VIDEO: Chery gives first official peek of incoming KP31 bakkie
· Citizen
With the wraps having come off in January in Australia, Chery provided South African media with the first official “in-the-metal” view of the KP31 Concept bakkie at its factory in Wuhu on Monday.
Still referenced as the KP31 despite displaying P3X numberplates, the second of the brand’s two body-on-frame Chery bakkies will carry the Himla name in China. This, after the original Himla, known internally as KP11, went on-sale earlier this month with a restyled frontal facia as the R08 under the revived Rely brand.
Shown along with a pair of heavily modified derivatives parked just off the marque’s test track, the KP31 Chery bakkie still sported blacked out windows to hide its interior, despite the release of several depictions last week.
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SA-bound Chery bakkie
As such, neither could be driven compared to the original Himla, now the Rely R08, last year. In addition, South African Chery representatives confirmed that a name had already been selected. But they declined to provide details in spite of several cheeky attempts for hints.
One of the models possibly in the running to be made at the soon-to-be-former Nissan plant outside Pretoria, the KP31 will have a tow rating of 3 500kg and a payload of exactly 1 000kg. Seemingly, only a double cab bodystyle will be offered, with its length stretching 5 450mm.
As is well known by now, the KP31 will derive motivation from a plug-in hybrid powertrain. It consists of an electric motor and battery pack, paired to a 2.5-litre turbodiesel engine. At the unveiling of the Himla/R08, the unit was said to produce in the region of 260kW/680Nm. However, this still isn’t confirmed for the KP31.
More hybrids in pipeline
A petrol-based plug-in hybrid powertrains will be added later. These will rival the units powering the BYD Shark, GWM P500 PHEV and the Ford Ranger PHEV. An automatic transmission, possibly a torque converter, will be the sole option.
Soon to launch in China, the KP31 Chery bakkie will debut in South Africa later this year. Chery has indicated that they are working on having it on local soil by the final quarter of 2026.
*Charl Bosch is in China as a guest of Chery SA.