Tag: ute

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TRITON TESTED – IT’S JUST A QUESTION OF THE PRICE.

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  After a string of hybrid and fully-electric vehicles, including a full-blown electric ute, it was kind of refreshing to get behind the wheel of a no-frills turbo-diesel 4×4 ute like they used to make (and obviously still do). The five-seat Mitsubishi Triton GLX double cab “Pick Up” (somewhere along the line they became pickups) , in either 4×2 or 4×4 configuration, is just such a beast, complete with good old fashioned steel wheels. Mitsubishi describes the GLX as everything you want in a tough, reliable and durable ute —… Read more

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KIA TASMAN IS GOOD … AND IT HAD TO BE

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Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know that the Kia Tasman is Kia’s first ute. And it has a big task ahead of it as Kia attempts to acquire a chunk of the lucrative light commercial market. Now the number four brand in the Australian market, the South Korean car maker has come a long way in the past decade. But it can’t take the fight up to market leader Toyota without a ute as part of its arsenal — and what a ute it is. Together with… Read more

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PICK-UP FAR FROM A WORKSHY MATE

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Retaining that thought throughout a week with the workhorse failed to take the edge off initial utilitarian impressions: horses for courses of course. Not that ‘old mate’ harked back to some long-past Luddite era. Depending on the grade, the new WorkMate boasts a line-up of automotive advances such as Bluetooth connectivity, Toyota Safety Sense suite of measures, Toyota Connected Services and power this and that. Performance also is taken to new heights with a 2.8-litre turbo-diesel engine with V-Active technology. There is still the tried-and-true 2.4 litre turbo-diesel available. All… Read more

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D-MAX AT HOME AMONG WINNERS

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With utes accounting for more than one fifth of the 1.2 million vehicles sold in Australia last year Isuzu has jumped on the Ford Ranger/Toyota HiLux bandwagon with a seriously upgraded D-Max pick-up truck. The pick-up finished as the fourth best-selling vehicle overall, as well as scoring third in the dominant one-tonne ute LCV segment With major updates to technology, safety, interior and exterior design, 25 models cater for owners across the board from families to tradies and the odd tourist, the 2024 D-Max offers a choice of body styles,… Read more

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TRITON TOPS UP TECH, TWEAKS POWERTRAIN

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You have to hand it to Mitsubishi: they are not backward at going forward. Take the latest Triton, for example, which had hardly hit the road Down Under in February this year before a technical upgrade in July and the addition of new payload options below 1000kg one month later. Both, says Mitsubishi, were the result of real-world feedback across several key stakeholders, such as dealers, the media and all-new Triton customers. Of the original were the popular Pick-Up body style in Double Cab and Club Cab body; followed by… Read more

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MITSUBISHI TRITON GLS 4X4 DUAL CAB UTE

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Watching the Olympics, it’s all about who gets the gold. No one remembers anyone beyond the top three placings and so it goes with utes and the Australian new car market. Ranger is the gold medalist, with a clear lead, followed by Hilux with the silver and the D-Max with the bronze. Also-rans include the Mitsubishi Triton, back for a sixth crack at the record but still sitting a fair way back in fourth position out of medal contention. Although its redesigned front now carries the Mitsubishi name, it doesn’t… Read more

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CANNON FIRES FIRST SHOT IN HEAVY ARTILLERY EV CAMPAIGN

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The GWM Cannon has become the first full electric utility in Australia, the Alpha Ultra Hybrid muscling in between the Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux and Isuzu D-Mac and the full-sized pick-ups from Chevrolet, Ford, Ram and Toyota. The Cannon dual cab flagship also strengthens GWM’s New Energy Vehicle strategy, becoming the brand’s sixth NEV offering following the Jolion Hybrid, Tank 300 and 500 hybrids and Ora EV. Coming in three variants with a 2.4-litre turbocharged diesel engine, or 2-litre turbo petrol motor, the latter linked with a hybrid powertrain, all… Read more

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GREAT WALL EXTENDS THE RANGE OF ITS CANNON

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Great Wall Motor (GWM) has provided details of its largest vehicle to date the Cannon Alpha ute. Due here around mid-2024 the Alpha will be available with a choice of hybrid or diesel powertrains, potentially making it the first ute in Australia to offer a full hybrid powertrain. The addition of the Alpha will be the GWM’s sixth electric vehicle, joining Jolion Hybrid, H6 Hybrid, Tank 300 Hybrid, Tank 500 Hybrid & Ora EV. The range-topping 2.0-litre turbo petrol hybrid engine offers combined outputs of 255kW and 648Nm of torque… Read more

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CANNON BIG SHOT: HITS AND MISSES

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The Great Wall made an unchallenged impression on the landscape of China during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644); conversely, established as recently as 1984 (2009 in Australia), the titular motor manufacturer has played an impressive leading role in China becoming the largest exporter of motor vehicles in the world. With no let-up in sales of the Great Wall Motors four-door, five-seat 4×4 ute, a new range- topping variant has landed Down Under the form of the rugged Cannon-XSR. Taking the robust foundations of the GWM Ute dual cab platform, the new… Read more

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SSANGYONG MUSSO ULTIMATE 4X4 DUAL CAB UTE

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Well, hello. We’d almost forgotten about the other Korean – you know, SsangYong. After some financial woes, restructure and change of ownership, SsangYong is back in business selling cars, with two SUVs and a 4×4 dual cab ute to offer. Originally launched here in 2004, Musso was available as both a ute and SUV, the former called the Musso Sports, which attracted buyers with a bargain price and Mercedes- sourced turbo-diesel. These days ute and SUV have parted company, but it’s the Musso 4×4 dual cab ute that we are… Read more