Brook Harland got behind the wheel of the latest BYD Shark 6 for a week of work and recreation. He reports back on his experience.
Fresh from across the Pacific Ocean, the BYD Shark 6 seems to have made a good impression on the New Zealand utility market. Launched here in December 2024, the Shark 6 debuted in 10th place in the overall model rankings. For some reason, June 2025 was a boomer month with over 400 units sold, placing it third overall in sales behind Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux. By the end of its first year, the Shark 6 had racked up some 1700 sales, eventually placing it in fifth place of overall sales. Don’t quote me on those numbers, but you get a general idea of how the vehicle has been quickly accepted by new ute buyers.
So, with all that being said, I went to see what all the fuss was about.
‘Staunch’ is one of the first words that came to my mind. Sitting big and bold with a fresh set of non-factory black shoes and socks on, the Shark 6 was waiting for me in the carpark fully charged and ready to be put to work and play.
With no real idea or understanding of how far I could travel on a charge or what I do when I did run out, I set off across Auckland to fill my daily chores. Right foot hard to the floor I was blown away at the acceleration of the Shark 6, its torque punching me back into the seat. The reason for its ability is the combined 321Kw and 650Nm of torque from a 1.5-ltire turbocharged petrol engine and dual electric motors that gets the Shark 6 from 0-100km in 5.7 seconds.
Like every new toy that comes with batteries, if you drive them hard, they’ll fast run out of juice. Not driving conservatively, the Shark 6 ran out of charge at around 85kms of travel and at this stage the petrol engine took over to take charge of the batteries that keep the electric motors turning the front and rear end of the vehicle.
As I soon found out over the week, the BYD does its most economical running on a charged battery and not while using the petrol motor, especially when a heavy right foot is involved.
Big feels
With big feels from the outside of the Shark 6, my introduction to the interior had me feeling a little robbed of space. Maybe I was expecting a bit more width and depth in the cabin, but this didn’t end up being a concern, as I grew into the space and enjoyed it. Clear vison across the dash made reading all information on the screens easy, with a lot of info and gauges keeping me constantly informed about what was going on with the vehicle.
The BYD Stereo system seemed to pump out Spotify songs and drown out my singing, so it got a tick from the kids. Connecting to Bluetooth and Apple CarPlay wasn’t as easy as I’ve had in other rides, but maybe that’s just me being a technophobe.
The 360-degree cameras and sensors made parking and access to some of my tight job sites a walk in the park to navigate, with the big central screen showing everything you need to see.
Towing a decent load
Keen to see how the Shark 6 could handle towing a decent load, I hooked up our trusty mini digger and transport trailer. Weighing probably a little bit more than the 2500kg towbar rating, I was unsure how it’d go. Like a screaming reel it was off, definitely not as quick as being trailer-less but man I was impressed. Towing something with weight down a bumpy country road is always a good test not only for power but also for handling. With the BYD Shark 6 tare weight at 2700kg, it didn’t seem to get pushed around the road a lot, which made for a pleasant towing experience.
I’m guessing the higher-than-normal tare weight accommodating the BYD batteries is part reason for the 2500kg tow rating, keeping the GVM under the 6000kg figure.
Driving to the conditions
Day-to-day activities around the wider Auckland area were pleasurable driving around in the Shark 6. Being behind the wheel of a PHEV (plug in hybrid vehicle) was a new experience for myself – the quietness and smoothness had me checking tacho gauges that didn’t exist to see if the engine was still running.
In my neck of the woods, Sunday drives are meant for the beach and not for the road, so that’s where I headed with the family. The Shark 6 was running new 33-inch mud terrain tyres at 50-psi and the soft beach sand would be hard work for anything running this combination. Rolling the toggle on the steering wheel, we landed in sand mode for driving and off we set.
Being a bit old school, I feel I drive with all my senses, especially off road. When you can’t hear your engine, it was difficult to know if the wheels were even turning. If you can’t see a rev counter or select a gear, how fast is everything underneath you going? Well to be honest, at times I didn’t have a clue, but it was great fun trying to figure it out and re-learn offroading in a PHEV.
The Shark 6 had no problem sending huge roosts of sand out from the tyres. Plenty of power sent us right around the beach and climbing dunes. It would’ve been interesting to see where the truck could’ve gone if I dropped the tyre pressures down from 50psi.
During the strop around the beach, I took the Shark 6 out of EV mode and ran on the motor. The power didn’t change but the motor was running hard charging while I played around digging trenches in the sand.
Summary
As a contractor that covers quite a few kilometres each week, I enjoyed my time in the Shark 6. It was capable at everything I chucked in its way and was definitely a change from my normal diesel-powered ride. Could a hybrid ute work daily for me? Possibly, if I got into good habits of plugging it into charge. Take a BYD Shark 6 for a drive and decide for yourself. I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.
For more information, contact bydauto.co.nz
Images by Brook Harland