Kia Tasman review: SA price, specs and used prices

Kia has sold cars in South Africa for years, and plenty of people swear by them. In April 2026 it started selling its first bakkie. The Tasman is a double cab with a 2.2 diesel and an automatic, and Kia lists it from R679,995 to R999,995.

The short answer

• Is it any good? Yes. The road testers rate the cabin and the safety kit. It has the longest warranty in its class: five years with no kilometre limit.
• What should I pay? Do not pay Kia’s list price. New and demo SX 4x4s ask about R100,000 under it. A nearly new X-Pro asks about R896,000, about R104,000 under new.
• What is the catch? It is too new to have a track record or a resale record. It has less pulling power than a V6 Ranger. And you have to like the look.
• Is there a dealer near me? Kia SA lists about 80 dealers. The cities are well covered, but farm country is thinner than for Ford or Toyota.
• What else at this money? A Ford Ranger, Toyota Hilux, Isuzu D-Max or a run-out Nissan Navara. The table further down puts them side by side.

About the look. When the first photos came out, South Africans online called it ugly, cool, a Jeep Gladiator copy and a Mahindra that went to a posh school. One said the nose looks like a fast-food bag. Kia South Africa’s own boss said you will either love it or hate it.

Used prices here are asking prices from October 2026, from every Tasman listed for sale in South Africa. They are what sellers ask, not what bakkies sell for. The live numbers are on the Kia Tasman page and the Tasman market page.

What a Tasman costs

There are three versions. All are double cabs with the same engine and gearbox. Here is what Kia South Africa lists them at, and what new and demo ones (under 5,000 km) ask on live listings.

Body-coloured wheel arches cost about R5,000 extra on any version. The standard arches are black.

Look at the SX line. Kia lists it at R879,995, but the typical new or demo SX asks R779,995. That is R100,000 less, and 10 of the 12 for sale ask R859,900 or less. If you want a Tasman 4x4, the SX is where the deals are right now. Walk in knowing that number and ask the dealer to match it.

In total there are 104 Tasmans for sale. Every one is a 2026 double cab automatic. Most of them, 81, are the top X-Pro. Almost half are in Gauteng. About 11 are in KwaZulu-Natal and 15 in the Western Cape.

What you get for the money

Two things on that list are worth knowing. The first is the 4x4 system. A D-Max has to stay in two-wheel drive on tar. The Tasman has an auto 4x4 setting (4A) that you can use on tar. That helps when you tow a caravan up Van Reenen’s Pass in the wet.

The second is the gear lever. In some other countries, the Tasman has a gear selector on the steering column. South African ones get a normal lever in the middle, where bakkie owners expect it.

What each version adds:

• LX: alloy wheels, LED lights, a 12.3-inch touchscreen, a reversing camera and park sensors front and back. Rear-wheel drive only.
• SX: 4x4, two 12.3-inch screens, a 360-degree camera, adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping and blind-spot warning.
• X-Pro: the rear diff lock, all-terrain tyres, more ground clearance, heated and cooled front seats and a Harman Kardon sound system.

The jump from LX to SX is R200,000, and it buys you 4x4 and most of the safety kit. The jump from SX to X-Pro is R120,000. That buys the diff lock, the tyres and some comfort.

The looks

There is no polite way around it: the Tasman looks like nothing else on the road. Kia’s design boss says it was built for explorers and people who get things done, and that the big black arches grew out of rally-car mud flaps.

South Africans are split. The fans say bakkies had all gone too smooth, and this one looks rugged without spending money on extras. The rest compare it to a Jeep Gladiator, a Tesla Cybertruck or a Mahindra Bolero, and not kindly. Even the boss of Hyundai South Africa joked that a Hyundai version would need to be a lot better looking.

The road testers did not dodge it either. Business Day called it Mad Max styling and said most people made up their minds the first time they saw it. A full road test in June put the looks at the top of its list of dislikes. Then both of them praised the inside.

If the jokes worry you, go and look at one on a dealer floor before you decide. It is your opinion you live with for five years, not the comments section.

What the road testers said

A South African motoring site ran a full road test of an X-Pro in June 2026. The testers liked the cabin most: big screens, good materials, and real buttons for the things you use all the time. The rear seat slides and leans back, and there is a hidden bin under it. The engine is smooth and quiet, and the safety kit is strong.

What they did not like:

• The ride when empty. The back is firm over sharp bumps.
• The steering. It is light in town but vague at highway speed.
• The power. It is fine, but it does not pull like the V6 bakkies at the same price.
• Road noise from the tyres.

Fuel use on the test was 8.4 litres per 100 km on a mixed route. Kia claims 7.8. Business Day also used about a litre more than the claim. Plan on 8 to 9 litres per 100 km in real life.

Business Day drove it at the launch in Lambert’s Bay. Their verdict was that it is impressive, that the cabin feels premium, and that it pulls well at low speed.

What a used Tasman costs

There is no old Tasman. The oldest one in the country is about six months old. So “used” here means a 2026 bakkie with a few thousand kilometres on it.

Almost all the used ones are X-Pros:

So an X-Pro loses about a tenth of its new price in the first six months, on asking prices. That is a real cost for the first owner. For the second owner, it makes a nearly new X-Pro the smart buy. You save about R100,000, and most of the five-year warranty and service plan is still to run.

Prices are also coming down. Since mid-September, 25 of the Tasmans for sale have dropped their price, typically by R40,000. So make an offer under the asking price. Sellers are already moving.

There are no used SX bakkies for sale yet. Two LX adverts ask X-Pro money; they look like a mistake in the advert, so check the badge and the spec.

For how other bakkies hold their value over three to eight years, see bakkie resale values. The Tasman is too new to have a record.

Tasman vs Ranger, Hilux, D-Max and Navara

Here is the Tasman next to its rivals at similar money. Prices are the makers’ lists in October 2026:

Against the Ranger. The Tasman SX costs about R86,000 more than a Ranger XLT 4x4. For that you get more power, more kit and a longer warranty. At R1 million it is a different fight. The V6 Wildtrak costs about R77,000 more than an X-Pro and has 160 Nm more torque. If you tow a big caravan every holiday, that is the one to drive first. The Ranger also has far more dealers and a resale record. There are about three V6 Wildtraks for sale for every Tasman.

Against the Hilux. The Hilux Legend 4x4 and the X-Pro cost the same. The Hilux has more torque, Toyota’s dealers and Toyota’s resale. The Tasman has two more years of warranty, with no kilometre limit. The Hilux buyer will not be talked out of it, and does not need to be. The Ranger vs Hilux guide covers that fight in detail.

Against the D-Max. The V-Cross is about R51,000 cheaper than an X-Pro on list price. New and demo ones ask about R859,900 on live listings (45 for sale). The Isuzu has a bigger engine with less power, and a long reputation on farms. The Tasman has more power, more tech and no kilometre limit on its warranty.

Against the Navara. The PRO-4X lists at R844,000, but some dealers have offered run-out deals from R669,900. The South African-built Navara has ended, and an updated one from Thailand is due late in 2026. If you just want a well-equipped 4x4 double cab for the least money, a run-out Navara is hard to argue with.

Warranty, service and dealers

Every Tasman comes with a five-year warranty with no kilometre limit, and a six-year or 90,000 km service plan. That is the best cover in this group. A rep who does 60,000 km a year would be out of warranty on a Ranger, Hilux or D-Max before year three. On the Tasman he would still be covered.

The weak spot is the dealer list. Kia South Africa lists about 80 dealers. That includes country towns like Bethlehem, Ermelo, Upington, Vryburg and Tzaneen. Ford lists 118, a few of them in neighbouring countries. In the cities it is easy. Durban alone has Kia dealers in town, Durban South, Umhlanga and Pinetown, with more in Ballito and Pietermaritzburg. If you farm 150 km from the nearest Kia dealer, every service is a day out.

What can go wrong

• No track record. It has been on sale here for six months. There are no owner threads yet to show a pattern of faults.
• A screen recall overseas. A software fault can leave the instrument screen blank, so you may not see your speed or warning lights. Australia recalled 2025-built Tasmans for it in March 2026, and Saudi Arabia recalled some 2026 Tasmans in October 2026. The fix is a free software update. No South African recall had been published by the start of November 2026.
• Slow sales. Kia sold 31 Tasmans in its first part-month, April 2026. Kia South Africa hoped for 100 to 200 a month. In Australia, its main market, it is on track for fewer than 5,000 this year against a target of 20,000.
• A new face is coming. In Australia, a facelift with more normal styling is reported to be one to two years or more away. When it comes, today’s shape may look old on the used market sooner than you would like.
• Resale is a guess. Kia has never sold a bakkie here, so nobody knows how it will hold up at five years.
• Insurance. There is no theft or insurance data for the Tasman yet. Get a quote before you sign, and ask if a tracker is needed.
• Finance adverts. Kia advertises the X-Pro at “no deposit, R13,218 a month”. Ask how big the balloon payment at the end is, and how many months it runs.

Which one, and who it suits

The LX (R679,995) is for someone who wants Kia’s cabin and warranty on a bakkie that stays on tar. It is not a 4x4. For about R66,000 more, a new Hilux SRX comes with 4x4.

The SX is the one to buy new, if you can get it near the R780,000 dealers are asking. It has 4x4, low range and nearly all the safety kit.

The X-Pro is for the person who wants the diff lock and the all-terrain tyres for real off-road trips. Buy a nearly new one. At about R880,000 to R900,000 with 10,000 km, you get the same warranty for R100,000 less.

X-Pro or Ranger Wildtrak with R900,000 to spend? A nearly new X-Pro fits that budget. A new V6 Wildtrak lists at R1,076,800, so it means stretching or haggling hard. Pick the Ranger if you tow heavy or want a known resale record. Pick the Tasman if you want the warranty and the cabin, and you trust Kia.

Skip the Tasman if you tow heavy every weekend. Drive the V6 Ranger or a 2.8 Hilux first. Skip it too if you live far from a Kia dealer, or if you change bakkies every three years and resale matters most.

Buy it if you like Kia, you want the best cabin and the longest warranty at this price, and you do not care what the neighbours say about the nose.

See every Tasman for sale next to the going rate on the Kia Tasman page, or browse all bakkies for sale. If R680,000 is too much, see bakkies for sale under R500,000.

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