Chery SA says it’s pushing hard to bring its new double-cab bakkie, codenamed KP31, to South Africa in 2026.
Image: Chery
In February 2026, Chery officially showed a prototype of its upcoming double-cab bakkie, codenamed KP31. Along with the reveal, the Chinese automaker’s South African arm said the production version was confirmed for SA, with a local launch pencilled in for the fourth quarter of 2026 or the first quarter of 2027.
However, a local Chery representative has told CAR magazine that the brand is pushing to launch the production model, which uses a world-first plug-in hybrid (PHEV) diesel powertrain, in our market in 2026.
So, if the KP31 does arrive in SA in 2026, it will be part of several new bakkies still slated for release in the country this year — including the new Toyota Hilux, as we highlighted in our “Every bakkie confirmed for SA in 2026” feature.
Chery won’t be the only new product coming to SA in 2026. The Wuhu brand is also set to introduce the Q all-electric city car and the Tiggo V — a seven-seat SUV that can “transform” into a bakkie — to our market this year.
The KP31 is built on Chery’s Kaitan body-on-frame chassis and measures 5,450 mm in length and 1,920 mm in width — roughly the same size as the BYD Shark 6, which we road-tested in 2025. The PHEV powertrain combines an electric motor with a 2.5-litre turbodiesel engine, and reports say it should produce around 260 kW and 680 Nm of torque.
