“Amazing” and “very popular”: Chery PHEV diesel 4×4 wagon based on new KP31 ute wanted in Australia to fight Toyota Prado and Ford Everest!

If you like the idea of a plug-in hybrid diesel ute as previewed by the Chery KP31, how about a 4×4 wagon version.

Chery Australia definitely likes that idea and is keen for it to happen.

“Wouldn’t it be amazing?” said Chery Australia COO Lucas Harris when the proposition was put to him by EV Central at the recent KP31 reveal in Sydney.

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“I would definitely not be able to confirm something like that,” he added. “I desperately hope that we are fortunate enough in the future to have that option.”

While ute sales volume is definitely where the main game will be for the production version of the KP31 when it launches later this year, diesel-powered 4×4 wagons are a big segment too.

The Ford ranger-based Everest sold 26,161 examples in Australia in 2025 and 15,458 Isuzu D-Max-based MU-X wagons were sold.

Of course, the other big go-anywhere off-roader in the segment is the Toyota Prado which sold 26,106 examples in Australia in 2025. Unlike the other two, it’s not directly related to Toyota’s one-tonne ute, the HiLux.

At this stage the only plug-in hybrid 4×4 go-anywhere wagon sold in Australia is the GWM Tank 500, with the smaller Tank 300 about to join the fray.

However, they both use petrol ICE, whereas the KP31’s use of diesel gives it added appeal for buyers who travel off-road and tow, especially as Chery has made clear it will come with a mechanical 4×4 system, one-tonne payload and 3500kg braked towing.

As previously reported, Chery believes PHEV tech will extend the lifespan of diesel in Australia under the CO2-strangling NVES regulations.

Of course, Chery will also bring the KP31 to Australia as a petrol-electric PHEV, but that is expected to be more light duty and focussed on lifestyle as the popular BYD Shark 6 is.

“I think it would be really cool,” enthused Harris about a KP31 4×4 diesel wagon. “I think it’s a great looking vehicle, so to have a wagon version would be very popular.”

Chery has already made it clear it is going after outright sales success in the ute segment against the big guns such as the Ranger and HiLux and has promised ultra-competitive pricing value.

It will no doubt have the same aims when it comes to a KP31-based 4×4 wagon.

But Harris wasn’t about to get that specific at this point.

“We’ve got a bit of a job to do to prove our credibility and being able to produce a capable ute to start with,” he said.

“So most of our focus is let’s get this one right. And then all of the future stuff and the dreams and ambitions that come from that we can worry about later.

“The first step is if we can’t get this right then there’s probably not much point talking about future stuff.”