South Africa’s new most powerful bakkie officially goes on sale – Pricing and specifications

Chinese manufacturer BYD has announced the official market launch of the new Shark 6.

The double cab is BYD’s very first bakkie, boasting a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) drivetrain that makes it more powerful than any other vehicle in its segment.

The Shark is available in one trim only coined the Premium, with its starting price listed as R959,900.

What you get

Under the skin, the new BYD features a 1.5-litre, turbo-petrol engine supported by an electric motor over each axle.

The setup is good for an abundant 321kW and 650Nm, which BYD says is equivalent to a normal 4.0-litre V8, seeing the bakkie rip to 100km/h in a swift 5.7 seconds.

You don’t have to compromise on fuel consumption that much despite the generous grunt, as the Shark posts a combined usage of 9.6l/100km.

As a PHEV, it further carries a 29.58kWh battery which allows a maximum all-electric driving range of 85km under WLTP conditions.

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 for the bakkie is pegged at 2,500kg and it supports a payload capacity of around 800kg.

Mud, Sand, and Snow drive modes are furthermore available for owners who want to dabble in off-roading.

It also provides a ground clearance of 230mm and a water-wading depth of 700mm, and the approach, break-over, and departure angles are measured at 31, 17, and 19.3 degrees, respectively.

The final selling point of the PHEV underpinnings is that the Shark offers Vehicle-to-Load functionality.

This lets owners charge and power external devices such as mini-fridges or camping lights by plugging them directly into the bakkie’s charge port.

There’s no shortage of luxuries in the near seven-figure double cab, with standard fitments comprising keyless entry and start, dual-zone climate control, imitation leather upholstery, electric front seats with heating and ventilation, a 50W wireless phone charger, a 10.25-inch digital driver’s display, and a heads-up display.

In the centre of the dash is a sizeable 15.6-inch infotainment screen supporting Apple CarPlay and Android Auto – which can rotate from portrait to landscape at the push of a button – hooked up to a 12-speaker Dynaudio sound system.

The bakkie is furthermore shipped with a suite of driver assistance systems, not least 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.

Rounding things out are automatic LED lighting, rain-sensing wipers, an aluminium roof rack, and 18-inch alloy wheels.

At a length of 5,457mm, width of 1,971mm, and height of 1,925mm, the BYD comes in towards the top of its segment in terms of dimensions.

BYD Shark 6