Hyundai ute coming to Australia, but it will be electric and is years away

South Korean car giant Hyundai appears to have changed course yet again on its mission to introduce a double-cab ute and participate in one of the fastest growing automotive segments in Australia.

Less than one year after telling Hyundai dealers in Australia it was trying to get the Hyundai Santa Cruz lifestyle ute from the US, and less than one month after Kia confirmed it will soon have a rival to the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger, the company now appears poised to leapfrog the diesel double-cab market and go straight to an electric model.

An electric pick-up was one of 14 future vehicles hinted at in a recent Hyundai-Kia investor presentation.

While both sibling brands share vehicles and technology across almost every model segment, it appears they are heading in different directions with their ute plans.

The Kia Tasman heavy-duty double-cab due in 2025 is poised to initially offer diesel power – with an electric version expected later – plus a one-tonne payload, 3.5-tonne towing and a ladder-frame chassis.

However the Hyundai pick-up is expected to be larger, use dedicated electric-car underpinnings and be available solely with electric power – with a twin from Kia aimed at the US market.

The Hyundai electric ute's local arrival timing is yet to be disclosed, but if the investor presentation is a guide then it should be in showrooms by 2028 at the latest.

In a media briefing with Hyundai Australia boss John Kett in Sydney last week, the executive initially tried to discourage questions about a Hyundai ute – which has become more topical since sister brand Kia announced it was finally going ahead with a pick-up after more than a decade of planning.

"We won't be talking about a ute, so I want to get that out of the way up front," said Mr Kett. "You'll get the usual blank looks, and the anxiety ... hoping that we move to the next question."

However, when pressed further – to determine the possibility of a ute one day, or rule it out altogether – Mr Kett said:

"We have our hand up in every single product program at Hyundai, and we are part of every single product program. I can only think of one vehicle in the Hyundai portfolio that we don't see here, in the international portfolio, that we don't see here in Australia. 

When asked about canvassing Hyundai dealers last year about the possibility of the Santa Cruz ute from the US, and if the company had changed course yet again, Mr Kett said:

"We've shown a lot of ideas around what we're thinking (for a ute). So for us, we won't say never.

"All we can say is what was presented on the investor day around the platforms that Hyundai is developing – and what was said on that day – suggested the product programs that could come from those platforms. We would say that we have both hands up in making sure that we access that.

"I've been here for four years. These guys (senior Hyundai colleagues) have been battling this question for 17 years. I think just be patient, right? Let's be patient and see how it resolves itself and maybe over the next 12 months we'll be able to definitively say one way or the other (if there is a ute).

"I think our answer has to be our hand is always up. I would prefer you not to write anything about it. We don't want to talk about ute. But we know one day it'll be resolved one way or the other.

"I know it's awkward, but we just can't talk about it, and the less we talk about it, the more momentum happens internally."