However, with production of the two models finishing in 2016 and 2017 respectively, utility vehicles were no longer being mass produced in Australia, which led to investigations into a new platform for the Utes series as far back as the early 2010s.

[2][1] The inaugural season launched at the 2018 Adelaide 500 with ten utes entered, representing five manufacturers in Ford, Holden, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Toyota.

Isuzu would later join the series while Dakar Rally winner Toby Price was amongst the entries in a Mitsubishi Triton.

[4] The new series drew some criticism due to the small field sizes and slower lap times than V8 Utes.

[6][7] This led to various technical upgrades for the cars during the 2019 season, including lowered ride heights and a move to a race-specification Yokohama tyre.