Rockhampton’s Scott Jones has owned just a few diesels over time and but has worked on them repeatedly for many of his adult life. Scott is a diesel fitter who mostly works on large mining vehicles, and that is the story of how a diesel expert selected a special path for his latest dual cab.
Scott’s most up-to-date privately owned diesel was a Volkswagen Amarok, which he loved: “It was rugged and reliable but additionally comfortable and refined,” he said.
After Scott bought a big boat, though, he found the Amarok struggled with steep inclines at low speed. That is despite the burden of the boat and trailer still falling under the Amarok’s 3.5t tow limit.
“I just didn’t like how the mix worked when the burden of the trailer and boat was greater than the vehicle towing it: it didn’t feel good,” he said.
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So, Scott sold the VW and acquired a brand new 2021 Chevy Silverado 1500 LTZ. The additional weight and power of the large American fixed the issue, and Scott bought it despite the actual fact it wasn’t a diesel.
“It was a strong V8 and it was spacious and sounded great too,” he said.
Scott later sold the boat but kept the Silverado that he enjoyed a lot. Nonetheless, a few years on and troubles kept cropping up in the large Chevy.
“There have been multiple problems with the fuel pump and belt and tensioner, after which problems with the water pump and oil cooler meant it spent loads of time within the workshop. I just couldn’t trust it anymore,” he explained.
This meant Scott was out there for an additional dual cab, although this time he didn’t need the heavy towing capability.
Through his work he was familiar (and unhappy) with what Toyota and Ford were offering and was leaning back towards one other diesel Amarok. Scott had also been maintaining a tally of a really different style of vehicle that had recently arrived available on the market.
It was the Shark 6 plug-in hybrid (PHEV) ute from Chinese manufacturer BYD. Moving even further away from the diesels he knew so well can be a much bigger jump than getting the petrol Chevy, but being within the engine business Scott reads widely about the various technologies and wasn’t frightened by a hybrid – if it could meet his needs.
The Shark 6 combines a turbocharged 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with considered one of BYD’s own lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries and two electric motors, which might move the vehicle as much as 80km on battery power alone.
The BYD also proved a little bit larger than his old Amarok, with a big enough tray and towing capability for his present needs. With a rating of two.5t, it could easily tow his motorbikes of their dedicated enclosed vehicle trailer.
The plug-in hybrid ute also offered the promise of substantially lower running costs than the large Silverado if he charged its battery at home. That was the speculation anyway: as like most Australians, Scott had never driven a Chinese ute before. With no dealers nearby on the time, he flew all the way down to the Sunshine Coast for a test drive.
Scott admitted he wasn’t sure what to anticipate, and the construct quality was the very first thing that actually surprised him.
“Those that trash these brands as low quality clearly haven’t sat in a single”, he said. “It was as well-built as my Amarok. There have been no squeaks, rattles: every little thing felt tight.”
He also liked the indisputable fact that all the trendy features like decent stereo, ventilated seats etc. were a part of the deal as standard. No expensive options were obligatory. The true-world performance also matched the numbers on paper.
“It really does feel prefer it has 321kW if you put your foot down,” he said. “None of my diesel utes could get moving like this thing does.”
Scott took the plunge and placed an order in June 2025 for a Shark 6 in white, with delivery coming two weeks after signing.
When asked his thoughts of those first few months with the ute he said simply: “It has been an incredible vehicle to date and has matched up rather well with my requirements. It even has lower fuel consumption than the Silverado when towing my bike trailer long distances along the highway. I can get 18L/100km at 100km/h whereas the Silverado returned 24L/100km.”
I asked Scott what his colleagues and friends considered him going from a Chevrolet V8 to a Chinese hybrid.
“Some found it hard to consider what I had done, especially given all my diesel experience. They think it’s a backwards step in every way,” he said.
His typical reply to this? “I tell them to hop in. The standard speaks for itself. Should you put your foot down, they swear – after which they go quiet. They hear it only has a 1.5-litre engine but they don’t understand what electric motors can do. It truly is quicker than a Raptor.”
Scott charges the battery overnight if he’s going to make use of the vehicle the following day. When he’s not towing, he’s completely happy together with his average range of 80km on pure electricity when driving around town on a completely charged battery.
When asked what he didn’t like concerning the BYD, Scott replied: “It needs more storage. The Silverado had incredible storage options in every single place. I would like greater compartments and more of them.”
Scott admitted he also missed the epic soundtrack of the large V8 but is content with the easy torque, lower fuel bill, and the Shark’s tech and interior comfort.
Would he have bought the BYD again, now after just a few months’ ownership? “Sure” he said. “And when BYD bring out the larger one with the two.0lt engine, their Blade 2 battery and the upper towing limit, I’ll buy that too.”
Finally, would the diesel specialist consider one other diesel ute in the long run?
“Diesels still have a very important role to play, but for my very own requirements… it could need to be pretty special to fight off machines like this,” he said.
The creator received no payment, gift or profit from BYD, or any BYD dealer group, for writing this owner’s purchase story. BYD had no involvement on this content. Surname modified for privacy reasons.
This Article First Appeared At www.carexpert.com.au
