Oh Ford, look at what you’ve done. Ever since the Ranger Raptor came out, Just about every manufacturer who builds a midsize pickup has been ‘considering’ a high-performance version.
The formula sounds simple enough: Add more power, give it beefier suspension, and widen it. So far, it’s only Toyota who has come up with a true rival for the Ranger Raptor with the Hilux GR-S. That said, Mitsubishi says they’d like to build a true Triton Ralliart down the line.
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And now, Kia might be in the running in this growing niche. South Korean automotive website Autobuff reported that an off-road oriented version of the Kia Tasman has been spotted doing testing rounds in its home market.
Per the publication, the test mule wore chunkier all-terrain tires. Not only that, the wheel track was much wider, and had noticeably more ground clearance over the standard version. But the kicker here is the built-in winch attached to the front bumper. It looks like Kia is dead serious in cracking the off-roader crowd.
If anything, the test car looks similar to one of the Kia Tasman concepts shown recently. It was dubbed the Weekender (spelled out as WKNDR), and the prototype bears a great resemblance to the spied pickup.
At the very least, Kia is toying with the idea. The test car could merely be a working proof of concept and might not reach production in the end. However, the off-roader market is on a high right now, and not building it could be a missed opportunity. Mind you, the Tasman has a variant called the X-Pro that comes with all-terrain tires and whatnot, but the running prototype looked far more aggressive than that.
We say do it, Kia.
