BYD Shark 6 vs GWM Cannon Alpha PHEV

Both are plug-in hybrid dual-cabs that promise cheap electric running with a petrol back-up, and the pricing here is easy to get wrong. The figure you will often see attached to the GWM Cannon Alpha, $52,990, is the diesel Lux. The plug-in Lux PHEV is $59,990, which puts it $2,090 above the BYD Shark 6 Premium rather than below it.

Read down that list and the plug-in BYD is the cheaper of the two plug-in utes at every equivalent step. If your budget is the deciding factor and you do not need 3,500kg of towing, the Shark 6 Premium is the value pick of the plug-in pair. If you do need the full tow rating, the Cannon Alpha Lux PHEV at $59,990 is the cheapest way to get it in a plug-in ute, since the Shark 6 Performance that matches it is $62,900.

Both utes carry a five-star ANCAP rating with the full active-safety suite listed as standard. Neither should put you off on safety grounds.

Both are loaded for the money with big screens, synthetic leather, heated seats and vehicle-to-load to run tools or a campsite off the battery. The Shark 6 feels the more modern and car-like inside; the Cannon Alpha feels the bigger, more rugged truck. It comes down to whether you want a refined daily or a proper workhorse.

This is the split. The Shark 6 is dramatically quicker on paper, 321kW and a claimed 5.7 seconds to 100km/h, which is genuinely rapid for a ute. The Cannon Alpha is 300kW but carries more torque at 750Nm and, crucially, tows the full 3,500kg where the Shark 6 Premium maxes out at 2,500kg. It also has a bigger 37.1kWh battery and proper 4WD with low range. Both claim around 100km of NEDC electric range, so plan on meaningfully less in practice. For towing and off-road hardware the GWM is the more capable tool; for outright pace the BYD, and it is now the cheaper of the two as well.

Both seat five with roomy cabins and competitive trays. The Cannon Alpha is the physically larger vehicle with a more commercial feel, while the Shark 6 leans into car-like comfort and tech. If you spend all day in it for work, the GWM's size and towing matter more; if it doubles as the family car, the Shark 6's polish wins.

GWM's seven-year warranty edges BYD's six, though the Cannon Alpha PHEV no longer has the lower entry price to go with it. Both are cheap to run if you charge at home and do mostly short trips, and both get much thirstier on the highway with the battery depleted, as all plug-in hybrids do. Treat the sub-2.0L/100km combined claims as lab figures, not fuel bills. Resale for both is still establishing itself against the diesel establishment.