The new 2025 Kia Tasman is the latest new ute to conquer Beer O’clock Hill, the notoriously challenging off-road hillclimb that disabled a BYD Shark 6 in April before being tamed by another plug-in hybrid dual-cab, the GWM Cannon Alpha PHEV, earlier this month.
Keen to demonstrate the off-road chops of its first ute, Kia Australia sent a prototype version of the new Kia Tasman X-Pro – the flagship variant of the all-new dual-cab 4×4 ute range that arrives in showrooms next month – direct from a media pre-drive to the now-infamous hillclimb at The Springs 4×4 Park.
Located two hours southwest of Brisbane near Warwick, Queensland, the cheekily named Beer O’clock Hill is a heavily rutted 100-metre hillclimb with a gravity-defying gradient of up to 50 degrees, and several rocky outcrops at its steepest parts that even highly modified four-wheel drives often struggle to traverse.
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Like the GWM, the Tasman’s only modification was a set of Mickey Thompson Baja Boss all-terrain tyres, and despite the lack of a locking front differential the X-Pro successfully scaled Beer O’clock Hill in its first attempt in the hands of The Springs operator Lucas, who drove the Tasman for the first time during the attempt.
As you can see in this video posted to the park’s official Team Bree Offroad YouTube channel, the Tasman scaled the hillclimb relatively easily once the rear diff lock was engaged, and even managed to get three quarters of the way back up the slope in reverse.
First customer deliveries of the Tasman will take place in July. Apart from the entry-level 4×2 (priced from $42,990 before on-road costs), only five 4×4 variants of the dual-cab pickup will be available initially, priced from $49,990 plus on-roads.
Prices stretch to $74,990 before on-road costs for the Tasman X-Pro 4×4 dual-cab pickup that tackled Beer O’clock Hill, making it pricier than the Toyota HiLux GR Sport flagship ($74,310 before on-roads) and even the Ford Ranger Wildtrak V6 ($74,840 plus on-roads).
Dual-cab/chassis versions of the Tasman will join the range in August, followed later this year by single-cab body styles.
All Kia Tasmans will be powered by the same 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel outputting 154kW of power and 440Nm of torque, matched to an eight-speed automatic transmission as standard.