This Korean Automaker Looks to Upset the Midsize Pickup Segment in More Ways than One

Watch out Toyota Taco fans, the Koreans are coming after your breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Black pickup truck driving through water splashing on a forest trail.

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By Chris Chin

Published April 10, 2026

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Updated April 14, 2026

The Toyota Tacoma and friends are about to be shown up by… take a guess. Hyundai? Nope, you’re wrong. But almost.

Hyundai’s sister company, Kia, just officially announced its efforts to build and introduce a new midsize pickup specifically for the American market. But it’s not just the pickup itself that will be the main attraction.

Instead, Kia plans to seriously one-up the Tacoma and its rivals by being the first to do a series of forward-thinking innovations for the popular open-bed segment.

Beating everyone else to the electrification trend

Kia Tasman Truck — Kia’s first modern pickup, the Tasman, set the stage globally for the brand’s latest rugged ambitions.

The confirmation comes from Kia CEO, Ho Sung Song, who recently announced the pickup at the company’s annual investor meeting. There, Song confirmed a new midsize pickup designed and engineered specifically for the American market is in the works.

The plan is to grab a piece of the popular midsize pickup market pie currently dominated by the Toyota Tacoma, Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon, Ford Ranger and Nissan Frontier. Hyundai also has an American-focused midsize pickup in the works, while Ram is in the process of reviving the Dakota.

Red Kia pickup truck driving off-road on a dirt trail with one rear wheel lifted. — Although not meant for North America, the Tasman is already proving itself in the Australian and Asian export markets.

The way Kia hopes to really separate itself from the rest is by introducing electrified powertrains for its pickup. But that doesn’t mean full electrification.

Instead, Kia is ambitiously planning to introduce a gas-electric hybrid pickup, which would be a first for the US market. Ultimately, the brand hopes to move 90,000 new midsize pickups annually by 2034.

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Currently, no option from the midsize pickup market offers any sort of electrified powertrain, as the segment exclusively offers gas-only power. Kia’s expected arrival date? Sometime by 2030.

Kia won’t be beating Toyota on a global level in terms of electrifying a midsize pickup. Toyota debuted the next-gen Hilux with gas, all-electric and plug-in gas-electric powertrains not too long ago.

But it will be the first to introduce an electrified midsize pickup in the North American market.

Hyundai and Kia pickups will be cousins

Car center console with control buttons for 4WD modes, auto hold, parking assist, and differential lock. — With the Tasman, it’s obvious Kia knows what its doing in terms of off-road capability and ruggedness.

Over the past couple of years (and, especially, more recently), Hyundai solidified its plan to introduce a new body-on-frame midsize pickup. The Korean automaker decided to build the model as a replacement for the slow-selling Santa Cruz.

Just last week, Hyundai also teased the pickup in a sense with the reveal of its Boulder Concept SUV. Despite being an SUV, the Boulder previews what the pickup’s styling could look like as Hyundai is planning to also build an SUV based on the same platform it’s using for the pickup.

Silver Hyundai off-road SUV with LED light bar on roof driving on rocky terrain. — Like the Toyota Tacoma and GM offerings, the Hyundai and Kia midsize pickups will be cousins.

In a sense, Hyundai’s looking to build a duo similar to how the Toyota Tacoma is basically a 4Runner with an open bed, and vice versa.

Kia is looking to share the same backbones with its intended pickup truck, similarly to how the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon are closely related cousins.

Although Kia already introduced the Tasman, the company’s truly first-ever modern midsize pickup, it’s only meant for the Australian and other Asian export markets. So far, word has it that Kia’s American midsize pickup offering won’t look or be anything like the Tasman.

About the Author: Chris Chin is an associate editor at Gear Patrol, covering cars, trucks and anything else with four wheels. He has over a decade of experience writing news and reviews but considers himself an enthusiast first, with a passion for classics and European cars. His daily driver is a 1987 Mercedes-Benz 560SEL with nearly 250,000 miles (87,000 are his).

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