Aimed squarely at the urban tradesman, the Hilux was almost immediately pressed into service helping me move a large number of items from one storage place to another, including things like a ladder and garden tools. Our test Hilux had been fitted with a number of useful SR5 options such as a roof rack, security alarm, reversing sensors, nudge bars in stainless steel, rear corner protectors, side running boards, a custom cab, towbar, monsoon windows, alloys, a clear acrylic bonnet protector and more. These added significantly to the visual appearance of the Hilux, and added significantly to the price (see the table below).
If you don’t need four-wheel drive because your working life involves visiting the suburbs, you’ll benefit from the extra efficiency that not having to drive all four wheels gives you (8.1 litres per 100km as opposed to 8.3l/100km) and, if you’re like me, you’ll enjoy the five-speed manual gearbox and sense of connectedness with what’s going on that is often lacking in today’s vehicles.
The gearbox grabs the power from the 3-litre turbodiesel which sucks air into the intercooler via a bonnet scoop. It produces 126kW and 343Nm which gives it adequate acceleration for getting out of junctions in the city. A limited slip rear differential helps keep the power to the ground, but no Continue reading “Toyota Hilux 2WD Dual Cab 2012 Review” »
Once at the farm, which has some nice steep tracks, we decided to do a bit of light off-roading, even though the supplied tyres are barely mud oriented – really just chunky road tyres. Some light rain that had passed over the hard-packed clay soon made the going treacherous and we hit a small drainage rut that slid the Hilux sideways towards a stand of manuka that, while sparing us from dropping down a steep bank, wouldn’t have made the paintwork that flash.
Last year two modified Toyota Hilux trucks travelled 2,307 kilometers across the Antarctic High Plateau in 108 hours. Sounds pretty easy, right? Wrong, the average speed for the tough trip was just 21km/h which gives an indication of the extreme conditions the drivers had to deal with.
Toyota New Zealand General Manager of Sales and Operations, Steve Prangnell said “This is a significant change for Hilux. The improvements we have made now will further strengthen Hilux’s reign as New Zealand’s most popular light truck.”
Toyota NZ General Manager of Sales and Operations, Steve Prangnell said “Hilux has built its reputation around being unbreakable. We’re taking the tough and reliable truck that so many New Zealanders love and making it even better with a fresh line-up, improved safety and bold new looks. These latest changes will substantially improve the value of Hilux for our customers and further strengthen Hilux’s position as New Zealand’s favourite truck.”
Africa or the Middle East it’s caught up in a war right here in NZ. The dominance of Toyota’s pickup is no longer total, it faces threats from all sides, the torque thumping Nissan Navara, Great Wall’s low rent V240 and the slick VW Amarok.