South Africa’s new most powerful bakkie – Pricing and features

The new BYD Shark 6 is hitting South African showrooms very soon and will become the new most powerful bakkie in the country upon its arrival.

The plug-in hybrid double cab is available in a single “Premium” specification starting at R959,900.

This figure was revealed by a member of the BYD Owners Group on Facebook who already ordered one.

The price likely includes the Chinese manufacturer’s standard 5-year/100,000km warranty and maintenance plan, and 8-year/150,000km hybrid battery warranty.

What you get

The Shark comes equipped with a 1.5-litre, turbo-petrol engine supported by an electric motor over each axle for a generous combined output of 321kW and 650Nm – more than any other bakkie currently for sale in South Africa.

As a result, the luxurious double cab can dispense the 100km/h dash in a brisk 5.7 seconds, besting hot hatchbacks such as the legendary VW Golf GTI which does the deed in 6.4 seconds.

The hybrid bakkie is rather frugal for its class, too, posting a combined fuel usage of 9.6l/100km.

Being a plug-in hybrid, it features a 29.58kWh battery which allows a maximum 85km of driving on electricity alone.

It also supports Vehicle-to-Load functionality, which enables owners to charge and power external devices by plugging them into the bakkie.

With both the 59-litre fuel tank and battery fully topped up, the Shark can travel up to 670km before needing a refill.

Maximum braked towing capacity is pegged at 2,500kg and it supports a payload capacity of around 800kg.

Owners looking to take their Shark off the beaten track will be glad to know that it provides Mud, Sand, and Snow drive modes, a ground clearance of 230mm, and a water-wading depth of 700mm.

The approach, break-over, and departure angles are measured at 31, 17, and 19.3 degrees, respectively.

The bakkie comes in at 5,457mm in length, 1,971mm in width, and 1,925mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,920mm, positioning it towards the top of its segment in terms of size.

Creature comforts are plentiful in the Shark as is customary from Chinese autos.

Standard kit encompasses keyless entry and start, dual-zone climate control, imitation leather upholstery, electric front seats with heating and ventilation, a rotating 15.6-inch infotainment screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 50W wireless phone charger, a 12-speaker Dynaudio sound system, a 10.25-inch digital driver’s display, and a heads-up display.

It’s also shipped with automatic LED lighting, an aluminium roof rack, as well as 18-inch alloy wheels.

Finally, a wide variety of driver assistance systems are built in, such as intelligent cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning and prevention, emergency lane-keep assist, front and rear cross-traffic alert with braking, front and rear collision warning, traffic sign recognition, blind-spot detection, 360-degree cameras, and all-round parking sensors.