Move aside, BYD and GWM. This is Australia's cheapest plug-in hybrid ute, which has a 3.5-tonne braked towing capacity and 915kg payload.
The 2026 JAC Hunter – the plug-in hybrid version of the T9 diesel ute – will undercut the BYD Shark 6 and GWM Cannon Alpha PHEV to become what is likely to be the cheapest model in its category, when it arrives in showrooms in the coming weeks.
JAC has confirmed a starting price of "under $50,000" before on-road costs, under the $55,900 to $62,900 plus on-roads Shark 6, and $57,490 drive-away GWM Cannon Alpha PHEV, before special offers.
Discounts for the Ford Ranger PHEV have dropped its starting price to $62,000 drive-away.
Exact pricing and specification of the JAC Hunter is yet to be fully revealed, but the brand's website – where pre-orders are now open – lists Pro and X variants.
The JAC Hunter ditches diesel power for a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine under the bonnet, a 31.2kWh lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery mounted centrally within the chassis, and electric motors at the front and rear.
The JAC Hunter can drive the front wheels at any speed through a four-speed dedicated hybrid transmission, as well as generating power for the battery pack.
Total system power for the JAC Hunter is listed at 360kW, beating even the flagship 350kW Shark 6 Performance. While JAC previously indicated a torque figure of about 1000Nm, the brand has yet to reveal a final combined figure for the production model.
The JAC Hunter has a 3500kg braked towing capacity, a 915kg payload, and a 77-litre fuel tank.
Sam Purcell has been writing about cars, four-wheel driving and camping since 2013, and obsessed with anything that goes brum-brum longer than he can remember. Sam joined the team at CarAdvice/Drive as the off-road Editor in 2018, after cutting his teeth at Unsealed 4X4 and Pat Callinan’s 4X4 Adventures. Off-road writer of the Year, Winner - Sam Purcell
