MAN Magazine Summer 2019

COMPARISON
COMPARISON
Pick-ups mega-test
C
STATS, SPECS AND RATINGS
want your pick-up to be usable
Mercedes-Benz
day to day, Nissan and Mercedes-Benz
that’s where Navara
the Ni
Hilux falls down.
X-Class
Its interior Tekna X-Class
is relatively 190 dCi Te
Top
narrow, while space for rear seat
X250d 0-62mph 4Matic speed
List
passengers isX250d price inc
poor; only the4Matic
VAT List
12.3sec 106mph
Progressive
L200 and Fullback £33,095
1
Progressive
are worse
£3
in this respect. And while the
List price inc VAT
interior feels List List rugged price price enough exinc VAT toVAT
List L
Engine £36,612 4cyl,2393cc,diesel
cope with£28,075
the£36,612
rigours of working £2£
Peak power 148bhp @ 3400rpm
life, the materials don’t look
Peak List torque price295Ib ex VAT ft @ 1600-2000rpm
3
premium THE enough List PHENOMENON price for a pick-up ex VAT THAT is the THE L
Gearbox
£30,510
6-spd automatic
at this price pick-up point. £30,510 truck might have started pick £
Kerb weight 2090kg
But where offthe in the Hilux good really ol’US of A, but it off
Turning IT’S TAKEN circle SOME 11.8m time to get used
falls behind didn’t the IT’Spack take TAKEN long is inSOME its for the time Japanese to get useddidn
I
Economy to the sight 39.2mpg of a Mercedes-Benz
on-road driving to realise to the manners. sight that it ofmight As a Mercedes-Benz
we be lucrative to rt
badge nestled (NEDC among average) this line-up
mentionedtoearlier, build badgesome the nestled Hilux of their among canown, this with line-upto b
Tank of rough and80ready litres pick-up trucks.
deal with huge Nissan of weights rough beingand one ready its ofbed,
thepick-up first trucks. Niss o
COIt’s 2
2 emissions the first of 189g/km its kind from the
but this requires Japanese It’s the rear manufacturers first suspension of its kindto from takethe
on Japa I
brand, but it did have a bit of a
SAFETY head start, because it’s based on
the Nissan Navara.
that’s super-stiff, thebrand, Americans causing but itat did the their have rear own a bit game of a
end to become with head its very tiny start, bouncy yet because sophisticated overit’s based on
speed bumps Datsun the andNissan 120 along pick-up Navara. roughin 1955.
theb
with h
Datt
EuroInside, NCAP crash however, rating the X-Class
roads. Thankfully, More Inside, than a heavy however, 60 years load in the later, X-Class M
yyyyy
looks and feels very different
the bed does Nissan looks wonders isand still for feels producing thevery ride, different one of Niss l
from the Navara. Its interior is the 1 The infotainment 2 Lots of hard plastics 3 Hilux has the highest but you’ll the still from most havethe technically to Navara. put up with Its advanced interior is the thef
All protection
smartest-looking of the eight, with system looks and feels are in evidence
driving position of the the clattery pick-ups 2.4-litre smartest-looking on diesel sale engine the ofform the eight, of with pick s
85% 82% 73% 25%
lots of chrome accents and plenty aftermarket, with slow here, but they feel bunch for a commanding and an old-school thelots Navara. of six-speed chrome Benefiting accents fromand a plentythel
AEB ofYes
stitched leather. The driving responses to inputs durable enough
view of the road
automatictwin-turbocharged gearbox of stitched thatleather. slurs 2.3-litre The driving diesel twin o
position is good, too, although it’s Performance is relatively sedate, but the X-Class has a quiet engine and generates littleheavily road noise, between engine, making position shifts.
relaxing pumps is good, tout drive too, a thumping although it’seng
Sl p
a shame that the steering wheel
187bhp a shame andthat 332lbthe ft – steering the highest wheel 187b a
Toyota doesn’t adjust Hilux for reach.
power doesn’t output adjust andfor equal-highest
reach. powd
The X-Class is one of the
torque The figure X-Class of the is one group of the – and torq
Invincible
longest pick-ups here, resulting
yetlongest somehow pick-ups also manages here, resulting to be yetl
in impressive rear leg room, and
theincleanest impressive and most rear leg frugal. room, and thei
Double
its interior is among
Cabthe widest.
While its interior the majority is among ofthe pick-ups widest. Wi
2.4L Head room auto isn’t great in the
have Head to make roomdo isn’t with great old-school in the havH
back compared with some of the
920mm
920mm
960mm 965mm leaf back springs compared at the rear, withthe some Navara, of the leaf b
List others, pricebut inc theVAT
X-Class doesn’t feel
likeothers, related but the Mercedes X-ClassX-Class,
doesn’t feel likeo
£33,330 cramped, so you’ll be comfortable
1410mm
gets cramped, a more sophisticated you’ll be comfortable five-link gets c
1470mm
as a passenger on a long journey.
1430mm set-up as awith passenger coil springs on a long thatjourney.
setsho
a
1495mm
List price The longex body VAT means the
640mm
should The theoretically long body means offer more the
695mm
1060mm
£27,845 X-Class has a long load bed as
car-like X-Class ride 1065mm has comfort a long and loadhandling.
bed as car- X
well, although it’s the shallowest.
However, well, although as we’veit’s seen thewith shallowest. the Howw
THE This TOYOTA isn’t necessarily HILUX hasabeen
bad thing, Space Steering for rear wheel seatdoesn’t passengers adjust isfor relatively reach, but poor, even withtall thedrivers least leg aren’t room; short head on and space; shoulder interioroom is wide aren’t and X-Class, all This rear that leg isn’t that generous, room necessarily doesn’t is plentiful either necessarily a bad thing, X-C EvT
around for more than half a
century, and in that time its
reputation for bombproof
reliability has made it the de facto
STATS, SPECS AND RATINGS though, because it makes it easier
to reach in over the top to access
whatever is in the bed.
choice for many pick-up buyers
On the road, the X-Class isn’t
around the world. However,
Top
quite such a cut above the rest.
0-62mph speed
with an increasing number 2 of
It’s the heaviest vehicle here, 2
11.8sec 109mph
consumers 1 looking at pick-ups
and while the 1
185bhp 2.3-litre
as an alternative to large SUVs,
diesel engine looks relatively
this latest model is tasked with
appealing to a broader audience.
So, has it succeeded?
Well, yes and no. Even though
Toyota has clearly focused on
the luxury end of the pick-up
market, the Hilux has certainly
not forgotten its working-class
roots. Indeed, viewed purely as a
commercial vehicle, it’s one of
Engine
Peak power
Peak torque
Gearbox
Kerb weight
Turning circle
Economy
Tank
4cyl,2298cc,diesel
185bhp @ 3750rpm
332Ib ft @ 1500-2500rpm
7-spd automatic
2234kg
12.4m
35.8mpg
(NEDC average)
73 litres
powerful on paper next to most
of the others, it doesn’t really
feel that way when you’re behind
the wheel. Acceleration is sedate
rather than urgent, although
there’s enough low-rev muscle
to haul around heavy loads, and
the engine is the most refined
here. The automatic gearbox is
slicker than all the rest, 2too.
the most impressive trucks3
here. For example, it has one of
the most practical load spaces,
CO 2 emissions 207g/km
SAFETY
The ride is relatively supple
around town, but the X-Class
is caught out by bigger road
3
because its bed is among the
imperfections such as expansion
longest in the class and the sides
Euro NCAP crash rating
joints and sleeping policemen.
are nice and shallow to allow
yyyyy
And although the steering has
easy1access Interiorfrom looksthe plush, outside. 2 Comand infotainment 3 There are no issues
a nice weight 1 The 1 Interior 7.0in to it once touchscreen looksyou’ve
plush, 2 Optional 2 Comand seven inf 1 T
All protection
Plus, but it has some the materials, highest payload system impresses, with a with space up front,
turned inisto well but a corner, laid some out materials, and it’s fairly actuallyautomatic system gearbo impre is
90% 87% 80% 77%
rating such in as thethese class. air vents, crisp display and helpful although there aren’t
very vague responsive, just such off as but these centre, poor air vents, making is preferable crisp display tores
th a
However, feel a biteven cheapif you workrotary on dial controller enough storage cubbies AEB Yes
it tricky to resolution place feel a the bit lets cheap X-Class it down awkward rotary manual dial con res
a farm or a building site, you still Hilux’s ride is transformed with a load in the bed; without it, its body pogos around on stiff suspension, accurately while atthe higher engine speeds. is clattery
M
X
X
P
60 | December 2018 whatcar.com
whatcar.com
whatcar.com60 | December 2018 2018| 67 whatcar.com60