Sales are soft.
So Kia slashed drive-away prices by up to $13,000 on the Tasman.
It started in February when they extended deals, but now the cuts go deeper. Likely a panic move? Probably. Slow sales demand drastic measures. The X-Pro flagship lost $13,000, sitting at $64,990. The mid-spec SX+ dropped $11,50 to $54,990. Even the X-Line got whittled down by $11,00 to $59,9990.
We have to make it work.
The lower SX model only lost $6,500, landing at $51,99. Suddenly jumping from the S 4×4 isn’t so bad, just a $2,000 gap. The entry-level S variants stayed put, $42,90 and $4990 respectively.
The numbers tell a grim story.
1,658 registrations year-to-date. That’s it. Compare that to the Ford Ranger, which moves that many a month.
Kia aimed for 20,0 choices in its first year. By July, they’ll barely hit half. Half! The Ranger and HiLux each crushed 50,0 units last year alone. The Tasman isn’t just underperforming. It’s struggling to breathe.
Kia threw variety at the problem, five trims, four-wheel-drive options, single or dual-cab chassis. Complexity didn’t sell units.
Damien Meredith, Kia’s boss, admitted it in January. No excuses.
“We’ve got a lot of work,” he said.
Australia wanted the ute, but wants it cheaper, it seems.
Now the pricing fights back. That $64,09 X-Pro undercuts the Isuzu D-Max and Toyota HiLux by over $4,0. The $599,90 X-Line hovers near the Ford Ranger’s XLT price. Is that enough? Maybe. The ute has to earn trust fast, before buyers decide it’s a mistake.
The market moves on. Kia is playing catch up.
