.

Expect the new ute to offer a 3500kg towing capacity, one-tonne payload, all the latest safety gear, plenty of luxury appointments and genuine 4x4 off-road capability.

An official confirmation of its Australian release is expected sometime this year in order to allow local Kia dealers to upgrade their showrooms and service centres to cope with not only the new vehicles, but what is expected to be an influx of new customers.

Kia also needs to get on the front foot with potential fleet customers, which make up a significant portion of ute sales.

If Kia did launch its one-tonne ute ahead of its Hyundai sister brand, it would almost certainly entrench itself as the more important of the two brands here.

Kia Australia was the third most popular new-vehicle brand in 2022 with over 78,000 sales, leap-frogging Hyundai (73,345) and Mitsubishi (76,991) in the process, but not market leader Toyota (231,050) and second-placed Mazda (95,718). But it remains to be seen if it will retain a podium position in 2023.

However, with a new ute in its portfolio, the brand would almost certainly cement its position as a top three brand Down Under.

Indeed, Meredith told carsales back in early 2019 that Kia’s first light SUV (since released as the Stonic) and ute would drive 100,000 annual sales in Australia as soon as 2021.

Kia’s local chief has since gone quiet on the matter and at the recent Kia EV6 GT launch said: “There's nothing official that we can say right now.

“As soon as we get confirmation that something’s happening in Korea everyone’s going to know that and the only thing I can say is that if it does occur, as an organisation we’ll be ready.”

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