
Kia's first authentic pickup truck, the Tasman, exceeded 30,000 units in cumulative global sales in about 18 months after its launch, recording particularly high sales in Australia and New Zealand, and successfully rebounded by expanding the size of the domestic pickup truck market by 79.2%.
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Kia's first authentic pickup truck, the Tasman, was launched in February last year, and the domestic pickup truck market has been dominated by KG Mobility for a long time.
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Jang Ha-na = Kia's first authentic pickup truck, the Tasman, has surpassed 30,000 cumulative global sales in about 18 months since its launch.
According to Kia's corporate information (IR) on the 25th, the Tasman, which was launched in February last year, had sold a cumulative 30,798 units (11,280 domestic units and 19,518 export units) as of last month.
In particular, overseas sales volume was approximately 1.8 times that of domestic sales.
Overseas, it was sold the most in Australia and New Zealand (8,242 units), followed by Central and South America (4,025 units) and the Middle East (3,281 units).
Among them, Australia is a market with a large demand for traditional pickup trucks, and it is a battleground where the Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux have divided the market for several years, selling 50,000 to 60,000 units per year. Kia previously announced its goal of selling 20,000 units per year (approximately 10% market share) when launching the Tasman in Australia.
The landscape of the domestic pickup truck market has also changed.
According to Kaizuyu Data Research Institute, the size of the domestic pickup truck market expanded 79.2% from 13,954 units in 2024, before the launch of Tasman, to 24,998 units in 2025, successfully rebounding in 6 years.
This can be interpreted as the result of Tasman jumping into the market where KG Mobility (KGM, formerly Ssangyong Motor) had a monopoly system for a long time and expanding its base.
Last year, Tasman sold 8,484 units in Korea alone, recording the highest sales as a single model, and formed a two-tier structure with KGM's electric pickup Musso EV (7,150 units).
The Tasman combines a gasoline 2.5 turbo engine and an 8-speed automatic transmission to secure a maximum output of 281 horsepower, a maximum torque of 43.0kgf·m, and a towing force of up to 3,500kg. It also has the ability to cross water up to 800mm deep.
It is the first in its class to have sliding, interlocking reclining seats in the second row, providing riding convenience comparable to that of a sports utility vehicle (SUV), and the off-road specialized model is equipped with a number of specifications for driving on rough roads, and is evaluated as having improved its perfection as a 'lifestyle pickup'.
Kia is operating a Tasman-specific program at the HMG Driving Experience Center located in Taean, South Chungcheong Province, so that customers can directly experience the Tasman's off-road performance.
An industry official said, "Tasman is growing the domestic pickup market, while being recognized for its perfection overseas, establishing itself as Kia's new export model."

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