MG has launched an audacious bid to topple the Toyota HiLux, launching the Ford Ranger-sized Extender ute in Thailand.
MG - owned by China's SAIC Motor - is attempting to shake-up Thailand's ute market, where 75 per cent of total sales are soaked up by Toyota, Isuzu and Mitsubishi. Its solution is this; the Extender, which is based (heavily) on the LDV T60.
"We position the MG Extender as a pick-up truck developed to suit customers who are looking for a vehicle for both business and daily life," MG's Pongsak Lertruedeewattanavong told the Nikkei Asian Review.
Offered in extended or dual-cab guise, the Extender is powered by a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder diesel engine good for around 120kW and 375Nm, which is channeled through a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic and sent to the rear or all four wheels.
Thailand is the only confirmed market to date, where the Extender will start from around $26,000.
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Andrew Chesterton
Contributing Journalist
Andrew Chesterton should probably hate cars. From his hail-damaged Camira that looked like it had spent a hard life parked at the end of Tiger Woods' personal driving range, to the Nissan Pulsar Reebok that shook like it was possessed by a particularly mean-spirited demon every time he dared push past 40km/h, his personal car history isn't exactly littered with gold.
But that seemingly endless procession of rust-savaged hate machines taught him something even more important; that cars are more than a collection of nuts, bolts and petrol. They're your ticket to freedom, a way to unlock incredible experiences, rolling invitations to incredible adventures. They have soul.
And so, somehow, the car bug still bit. And it bit hard.
When "Chesto" started his journalism career with News Ltd's Sunday and Daily Telegraph newspapers, he covered just about everything, from business to real estate, courts to crime, before settling into state political reporting at NSW Parliament House.
But the automotive world's siren song soon sounded again, and he begged anyone who would listen for the opportunity to write about cars. Eventually they listened, and his career since has seen him filing car news, reviews and features for TopGear, Wheels, Motor and, of course, CarsGuide, as well as many, many others.
More than a decade later, and the car bug is yet to relinquish its toothy grip. And if you ask Chesto, he thinks it never will.
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