and comparing the auto box in this car to the colorado: toyota gets 5 speed, colorado has to make do with 4 speed, but the ranger gets a 5 speed.

For a while there, was not sure if I would ever get anywhere…doesn’t help when you have been bit by a 3ltr 2001 Patrol doing its guts at 147,000km.

What I can say though is the Hilux bet all hands down!!! (FOR ME OFCOURSE)

I drove the BT50, Ranger, DMAX, Colorado and Triton…was impressed by each for different reasons…but…everytime I climbed back into the Hilux, I just knew this had to be it…I now have the local ARB ready to add a couple of extras to help me in the bush and as more monies become available, more extras to be added.

I CAN’T WAIT!!!

It is absolute rubbish- and you would never know unless you never put your Toyota blinkers aside and try anything else. While base models of other cars in our fleet manage to get minor luxuries like remote central locking and power windows, the Hilux doesn’t even have intermittent wipers. Toyota want you to pay extra for this simple safety feature. While other cars in the fleet are slow and recalcitrant (except for the Mazda), the Hilux four cylinder manages to be slow and thirsty. Oh, but Toyota’s are bullet proof and reliable, I hear you say? Honestly, tell me how many new cards do you see broken down now days?

It goes on. The interior is cheap and nasty. The initially aesthetically pleasing looks are quickly disbanded with a closer inspection and a quick prod. It’s truly insulting that those horrible materials will outlast you, myself, our children and everyone you love dearly. Someday they will all be gone, while this crap interior will sit in a landfill refusing to decay, or maybe get recycled into another crap interior like the equally horrible dashboard of a car that is just as contemptuous to it’s loyal paying customers – the Toyota Yaris.

It has the turning circle of a battleship- and this is the base model with lowly small wheel sizes. The front bench seat is fixed. The gearshift is lousy. The motor (4 cyl) sound wheezy and like a canned fart at the very best. The cabin is so much bigger than the superseded models yet somehow feels more cramped for tall people. Is paying more for a Toyota truly regained with supposed increased reliability and resale value?

When you consider all of this, the famous quote “No one got fired for buying IBM” comes to mind.

Yeah, I am not comparing apples with apples because I slagging off a workmate against an SR5. Remember, though, that a fundamentally bad car still translates to a fundamentally bad car further up the models.

Toyota built their impressive empire for being boring but with outstanding reliability, value for money, quality and engineering that forced the rest of the world to sit up, take notice and lift their game. It seems they are trading on this reputation without really offering any of that today.

I can get the DMax for $10K less.