BYD Shark 6 vs GWM UTE

What's the difference?

The BYD Shark 6 is not just a huge step for BYD, it’s possibly one of the most important products launched in Australia in recent years.

Make no mistake, it’s not the toughest ute out there with the best hauling specs, and of course it’s also yet to prove its longevity. But it’s also not doing things in the way we’ve come to expect from utes like the HiLux and Ranger.

Instead, BYD has built a ute its own way, offering enviable levels of technology and an innovative powertrain. I’ve never driven a ute as mould-breaking as this. BYD is offering revolution rather than evolution.

In a very competitive ute market, the GWM Cannon XSR represents plenty of bang for your buck, but it’s just not as refined as you’d hope. 

It should be better at this price-point, especially when it’ll be unfavourably cross-shopped with lower-spec variants in the Ford Ranger, Isuzu D-Max and Toyota HiLux line-ups.

It’s a nice enough vehicle on-road, and the XSR is an effective 4WD on the dirt without ever being truly exceptional – but that’s fine for those who want to save big bucks and still drive away in a well-equipped twin-locked off-road vehicle.

You have to behold the Shark 6 in the metal to appreciate it, in no small part because of its sheer size. It’s wider and taller than you expect, lending its boxy visage an imposing stance and a commanding presence on the road.

The exterior design is a little bold. There’s more than a hint of Ford F-150 in the Shark’s face, and the overt BYD badgework is a statement. The Chinese brand is clearly happy to stake its growing reputation on what the Shark offers.

Inside is next-level for the light commercial vehicle segment with the screen-centric design theme and lashings of soft-touch finishes and leather trims. Even the seats are plush and comfortable in both rows with convincing synthetic upholstery.

There is one argument which says a cabin as well appointed as this is a hindrance for work purposes. Chucking tools and equipment around will scuff things up, or at worst, potentially damage all the delicate equipment strewn throughout the cabin.

There’s definitely stock in this argument. I can hardly see the Shark 6 being used as a replacement for a work-spec ute destined to live a hard life.

On the other hand, it’s worth remembering the dual-cab is now the default family car choice for many buyers whose primary concern is how well equipped it is for life with kids and a dog, with its secondary purpose being as a work vehicle (with the ‘work’ largely confined to the tray) or as a weekend recreational off-roader.

I think the Shark 6 primarily appeals to this sort of buyer. It all feels just a bit too fragile to see an impact drill thrown into the passenger seat or a toolbox covered in concrete dust tied down to the rear bench.

BYD has made some perhaps tokenistic effort to 'tough' the cabin up, with its chunky steering wheel and some cool switchgear in the centre console rounded out by a blocky design theme.

There are built-in fitted weatherproof mats for the floor which is a nice touch, but it’s maybe the opposite design ethos from something like the Ineos Grenadier which reverts to a hose-out interior. Maybe don’t get too much moisture near the screen.

Just quietly, I'm a bit disappointed there aren't more Shark references in the cabin as there are Dolphin or Seal references in BYD’s namesake models.

Still, the plush cabin design is impossible to beat in this segment, so if you’re a family buyer first and a work or play buyer second, it’s impossible to do better in the light commercial vehicle space.

The XSR is 5439mm long (with a 3230mm wheelbase), 1958mm wide, and 1918mm high. It has a listed kerb weight of 1965kg.

It looks like the mongrel child of a HiLux, Ranger and D-Max – in a good way.

The wider-than-standard wheel track, as well as the snorkel, sports bar, substantial bash plates, tyres and even red brake calipers add to this ute’s presence.

The cabin is massive, with the Shark making the most of its boxy dimensions, and it also offers impressive adjustability for the driver and front passenger seats.

The high seating position provides a commanding view of the road with great overall visibility thanks to large mirrors and expansive window real-estate.

Entry and egress is bolstered by large side-steps and a multitude of grab-handles in the A-pillar and centre console and for long trips the seats are some of the most comfortable in the class.

Storage is also plentiful, with large bottle holders and pockets in the doors, a further two with adjustable ridges in the centre console, alongside a wireless phone charger and an immense armrest storage box.

The console is also home to an array of buttons for various drive-modes alongside the shift lever, but in terms of multimedia functions there’s only a physical on-off switch, a de-fog shortcut switch for the climate and a volume dial.

In what could be a bit of a deal-breaker for some, the rest of this car’s many functions are controlled exclusively by the touchscreen, which can, at times, have a confusing array of menus.

For example, the controls for fan speed, temperature, recirculate, and various other functions like the regenerative braking and steering modes are touchscreen only.

The climate screen is at least straightforward, but other features require some figuring out as the array of menus are inconsistently labelled (as with many other Chinese vehicles).

It’s not as bad as Tesla, at least offering a digital instrument cluster, and some physical control features, but it might be a bridge too far for some ute buyers.

Additionally, the software is okay but not great. It’s fast and looks reasonably good which beats out most Chinese rivals, but it’s a pretty blatant Android reskin which feels a little unfinished around the edges.

Particularly the digital dash looks pretty ordinary and only has one theme, with the information overload it offers on either side of the speedo being of questionable value.

Hopping in the second row it feels as though the Shark 6 offers unrivalled space compared to the usual crop of dual-cabs. I have leagues of kneeroom behind my own (182cm) driving position, and the cabin feels as wide as a big SUV also featuring a flat floor, making the middle position usable by an adult. Headroom is also good and the plush trims continue, too.

While the rear row also scores big grab handles and makes use of those side-steps, it also has an odd issue with the thickness of the B-pillar eating into entry space. I got my feet caught on it despite the amount of room you have once inside. Weird.

Storage for rear passengers is also good, with a large bottle holder in each door, and two more large ones in the drop-down armrest. There are also soft pockets on the backs of the front seats, adjustable air vents, a USB-C and USB-A port as well as a full-size household power outlet.

Additionally, the rear bench has some flexibility built in. You can raise the base to make for a larger storage area if you don’t need the seats, or you can fold the back forward revealing some limited space behind (good for charging cables, towbars and your V2L adapter, for example).

The tray measures 1200 litres according to BYD, with a large square space provided between the wheel arches. Keep an eye out for a future payload test for more on this, but the Shark 6 has a payload of 790kg.

Not bad considering it also has to lug around 30kWh of battery packs under the floor, but it’s also a far cry from the coveted one tonne payload rating achieved by some rivals.

However, the Shark 6 offers some other neat additions, like built-in LED lighting for the tray area and no less than three full-size power outlets which could be good for powering worksite equipment or household appliances even when you’re far from the power grid.

Towing specs are also off-the pace, as you might expect. The Shark 6 can tow 2500kg braked, which is a full tonne down on the accepted 3500kg segment standard, so it’s worth considering this if there’s the possibility you’ll need to tow significant loads.

The XSR’s five-seat interior is a neat and roomy space but, in line with most utes at this price-point, if you scrutinise it in a critical way you soon discover that some parts feel a bit cheap and flimsy, such as some buttons, dials and switches.

Up front there are two USB ports, a wireless charging pad, a 12V plug and a capacious centre console.

A pair of cupholders can be concealed under a sliding cover and the storage bin is on the right side of big.

The driver gets a six-way power-adjustable seat; the front-seat passenger gets four-way power adjustment. Both seats are comfortable without being too plush.

Second-row passengers get a firm but comfortable seat and amenities include a USB port, a 220V plug, and a fold-down centre armrest.

The second-row seat base can be folded up and out of the way to make room for more gear if only two people are travelling.

Build quality is generally okay, part from the aforementioned flimsy-feeling buttons.

The XSR’s business end, the tub, has a durable-looking tub liner, tie-down points and a handy pop-out step hidden in the top of the tailgate.

But it's worth noting this ute’s tailgate can’t be locked.

The XSR has a manufacturer suggested retail price of $52,990 drive-away.

Standard features include a 9.0-inch multimedia touchscreen system (with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), a 7.0-inch digital driver info display, quilted leather seat trim, quilted leather door trim, 18-inch black alloy wheels, a sports bar, an assisted tailgate (with a pop-out step) and roof rails. 

It also has LED headlights with LED DRLs, side steps, powered mirrors, keyless entry, push-button start, power-adjustable and heated front seats, a leather steering wheel, single-zone climate control air conditioning, an auto-dimming rear view mirror, tinted rear glass, and a six-speaker audio system.

As well, the XSR gets a part-time 4WD system (with 2WD high-range, 4WD high-range and 4WD low-range), rather than full-time 4WD, which is on lower-spec GWM utes; a front differential lock (in addition to the existing rear diff lock) and Cooper Discoverer AT3 all-terrain tyres.

It also gets red brake calipers, an underbody bash plate, wheel arch flares, and a sunroof.

Elsewhere, it gets steel front and rear bumpers and a new black grille.

Here’s where things get really loopy. Australian ute buyers are used to the idea of a rugged diesel engine up front, connected to the wheels via a chunky traditional transmission and usually a low-range capable transfer case.

BYD does things differently. It has a comparatively small 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine, which primarily acts as a range-extending generator, although it can provide drive to the front wheels in certain conditions from 70km/h.

The wheels are otherwise driven by two separate electric motors on each axle, and draw their power from a combination of the engine and a large 30kWh battery pack mounted centrally under the floor.

BYD says this is the world’s first longitudinally-mounted range-extender hybrid set-up, although usually the benefit of longitudinal mounting for the engine is a more direct connection to the rear axle, so outside of potential packaging benefits, I’m not sure what the upside of this is.

Regardless, the peak combined power of the electric motors is said to be 321kW/650Nm which is in some cases double the outputs of the Shark’s diesel rivals. As a result, BYD claims the Shark 6 can sprint from 0-100km/h in just 5.7 seconds (only slightly slower than a hot hatch), an impressive feat considering its 2710kg kerb weight.

The XSR has the Cannon’s 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine that produces 120kW at 3600rpm and 400Nm from 1500rpm to 2500rpm. 

It has an eight-speed automatic transmission. 

As mentioned, the XSR has part-time 4WD – with 2WD high-range, 4WD high-range and 4WD low-range – rather than the full-time 4WD set-up that’s in standard Cannons.

Like all plug-in hybrids, the Shark 6 has a headline-grabbing official/combined fuel efficiency number of just 2.0L/100km.

Is this number achievable in the real world? The answer is maybe, because a huge battery pack grants the Shark 6 an NEDC electric-only driving range of 100km.

Now, usually NEDC is straight-up impossible to get in real driving conditions. The more accurate WLTP tends to be more possible (and has a correspondingly lower range number on most vehicles), but in my real-world test, the results were surprising.

As part of this test, I charged the Shark up to 100 per cent then drove it in electric mode only until it reached the reserve level and the engine was forced to turn back on, and was surprised to find it managed to travel a smidge over 90km in pure-electric mode. Considering its official number is NEDC I was expecting something like 70km, at most.

If you can charge it to 100 per cent each time, then it seems reasonable to get at least close to the official fuel consumption number.

On the topic of charging, the Shark 6 is a mixed bag. On the one hand, unlike many PHEVs, the BYD can charge on a fast DC connector at a rate of up to 55kW, which is necessary considering its large battery size.

This should get you from 25-80 per cent in around half an hour. My single charging session took the battery from 25-100 per cent (yep, you can charge BYD’s LFP battery to 100 per cent on DC), in just over 40 minutes.

On the other hand, the slow AC charging leaves a little to be desired. At a max rate of 7.0kW it’s faster than most PHEVs but the sheer size of its battery means you’ll need to plug in for four and a half hours to get it close to full.

In this case, an 11kW AC inverter could nearly halve this time, making it a simple task to top the Shark up at a public AC location.

Charging at home via a wall socket, meanwhile, will be a laborious task, taking in excess of 10 hours.

An additional part of my testing was a 400km loop from Sydney to regional areas and back. Set to 'Hybrid' mode, the battery ran out about a third of the way into the drive, and I had to rely on engine power for much of the journey.

Even with the battery depleted, though, a 140km freeway journey saw average fuel consumption of 9.5L/100km, just as good as most diesel utes in such conditions.

All in all, with a combined freeway portion and EV city driving portion, the car was reporting around 6.5L/100km of fuel consumption. Not bad at all, and with the near-genuine 100km electric driving range, for some use-cases, this could be close to zero.

The Cannon XSR has a listed fuel consumption of 9.4L/100km on a combined cycle.

Actual fuel consumption on this test, from pump to pump, was 11.2L/100km but, as is the nature of my testing, I did a lot of low-range four-wheel driving.

The Cannon XSR has an 78-litre tank so, going by that fuel figure above, you could reasonably expect a driving range of about 696km from a full tank.

Note: Drop 30km to 50km from any vehicle’s total calculated fuel-range figure for a better idea of that vehicle’s safe touring range – so, following that advice, the above driving range figure (696km) would become 666km after a 30km safe-distance buffer has been subtracted.

Also, remember that numerous other factors affect your fuel consumption and so impact your driving range, including how much extra weight you have onboard (passengers, camping gear, etc), whether your vehicle is fitted with any aftermarket equipment (bullbar, spare-wheel carrier, etc), whether you are towing (a camper-trailer, caravan, or boat, etc), your vehicle's tyre pressures, and the conditions.

It takes about thirty seconds behind the wheel to realise the Shark 6 is bringing something entirely new to the ute segment. I can guarantee it is like nothing you have ever driven before.

Yes, it has the same elevated driving position, and a hint of the ladder frame ruggedness underneath, but that's where the similarities to most utes ends.

The cabin is near dead quiet, especially at city speeds. The combination of primarily electric drive and acoustic glass in the front makes the Shark 6 about the opposite of the usual ute cabin ambiance which is defined by diesel engine clatter and constant mechanical feedback from the gearbox or tyre rumble.

Instead, the Shark 6 offers a better cabin ambiance than some luxury SUVs. It’s so quiet and composed it’s almost uncanny. The road feels distant, power is delivered without the hesitancy of turbo lag or a reluctant transmission, and even the suspension, which consists of coil rather than leaf springs, is nice and quiet.

The ride is surprisingly smooth. Sure, the tune has a firmness to it, as does the frame, to help control the additional weight of the batteries. But unlike most dual-cabs, the Shark 6 is nice and balanced over both axles largely due to the all-coil set-up and a chassis design which places the weight of the batteries in the centre.

The steering is alarmingly light in its standard ‘Comfort’ setting, feeling much more like an EV than the usual mechanical feeling of ute steering.

It makes the big Shark 6 easy to manoeuvre and betrays its enormous kerb weight, but it has the side-effect of feeling artificial and detached from the road.

It could be a deal-breaker for some ute buyers, particularly off-roaders looking for a more organic feel. I found the heavier ‘Sport’ mode added a little feel and necessary heft back.

The light steering combines with the coil springs to make for a ute which drives far closer to an SUV than anything else in the class (even the Ford Ranger!).

It also handles corners relatively well, and soaks up most road imperfections with an almost magic-carpet like feel.

This is also helped along by a smart tyre choice offering lots of sidewall, and unlike BYD’s initial Atto 3, comes with a good Continental tyre from the factory.

As a result it handles urban duties with impressive ease, and I was also taken aback by how little gravel trails impacted it. In my adventures, corrugations and rough road textures were dispatched without fuss, with only the largest potholes being communicated with a stiff hit into the cabin, proving the limitations of the suspension.

When it comes to hybrid driving, the Shark 6 remains impressive. Due largely to it keeping a whopping 25 per cent battery in reserve, even when it reaches this level the engine makes minimal impact on refinement, for the most part just buzzing away at idle.

However, when more is asked of it at the reserve battery level, for example a sustained hill with a tall gradient, the engine will suddenly roar up to high RPM as it tries to keep the battery level stable. The result is an unpleasant buzzing engine tone entering the cabin.

It’s still more distant than when you ask a lot of a Toyota hybrid, but noticeable regardless. A bit hard to complain when you’ll hear it a fraction of the time, or perhaps never, in regular driving situations.

On the whole the Shark 6 is immensely impressive, especially considering the price. Not only is it a good plug-in hybrid, it does a remarkable job of showing what ute owners have been missing out on. Australia’s favourite dual cabs should be worried.

If you’re not expecting a dynamic, sporty driving experience from the Cannon XSR, then you won’t be disappointed.

I’m enjoying the fact that off-road vehicles from China and India are improving all the time but there are significant trade-offs when opting for a much cheaper version of the ute you actually want.

The XSR is not an insubstantial ute, but that doesn’t excuse its less-than-ideal steering (which feels too loose) or its stiff ride on upgraded suspension which, even though it increases wheel travel (for 4WDing – more about that later), seemingly hasn’t been tuned to suit the XSR’s bigger tyres, wider wheel track and greater bulk than its lower-spec stablemates.

Also, this ute has an unwieldy turning circle of 13.7m, which makes it an interesting vehicle to manoeuvre along busy urban streets or through a bustling car park.

This is a well priced ute if compared to similarly equipped, much more expensive utes, but that doesn’t excuse its touchy throttle and thrashy transmission.

However, its engine, which can feel underdone when challenged, has a relaxed feel about it when open-road cruising and if you aren’t putting too much pressure on it you likely won’t think it’s much of a let-down.

Overall, the XSR does okay on sealed surfaces, without ever getting anywhere near great – it’s simply not as refined or compliant as it could – or should – be.

On the dirt track leading to our 4WD test track, the XSR was very skippy over corrugations and tended to thump through potholes.

This ute does go well off-road though when it comes time for low-range 4WDing but, equipped with front and rear diff locks, that’s to be expected.

Off-road traction control and other systems including hill descent control, are adequate without being as seamlessly smooth as the equivalent systems in more expensive vehicles.

It also has 'Crawl Mode' (allows for no-pedal, low-speed driving) and 'Turn Assist' (which brakes the XSR’s inside rear wheel to reduce the ute’s turning circle on traction-compromised surfaces).

The over-sensitive throttle is far from ideal during low-speed low-range 4WDing when you need absolute control for safe driving, but I did become used to it – or at least I put up with it.

As mentioned earlier, the upgraded suspension has boosted wheel travel, which means you’re more than likely able in the XSR to stretch a tyre to the dirt for better traction and controlled forward progress.

The XSR’s Cooper Discoverer AT3 all-terrain tyres help, especially when the dirt becomes sticky mud that would gum up a lesser tyre, and we had no strife getting up and over one of our more severe set-piece hill climbs on that rubber.

All in all, the XSR is a capable twin-locked 4WD without ever being exceptional – and that’s fine.

The Cannon XSR has towing capacities of 750kg (unbraked) and 3000kg (braked).

The Cannon range has the maximum five-star ANCAP rating from testing in 2021, however the Cannon XSR is not covered by this rating. 

Standard safety gear on the XSR includes seven airbags, AEB (sans pedestrian detection) forward collision warning, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assistance, adaptive cruise control, traffic sign recognition, rear parking sensors, a 360-degree camera and tyre-pressure monitoring.

It does not get front parking sensors, lane-change assist or a door-open warning.

BYD offers the Shark 6 with a six-year and 150,000km vehicle warranty, which is a little different from the usual five-year and unlimited kilometres most rivals are covered by. Additionally, the high-voltage battery is covered for a more industry-standard eight-years and 160,000km.

The service schedule is posted on BYD’s website and extends all the way out to 11 years or 220,000km. Most scheduled visits during this time cost $360, however there are some pretty significant stings along the way. The 40,000km service comes in at $788, while the 80,000km service costs a whopping $1727 in a single visit.

All said and done, over the life of the six-year warranty, the Shark 6 will cost an average of $778 per year, which is surprisingly expensive for a vehicle with a primarily electric powertrain.

The XSR is covered by a seven year/unlimited km warranty.

The first service is scheduled at the six-month/5000km mark (and costs $260), then every 12 months or 10,000km, with each service costing $360 a pop.