Though Kia has already dominated out bringing the polarizing Tasman to the US, we’re nonetheless getting a truck. As a substitute of the gasoline and diesel workhorse, a completely electrical pickup is coming to North America. The announcement was simply made on the 2025 Kia CEO Investor Day occasion, throughout which some preliminary particulars had been disclosed. It is going to journey on a brand new EV platform supposed for “each city and out of doors use.”
Studying between the traces, Kia is probably going saying the brand new truck gained’t compete within the fullsize phase with the Ford F-150. It’ll be smaller, presumably the dimensions of a Ranger. CEO Ho Sung Music did say final week in the course of the Seoul Mobility Present that the US-bound truck would do battle within the midsize phase with the likes of the Toyota Tacoma and Jeep Gladiator. He quashed rumors about bringing the Tasman to North America.
Picture by: Kia
Kia calls its new pickup an “modern mannequin” engineered to ship segment-leading house for folks and their cargo. The unnamed electrical truck is claimed to have actual off-road chops and “a sturdy towing system.” The Korean firm additionally guarantees “superior infotainment and security options.” Within the mid-to-long time period, Kia intends to promote 90,000 items yearly and seize a 7-percent market share.
Kia doesn’t say the place it plans to construct the truck, however logic tells us it’s going to be assembled at a plant in the US. In any other case, the electrical pickup can be subjected to the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, plus the 25-percent Hen tax. It might be constructed on the new Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA), which celebrated its grand opening on the finish of March.
The Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9 are already being constructed on the new facility in Georgia, with an undisclosed Kia mannequin confirmed for 2026. It will make sense, contemplating the brand new plant was conceived primarily for EVs. Hybrids and fashions for the Genesis model will also be constructed on the HMGMA, which has an preliminary annual manufacturing capability of 300,000 items. If it will not be made there, the pickup might be constructed on the Kia Manufacturing Georgia (KMMG).
Some will do not forget that an electrical truck mule was noticed in California almost a 12 months in the past. The closely disguised pickup was positively a work-in-progress check car because it had components borrowed from current fashions. It appeared to characteristic the EV9’s headlights and mirrors, together with the Hyundai Santa Cruz’s taillights.
As for the Tasman, it’s solely coming to Korea, Australia, and rising markets. Kia targets annual gross sales of 80,000 items and a six-percent market share.
