A two-time Drive Car of the Year – Best Dual Cab Ute winner, the D-MAX’s star trick is its gutsy 3.0-litre diesel engine, ideal for towing. With a big range of single-cab and dual-cab options, available in either 2WD or AWD, the D-MAX continues its reign as one of Australia’s most popular utes.
The 2022 Isuzu D-Max LS-M is the entry-point into a dual-cab, 4x4, Isuzu ute with a 3.0-litre engine. But is it the best value in the range?
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Purchased in feb 15. Only warranty problem was leaking rear brake light seal into the cabin behind the rear seat.. Excellent sales and mediocre service dept at place purchesed. Change dealerships after 70000 and warranty accepted and repaired with no fuss.the only other detractor is the tub tie down points. Only 4 in bad positions.
The dealers attitude at sunshine coast eas excellent and had access to courtesy car as well as bus to local area.
This vehicle has outstanding fuel economy 8.6l/ 100 a good strong engine albeit rattly due to the life of engine timing gear and never let me down on and off road. Good towing performance and great at chewing up highway kms. The 5 speed manual gearbox was silky smooth once run in and was more than happy to pull hard overtaking in 5th gear.
Great reflector headlights that were not carried over to the 2017 ungortunately so good that the spotties made little difference when on ( ipf 900 with 130w lamps ). Paintwork finish was great in the silver and no blemishes. Inspection after 3 years revealed no evidence off rust even though had a bit of beach work. I still cleaned after use of course.
Tyres wore well and replaced at 70000 with mickey thompson atrs.
Simple inside cabin controls with a reasonable sound system with bluetooth audio and phone capabilities. Functional vynil floor and plastics with good storage especially for drinks. 2 dash cupholders 2 centre console and 2 in the doorskin.. Reasonable rear seat room.
Added dealer accessories that come with vehicle warranty towbar. Tonneau. Nudge bar. Roof racks.
Sold at 110000 km with no issues at a very reasonable private resale in the 75% retention region not to be sneezed at after 3 years.
. This vehicle wore very well and the steering and driveline were nice and tight as to be expected with the same driver and 90% highway kms.
So impressed i bought the 2018 model which other than the lights gearbox and minor internal engine mods is essentially the same car.
In short this is a ute trying to be a truck punching above its weight not a ute trying to be a car.
I've owned my D-Max for just over one year. Since buying it I've added a snorkel, bullbar, winch, rear recovery bar, oil catch can, and led driving lights.
I find it comfortable, quiet in the cabin, and economical. The transmission and clutch feel light and solid at the same time. My only quibble is the gear stick throw could be a little narrower. The placement of the transfer case switch, being a large silver knob on the centre console is a bit annoying and could be accidentally activated by a curious child. This would only be a distraction as the transfer case can be switched into 4H at up to 100kph and is locked out of 4L unless stopped. I would have preferred it higher up on the dash, near the steering wheel. The two glove boxes are handy with an extra 12volt outlet.
The lighting is good but the reverse lights leave a bit to be desired. I've added two LED lights to remedy this. My major criticism would be the air conditioning. On the hottest days (40 plus degrees) it has to be run at maximum constantly but does keep the cabin comfortable.
While many "professional" reviewers focus on the lack of gadgets and "connectivity" I find this to be a bonus. I was looking for a basic, reliable, capable, uncomplicated ute and that's what I got in the Isuzu D-Max. Better yet the purchase price comes in well under the nearest competitor. I recommend this ute to anyone who doesn't want to pay a motza for a brand or who isn't interested in crap like OEM GPS, seat warmers and built in penis strokers.
Having previously owned a BT502010 model adn looked at the new updated BT50, I would have to say the DMAX is far better for price and comfort than the BT50. The fuel range is excellant usually getting around a minimum of 850kms to the 76 ltr tank capacity. The ride is very comfy adn stable plus teh turning circle with the rack and pinion steering is just like driving a car. The only downside is there are no tweeters in the top of the doors and the bluetooth looses connectivity and can sometimes "stick" on one station even though the radio says other stations are playing. With the standard tyres from factory, I have travelled over 65000kms and just replaced the tyres now. I have the 5 speed automatic and is excellent in towing as I also have a caravan and when towing this has a severe detriment on the fuel economy so I have installed a long range fuel tank to cover this shortfall, should come as an extra option. There are ample cup holders and storage, the extra glovebox helps. It could do with a power outlet in the rear of the console and air con vents to assist with the comfort of the back passngers. The motor is excellent and is good for the towing and normal driving however the exhaust emissions are pretty bad as if you take off quickly, you leave that awful black cloud of diesel exhaust fumes.. Will ugrade to the new variant when it arrives in 2020.
This is the 8th Isuzu built vehicle I have owned (including light trucks), so to say Im a bit of a fan is an understatement, but for good reason.
Ive spent a total of only $900 on repairs with well over 1.5 million km travelled on those vehicles (excluding regular maintainence of course), many of which by drivers that were less than sympathetic with them!
When it was time to replace my D22 Navara, I had a good look around at what was available, but my number one requirement was reliability.
The D-Max was the only ute I where simply couldnt find anything bad written about them. No one seemed to have any mechanical issues.
Now have almost 50,000 k's and its still running great.
Fuel economy has been outstanding, averaging around 8.0l per 100k's
Best Ive seen was low 7's, worst was just under 10l/ 100k (carting tonne after tonne of material onto a very steep building site with lots of low range work)
The engine is simply brilliant.
Stupid amounts of torque just off idle means you simply dont have to rev it hard, even with a full load onboard.
Mine rarely see's 2000 rpm around town, and even when fully loaded, barely see's 2500 rpm. It just pulls so easily.
Towing right up to the limit is easy as. Its a very, very good tow vehicle
Gobs of low down torque and fairly high gearing make for very relaxed highway cruising as well.
Another nice benefit is the lack of DPF. That was a biggy for me when purchasing as my utes can often do some very short runs for weeks on end before hitting a highway
Cabin is a bit low rent compared to some of the others out there, but its solid and squeak free. Plastics are a bit hard, but dust and dirt wipe right off.
Seats are a little firm and get a bit hard after long trips, but thats being pretty picky.
Stereo sounds pretty good, but the bluetooth is pretty hard to connect for the first time. Its unneccesarily complicated.
Ride is a bit bouncy when empty, but thats to be expected.
Load a tonne in the back and its not riding on bumpstops.
Its sits nice and level and doesn't feel like its close to being overloaded.
If you think it sounds like I love my D-Max, you'd be right, but it does have a very annoying "feature" that Isuzu would be wise to change ASAP.
The lack of proper LSD and the reliance on electronic traction control is a huge flaw in my opinion.
It tries to limit the wheelspin of the wheel with the least traction by applying the brakes on that wheel and directing torque to the other wheel, but it simply is overwhelmed by the torque and works poorly (at best).
Ive been stuck more than once with diagonally opposite wheels at full droop and the other wheels near full compression, with both drooping wheels simply spinning.
I once had trouble trying to take off (up hill) with an empty tray with one wheel on a wet grass verge and the other on the road (in 2WD) and it simply caused the engine to bog down without me even moving.
In a word, its rubbish.
If you plan to take a D-Max off road on any half serious track, get a locker. With a rear locker or LSD, it would be a totally different story.
Other than that, I cant fault my D-Max
If you bought a 4x2 or are buying to use as a tow vehicle, you could not go wrong.
As a serious off roader, it would need some work, but Im sure once the diff is sorted, you could go where ever you-d like due to the low down torque.
Overall I rate it pretty highly and will definitely buy another when the time comes.
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