Toyota say their new Hilux is tougher than ever. We think it's softer and now simply better than ever before.
Love it or hate it, the new Toyota Hilux is styled for a modern world. Picture: Mark Jones
I can see some of you rolling your eyes. Toyota Hilux soft? Be real. There isn’t a soul on planet earth that doesn’t think a Toyota Hilux is tough.
We all know you can’t kill a Toyota Hilux. Jeremy Clarkson famously tried. And failed. Thousands of farmers do Dakar with theirs every day.
Unbeatable reliability
The Toyota Hilux has a fearsome reputation for reliability and its ability to go anywhere. But let’s not kid ourselves.
The previous generation Hilux was horribly dated in terms of interior, tech, refinement and ride quality.
Nip and tuck it here and there. Add stickers. Whatever. But at the end of the day when you climbed into a Toyota Hilux you always knew you were driving a bakkie.
A bumpy ride on tar. An even worse one on gravel. And driving dynamics that were anything but dynamic.
These are things that might be okay for a delivery workhorse. But city slicker, leisure double cab, buyers want more.
Buyers want refinement and luxury
When you are handing over R1-million for a bakkie. You want the big screens, state of the art tech, refinement, and car like driving.
And this is where Ford has set the benchmark with their double cab Rangers. Whilst Toyota might outsell everybody with their Hilux as a product range.
It’s Ford that dominates at the top of the double cab sales table with the Ranger. And for exactly the reasons I have just mentioned.
Anyway, moving back to the new Toyota Hilux itself. Immediately when jumping inside. The interior looks and feels modern and on par with the best in the segment.
The new Toyota Hilux has finally stepped into the 21st century. You have the big screens. A fully digital 12.3-inch instrument cluster sits alongside a 12.3-inch infotainment display.
And like with the Ford Ranger, one can now do things like remotely monitor your bakkie’s status, lock and unlock doors, locate it, and schedule services and receive maintenance reminders directly from your smartphone.
Latest in safety systems
Thanks to Toyota Safety Sense 3, you also get the likes of:
- enhanced Pre-Collision functionality,
- improved Emergency Steering Assist,
- improved Adaptive Cruise Control,
- Lane Tracing Assist,
- Automatic High Beam,
- Proactive Driving Assist,
- Blind Spot Monitoring,
- Rear Cross Traffic Alert,
- and Safe Exit Assist technologies.
Bottom line is that this is the most advanced Toyota Hilux ever and for the first time on Hilux, you now also benefit from Blind Spot Monitoring, Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Safe Exit Assist technologies.
So much better to drive
Getting on the move, the next thing that becomes immediately apparent, is the improved ride quality and refinement. This is not the old Hilux.
Toyota implemented extensive changes to the suspension, steering and mounting systems with particular attention being paid to improve the bakkie’s behaviour on gravel roads.
And it has paid off. This new Toyota Hilux drives and feels like a Ford Ranger. And that in my books is a proper compliment.
At this point you might be thinking that the new Toyota Hilux can do no wrong. But if there is any criticism to be had. It centres around the powertrain.
Is there enough power?
I know it works for Toyota. And they seemingly have no desire to change it either. But this 2.8-litre GD-6 turbodiesel engine is really long in the tooth now.
Sure, it produces a decent 150kW of power and 500Nm of torque. Plus, a small bump of 8.5kW and 65Nm thanks to a tiny lithium battery and electric motor generator.
Which we all know is adequate. But Ford offers a buyer a more powerful 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel and 2.3-litre EcoBoost turbo petrol.
And the Chinese with all their 300 plus kW plug in hybrids, and range extender options have now moved the power game even further into another dimension all together.
Yes, I know it’s not all about speed. But I personally would love to see a Hilux with more than 200kW on tap.
And if you look at the numbers in the chart below, you can’t but help feeling that Toyota is getting left behind here for a choice of better words.
But this is the only place that the new Toyota Hilux is getting left behind now. It is finally up to date and so much better in every way that counts.
Pricing
- Hilux 2.8 GD-6 4×4 Legend 6AT MHEV – R999 900
The new Toyota Hilux is backed by a three-year/100 000km warranty and a nine-services/90 000km service plan. The Mild Hybrid battery is covered by an eight-year/160 000km battery warranty.
