BYD Shark 6 Premium 2025 off-road review

Talk about a baptism of fire, literally being handed the keys to the new 2025 BYD Shark 6 on a muddy track in the NSW Blue Mountains. Yep, I put the BYD’s bold new ute through my local off-road test loop, before I even had a second to steer it on tar. And that’s just fine by me.

So what is the BYD Shark 6? Well, it’s an important vehicle for the Australian market and a landmark given it’s the first mainstream plug-in hybrid 4×4 ute offered. This brings an entirely new approach to four-wheel driving and ute ownership in general, offered locally in a single dual-motor Premium grade.

Essentially, there’s a 1.5L turbo charged petrol engine that acts mainly as a generator for the two electric motors, one on each axle. This can charge the vehicle’s 29.58kWh ‘blade’ battery system and also propel the vehicle. Combined, the petrol and electric drive outputs a formidable 321kW and 650Nm combined.

You can also drive it in pure electric mode, with an EV-only range of around 80 kilometres according to our own testing. More on that later…

The newcomer to the local scene bucks other ute conventions given it’s based on a monocoque chassis and features all-wheel independent suspension – reminiscent of the Honda Ridgeline ute offered in other markets that wasn’t sold in Australia.

It also fronts up Down Under with a compelling $57,900 list price before on-roads, undercutting the more heroic tiers of rivals Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux it hopes to mix with.

So there are lots of firsts to discuss, and I feel we all will really need some time to get to know this vehicle intimately.

While Chasing Cars Editor Jez Spinks is going to focus on the on-road driving experience of the Shark 6 in a separate review, here we’re going to focus almost purely on the off-road experience.

The aim here is to really push this vehicle off-road on tough and familiar terrain, to see if it is a viable 4×4 option. Can all-independent suspension work in a ute? Can we drive the Shark 6 through deep muddy holes without frying the electrical system? And is it even cut out as a proper four-wheel drive? Let’s find out.

How does the BYD Shark 6 drive off-road?

To start with, the best way to describe the Shark 6 as a four-wheel drive is ‘point and shoot’. You don’t need to do much pre-flight preparation to take it off-road, other than letting some air out of the tyres for more grip and a softer ride.

There are settings for Eco, Sport and Comfort – as well as terrain modes such as Sand Land, Mountain, Muddy Land (yeah, we’re not making that up) and Snow. However, there is no Rock Mode, which we would have loved to see fitted as it’s conventionally the most aggressive form of electronic traction control off-road.

In the bush, the main issue with this platform is a lack of ground clearance and suspension travel. As expected, all-independent suspension is great on dirt tracks and on sandy dunes (where the BYD Shark would be a hoot to drive) but offers limited wheel travel on moguls and rocks in this design.

For perspective, on the day as our Shark 6 test, we took a 2025 Jeep Wrangler Overland through this track at the same time, and it barely lifted a wheel. In the BYD Shark 6, however, we were picking up opposing corners regularly and with utter ease.

The Shark 6 also needs more ground clearance, which is a double-edged sword with vehicles running independent suspension. The more you lift it, the less suspension down-travel will be available; so it’s a line that will need to be walked delicately.

The approach angle, at 31 degrees, makes negotiating large obstacles easy, though the ramp over (17 degrees) and departure angle (19 degrees) do present limitations quickly.

Thankfully, the Shark 6 boasts stout underbody protection plates from the factory, so we were able to slide over ruts when the ute or its driver ran out of clearance or talent.

For clarification, the BYD Shark has a claimed unladen ground clearance figure of 230mm. Toyota’s HiLux Rogue, for instance, offers 265mm – that’s a noticeable difference and a significant advantage to the Toyota.

Aussie aftermarket companies, such as Ironman 4×4, offer a range of accessories for the Shark 6 available both through BYD Australia’s OE catalogue and independently. Of the growing number of mod options, suspension is the first upgrade we’d tackle.

Not just for more clearance, but to fit dampers more suitable tuned for off-road conditions, and remove some of the jiggly yet busy ride characteristics experienced from the suspension. It’s not a deal breaker in stock form, but we can see room for improvement.

Thankfully, the negatives really stop there – spoiler alert, the Shark 6 is a solid performer off-road, thanks to its ability to send drive to the wheels with the most traction.

You just point the Shark where you want to go, and as long as you have enough clearance to scrape by, it will keep going, albeit with a wheel or two in the air – as you can see from the images. It’s also a large rig, so it doesn’t slip through tight confines like some rivals might, and its lazy turning circle does hamper swift progress at times.

Being a hybrid vehicle, we had some trepidation regarding the electrical system and water ingress. We drove through water that was deeper than the numberplate (according to our wonderful yet slightly concerned AV team) and can safely report no issues presented after multiple muddy water crossings.

Nor did any water make its way into the cabin. That’s a win.

Speaking of electricity, a cool party trick I know four-wheel drivers and tradies will appreciate is fitment of three 240V power outlets mounted in the tray, as well as two useful LED lights.

The total combined output from these electrical points is 6600w, meaning you could run an airfryer, coffee machine and a laptop in the middle of nowhere.

This might sound a bit bougie, but don’t knock it until you’ve had some warm chicken tenders on a cold day in the mountains sitting on the tailgate of your ute. What a time to be alive…

It also proves the Shark 6 will and should disrupt the ute segment. Traditional dual-battery systems are essentially redundant with the Shark 6, saving Australian four-wheel drivers money when it comes time to set the vehicle up. And yes, we really did plug an airfryer into the Shark’s tray, and it worked a treat.

Payload capacity is okay, but not class leading, coming in at 790kg.

Towing capacity is also lower than class-leading utes, at just 2500kg braked – which is honestly a more realistic figure for a dual-cab ute of this size in your reviewer’s opinion. Still, if you need to tow a large van, and carry a tonne, the Shark 6 probably isn’t the right choice for these applications.

Of course, given this is a 4×4 focused test, towing and load-lugging assessment is best served for another day and another review.

The same goes for touring range, which could prove more crucial for a number of buyers not looking to treat Shark 6 as a workhorse or a tow rig. BYD’s form guide promises over 800 kilometres on a tankful of fuel and a full charge. Impressive.

And with a formidable 5.7sec 0-100km/h claim, it could well be the quickest dual-cab on any block or trail. And at a whopping 2710kg, it’s also among the heaviest. We’ll dig deeper into all of this in our separate on-road review.

The honest verdict on the BYD Shark 6

So who is the BYD Shark for then? Well, it’s a true hybrid vehicle that’s a jack of all trades, which clearly brings appeal a little beyond the traditional ute-loving set.

It doesn’t handle any specific task amazingly, but it’s not at all bad at anything either.

If you want a very comfortable ute, to take to the beach or camping in a National Park, it just makes so much sense now I’ve sampled it. In some ways, it has closer kinship to more lifestyle oriented US market pickups and brings a bit of point of difference to the local segment more commercial-based offerings.

Off-road, it can be a capable machine. You just need to pick your lines carefully.

There’s plenty of power and, wow, the way the torquey electrified drive delivers its goods in a four-wheel drive setting is something else. There’s no low-range, but in our off-road test we didn’t experience any situation to warrant it.

It’s also a cool experience cruising through the bush in near silence when in EV mode. You feel more connected to nature, but watch out for wildlife that has become used to the clatter of diesel engines, and might not be so quick to move out of your way.

Interior comfort and build quality is first class, and we love seeing new technology in the off-road space. I’m genuinely impressed with the cabin, including the rear seats which felt roomy.

There’s loads of space in the tray too, however we really would have loved to see a tonneau cover or hard lid on this vehicle, so we could better utilise this space.

We can’t wait to see more of these Shark 6s, and more non-diesel 4x4s, out on the tracks. And we’re keen to see how owners put their own touches on the Shark 6 through aftermarket enhancements.

BYD has done a commendable job for their first ute. There really isn’t anything else like it on the market (until Ford’s PHEV Ranger joins the party), let alone in its circa $58k price range.

We encourage you to take one for a drive. Your reviewer is glad he did.