2025 Kia Tasman X-Pro Review, Kia's first ute is genuinely good

Kia has waited a long time to launch a ute in Australia and it shows. The Tasman X-Pro is not a rebadged Hyundai. It is a ground-up Kia design, with off-road-specific suspension, locking rear differential as standard, and tuned-for-Australia damper rates that you can feel within the first 2 km of corrugated road.

The 2.2L turbo diesel makes 154 kW and 441 Nm, mated to an 8-speed automatic, with a part-time 4WD system that includes proper low range. Payload is 1,016 kg in X-Pro guise. Braked towing is 3,500 kg. Tray length is competitive. The X-Pro adds 17-inch all-terrain tyres, X-Trek mode for low-speed off-road crawling, and electronic locking rear diff. These are not box-ticks. We drove it on the kind of mountain track where you might break a Ford Ranger Wildtrak and the Tasman just plodded through.

The cabin is the surprise. It is more car-like than the Ranger, less plasticky than the HiLux, and the rear seat actually fits adults on a longer trip. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto work without complaint, the touchscreen is responsive, the digital instrument cluster is configurable. The off-road camera array is one of the best in the segment, second only to the Land Cruiser 300 in our experience.

Cartell Verdict

The X-Pro is the Kia Tasman to buy if you actually use the ute for what utes are for. It is more expensive than a base HiLux SR but cheaper than a Ranger Raptor and gives you 80 percent of the Raptor's off-road ability for two-thirds the price. The HiLux loyalists will not switch. Everyone else cross-shopping a Ranger XLT or a BT-50 SP should put the X-Pro on the test-drive list.