by Price cuts for pickups in Australia: Kia Tasman and Ford Ranger become cheaper
Two of the most popular mid-size pickups in Australia have significantly dropped in price. Kia has substantially reduced prices on the Tasman model, and Ford has done the same with its hybrid Ranger. The question is whether these steps will help boost sales.
Kia Tasman issues: price and design
Initially, Kia planned to sell 20,000 units of the Tasman per year, which is approximately 1,600 vehicles monthly. However, reality turned out to be harsh. The high price and controversial design led to only 1,600 vehicles being sold in the first four months of the year. This equals just the monthly plan stretched over a third of the year.
For comparison, the Ford Ranger sells about ten times as many. To remedy the situation, Kia reduced the price of the flagship X-Pro 4WD version by 13,000 Australian dollars (about 9,300 US dollars), and it now costs 64,990 Australian dollars (46,400 US dollars).
New prices for the entire Kia Tasman lineup
The price reductions affected the entire Tasman lineup:
Thus, the Tasman has become thousands of dollars cheaper than at launch. This is a natural outcome when a product fails to meet its sales targets.
Kia Australia CEO Damien Meredith acknowledged that the Tasman did not live up to expectations and that more effort is needed to stimulate sales.
“I think you know, the exterior design of the car generates very polarizing opinions. Some people like it, some don’t. And that has affected sales. I think you have to be honest and admit that competition in the market is very serious. We didn’t reach the target. We know the facts. The point is that we need to make the Tasman more successful in Australia than it currently is,” he said.
Ford Ranger PHEV also gets cheaper
The price of another expensive mid-size pickup, the Ford Ranger PHEV, has also been reduced. This model was launched as a competitor to the BYD Shark 6. Initially, the hybrid Ranger cost from 71,990 Australian dollars (51,400 US dollars) excluding on-road costs. Now its price has been reduced to 59,000 Australian dollars (42,100 US dollars), including on-road costs. This is a saving of about 15,000 Australian dollars (10,700 US dollars).
This allows the Ranger to better compete with the Shark 6 Premium, which costs from 57,900 Australian dollars (41,300 US dollars), or about 61,605 Australian dollars (44,000 US dollars) including on-road costs. It is worth noting that the Ranger PHEV is inferior to the Shark 6 in power: 278 hp (207 kW) and 697 Nm of torque versus 430 hp (321 kW) and 650 Nm for the BYD. However, Ford’s advantage is that it can tow up to 3,500 kg, while the regular Shark 6 is limited to 2,500 kg.
These changes in the Australian pickup market indicate fierce competition, especially from Chinese manufacturers like BYD. Kia and Ford are forced to adjust prices to remain attractive to buyers. The reduction in the Tasman’s cost is an admission that the initial pricing strategy and design did not work. For Ford, lowering the price of the hybrid Ranger is an attempt not to lose market share in a rapidly changing segment. Whether these measures will lead to a significant increase in sales remains to be seen, but they certainly make these vehicles more affordable for consumers.
