BEST DUAL-CAB UTE 2026: Kia Tasman vs Toyota Hilux vs Nissan Navara

---

For the last five years, dual-cab utes have made their way into the mainstream, being considered as not just work vehicles but ones to do it all.

This factor has seen the genre shift dramatically, away from ‘just good enough’ with easy-wipe hard plastics and hose-out vinyl flooring to dual-cab utes fit for the school run – and the proliferation of hybrids. We’re looking for a true all-rounder to win. 

The BYD Shark 6 was not eligible for our 2026 Car of the Year testing having launched prior to, and being included in, the 2025 cycle. 

That’s not to say some excellent vehicles haven’t launched, including the Kia Tasman, new-generation Toyota Hilux and Nissan Navara, plus fresh faces such as the JAC T9 and platform-share MGU9/LDV Terron 9. So, which is the best?

What are we looking for in a Car of the Year segment winner? It’s all about performance of intended function — how well a vehicle executes its purpose. Below are the aspects we interrogate.

• Ride and handling
• Powertrain calibration
• Space and packaging
• Build quality
• Overall vehicle design
• X-Factor

Winner: Kia Tasman

When it comes to taking the dual-cab ute recipe from agricultural to aspirational, it’s hard to think of a vehicle that better nailed the brief than the Kia Tasman…at least on the inside. 

Editor-at-large Nathan Ponchard said “Kia could have just done another box-on-wheels and produced a same-again ute with a Kia logo across the grille. The Tasman defiantly and courageously chooses to tread its own path.”

With a broad cabin, plenty of squishy fabrics, bang up-to-date technology, ample comfortable chairs and attention paid to child seats with a split-fold second-row bench, the Tasman is a brilliant all-rounder. 

We invited the flagship X-Pro in particular for testing, but this nameplate has impressed us in various guises, including more road-biased X-Line and work-friendly SX. 

For this award, we’re talking about dual-cab utes in particular, as an alternative to a large SUV for adventurous family buyers and ute lovers alike. That said, the Kia Tasman is available in other body types, including a single-cab chassis.

As strongly as Tasman performs, we’ve found two chinks in its armour, the primary being the powertrain. While harnessed impressively by the smooth and quick-shifting eight-speed automatic and developing torque across a broad spread, the 154kW 2.2-litre turbo-diesel isn’t class-redefining. 

For towing grunt, there are fitter options in the Ford Ranger and Volkswagen Amarok V6s. For on-road prowess, it has to be the BYD Shark 6’s plug-in hybrid. 

But as we’ve found before, the eagerness of the Tasman’s eight-speed automatic – with tuning influence from Australia – means it feels closer to a Ranger V6 than a Toyota Hilux four-cylinder in practice. 

You can’t help but comment on the exterior styling. The bones are good – broad stance, boxy proportions and wheels pushed to each corner – but the detailing leaves it looking “a bit like Sid The Sloth from Ice Age”, again says Ponchard. 

Judging a vehicle on face value is foolish, though, and not something we do at Chasing Cars – stepping behind the wheel is where the Tasman impresses. 

The ride quality – laden, unladen and off-road – is sound, too, which is a rare thing to say of a dual-cab ute. The Tasman’s clean sheet gave Kia the freedom to engineer in wide tracks for stability, and a leaf-sprung rear end that doesn’t buck around on country roads. 

Kia didn’t compromise on getting the specs up to scratch, either. With a 3.5-tonne braked towing limit and circa-1000kg payloads across all grades, the Tasman has working credentials baked in. 

In top-spec X-Pro trim is where the Tasman really shines. It is deeply capable off-road, leaning on its all-terrain rubber and clever X-Trek ‘cruise control’ for the rough stuff. The traction control’s effectiveness is amplified by a standard locking rear differential. 

Inside, the Tasman is even available with ventilated seats in top trim, eclipsing rivals such as the Hilux, Mitsubishi Triton, and Isuzu D-Max. When you boil it down, the Tasman offers strong value. 

That combination of factors is why we’ve named the Kia Tasman as our Dual-Cab Ute of the Year – it really is a brilliantly developed vehicle.