A replacement for the KGM (née SsangYong) Musso appears to be around the corner, with the Korean brand teasing a new-generation ute.
In a video published on its YouTube channel, KGM has shown off the dual-cab ute from various angles, revealing not only key details but also its blocky new silhouette.
There’s still a bolt-upright C-pillar like the current Musso’s – and a tub that’s separate from the four-door cab, allowing the fitment of different trays – but it’s now accompanied by much squarer and bolder front- and rear-ends.
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Up front, there are segmented LED daytime running lights like those on the Musso EV dual-cab ute due to arrive in Australia next year, which are connected to C-shaped lighting elements that bracket the headlights à la the Ford Ranger and BYD Shark 6.
The front-end looks more rugged and upright than the more car-like contours of the outgoing Musso, while down back there are simpler tail-lights flanking a more heavily sculpted tailgate with a KGM logo embossed in it.
There are also attractive two-tone black and polished alloy wheels, and distinctive vertically oriented indicators integrated into the front wheel-arches.
The interior of the new ute hasn’t been previewed yet, and we don’t have any confirmed specifications either. It’s likely to retain diesel power, though it’s unclear whether it will offer any electrification.
It’s likely this new ute will bear some variation of the Musso nameplate in its attempt to take on not only the top-selling Ford Ranger but also new Korean competition in the Kia Tasman.
The company confirmed earlier this year it would “continue the Musso tradition by developing and expanding a diverse portfolio of pickup lineups in the future”, establishing it as a sub-brand.
KGM, formerly known as SsangYong, introduced its first ute in 2002 with the Musso SUV-based Musso Sports.
The Musso name, first introduced in 1993, comes from the Korean word ‘muso’, meaning rhinoceros.
The current Musso ute (aka Musso Sports in Korea) shares its ladder-frame platform with the Rexton large SUV, which entered production a year earlier in 2017.
After growing in popularity every year in Australia since launch, the existing Musso posted its first sales decline in 2024, when a total of 3197 Mussos – including extended-length XLV variants – reached Australian buyers, down 8.4 per cent on the year before.
There’s been an even greater sales drop during the first eight months of this year, when sales were down by 40.2 per cent year-on-year as other new utes from challenger brands – including the Shark and the JAC T9 – have entered our market.
Last month, KGM announced price rises for the Musso lineup, however, these came in tandem with additional standard equipment.