After more than 20,000 submissions from across the country, Chery Australia has confirmed its upcoming diesel plug-in hybrid ute will be called the Stockman.

Rather than picking a name behind closed doors, Chery invited Australians to have their say. Tradies, families, regional communities and ute enthusiasts all had a hand in shaping it. The result is a name with genuine Australian heritage that fits right into the country’s fiercely contested ute market.

The winning entry came from Victorian Steve Kodikara, who’ll take home the keys to the first Stockman when it hits local showrooms later this year.

The naming competition generated thousands of entries before being whittled down to a shortlist of eight. Stockman ultimately secured more than 25 per cent of the public vote from over 12,000 Australians, edging out Outrider, Orca, Ironbark, Bushwalker, Longreach, Ridgeback, Terra and Mate.

Of the finalists, Stockman best captured what many Australians still associate with a ute: Dependable, capable and built for whatever gets thrown at it. Steve’s submission leaned into that, drawing on the legacy of Australia’s stockmen, the nation’s original workhorses, who earned trust through reliability, perseverance and the ability to handle tough terrain.

“I’m incredibly honoured that Stockman was chosen from the thousands of entries submitted to title Chery’s new ute,” said Steve Kodikara. “I felt the name captured the spirit of Australia’s original workhorse and everything a ute should represent: Reliability, capability and resilience. I’m glad it resonated with Australians, and I’m thrilled to see it become part of Chery’s story.” 

Lucas Harris, Chief Operating Officer at Chery Australia, added: “Stockman stood out because it captured something uniquely Australian while reflecting the capability, reliability and innovation behind our upcoming ute. Steve’s submission brought the name to life through a compelling story, connecting Australia’s heritage with the next generation of ute technology.”

The Stockman name may sound familiar, as it was a name Suzuki used in Australia on a stripped-back, utilitarian 4×4 variant of the Sierra in the 1990s, aimed at rural and fleet buyers who wanted a simple, no-frills off-roader built for work rather than comfort.

The Stockman will be Australia’s first diesel plug-in hybrid ute, combining diesel power with plug-in hybrid technology. Specs, pricing and a firm launch date are still to come, with Chery promising more detail closer to the market introduction.

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Steve’s full entry

The Australian stockman is more than a rugged icon, he’s a highly skilled worker shaped by an unforgiving history. Not a folk tale. A real person, doing a real job, across terrain that defeated every piece of equipment that wasn’t built specifically to handle it.

They covered Australia’s vast distances not because it was easy, but because the job demanded it, across stock routes stretching thousands of kilometres, through conditions that modern vehicles still struggle to manage. They delivered without fail, because failure wasn’t an option when the land and the livelihoods of entire communities depended on them getting through.

The Chery Stockman was built in exactly that spirit. Diesel power fused with electric drive. Old-world grit fused with next-generation engineering. The heritage of a working nation fused with the technology that will carry it forward. This isn’t a ute named after a legend. It’s a ute that is one. Chery Stockman. Built for the Australia that never stopped working.

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