Kia Tasman testing captured for docuseries

KIA continues to fuel the hype surrounding its incoming Tasman ute, with a teaser for an upcoming docu-series about the model’s local testing, dubbed ‘One More Round’.

This comes just a few months after the initial teaser, involving no less than 20 Australian sporting greats, which has been hailed one of the best car ads ever. In the ad, the athletes banter in a pub, pondering the potential name after reading a ‘Kia ute set for Australia’ headline in a newspaper.

The incoming behind-the-scenes documentary series, which based on the teaser looks more like an ad than a true look at the ute’s trials and tribulations Down Under, claims to follow the Tasman across the outback as it undergoes 18,000 rounds of testing.

In the first episode, scheduled for release on July 22, Kia will show off-road testing, while later episodes will cover deep-water wading, all-terrain durability and towing, on-track performance, ride and handling, and a closer look at the research and development team responsible for the Tasman.

Kia says the ‘One More Round’ name “signifies the immense efforts and determination to set the highest possible standards during the Kia Tasman’s development”, which included 1777 tests across 18,000 evaluation rounds.

“The Kia Tasman represents our unwavering dedication to innovation,” said Kia research and development division president Heui Won Yang.

“Every aspect of our R&D Division’s capability has been channelled into creating a vehicle that not only lives up to its title as the first of its kind, but also delivers performance that surpasses expectations.”

Specific details for the Tasman are yet to be revealed, but GoAuto recently reported that Kia will use its ‘familiar’ 2.2-litre four cylinder diesel engine, currently featured in the Sorento and Carnival models, in the Tasman.

In existing models, the engine produces 148kW/440Nm, which is below the market leading Ford Ranger’s 154kW/500Nm but is right on par with the third-best selling Isuzu D-Max with its 140kW/450Nm outputs.

Speaking with GoAuto recently, Kia Australia general manager of product planning Roland Rivero outlined the brand’s plans to achieve the same payload and towing benchmarks of rivals like the D-Max and Ranger.

“We had three non-negotiables that R&D is working towards: 3.5-tonne towing; 10 per cent downball weight is equally important; and over a tonne payload,” he said.

While hybrid or electric variants have not been confirmed by Kia, it is also possible the Korean carmaker may fast track an all-electric version of the Tasman, in light of New Vehicle Emissions Scheme (NVES) pressures.

Kia is set to premiere the Tasman in the second half of 2024, before launching the model in the first half of 2025, starting with the South Korean market before rolling it out to Australia, Africa and the Middle East.

You can watch the Kia Tasman development video here.