- Kia confirmed it’s developing an electric pickup truck that it plans to sell in North America.
- The new EV will be the Korean automaker’s second truck, following the mid-size Tasman that’s only sold overseas.
- Kia is set to launch five new models this year, and it aims to have 15 EVs and 10 hybrids by 2030.
Despite the current chaos surrounding auto tariffs, Kia is continuing with its future plans, which include finally selling a pickup in America. The Korean automaker announced the new truck during its annual Investor Day, where it also released details about what it aims to accomplish by the end of the decade.A Kia Truck for AmericaWhile Kia’s planned electric pickup truck will be the first one sold on our shores, it will actually be the company’s second cargo-bed-toting model. The Kia Tasman generated a lot of buzz leading up to its global reveal last October, however, it’s only sold overseas. Still, Kia hopes to build on the Tasman’s success, which is expected to sell 80K units per year.We don’t have any specific details about Kia’s next pickup, other than it’ll be based on a new EV platform. Kia CEO Ho Sung Song also reportedly said the company wants to bring a mid-size truck to the States, and it sounds like it’ll be more capable off-road than the Hyundai Santa Cruz. If you like marketing lingo, Kia’s future electric truck will have a “robust towing system” and “best-in-class interior and cargo space.” That’s all TBD, but Kia says its goal is to eventually sell 90,000 copies of the new electric truck per year. Now we just have to wait for it to actually go on sale.Related StoriesEric Stafford’s automobile addiction began before he could walk, and it has fueled his passion to write news, reviews, and more for Car and Driver since 2016. His aspiration growing up was to become a millionaire with a Jay Leno–like car collection. Apparently, getting rich is harder than social-media influencers make it seem, so he avoided financial success entirely to become an automotive journalist and drive new cars for a living. After earning a journalism degree at Central Michigan University and working at a daily newspaper, the years of basically burning money on failed project cars and lemon-flavored jalopies finally paid off when Car and Driver hired him. His garage currently includes a 2010 Acura RDX, a manual ’97 Chevy Camaro Z/28, and a ’90 Honda CRX Si.
Source: caranddriver.com
