Adventure Reviews
Jeep Wrangler 2025 review: Rubicon - off-road test
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By Marcus Craft · 18 Sep 2024
The Jeep Wrangler Rubicon is a purpose-built body-on-frame 4WD with few concessions to comfort, safety or common sense.It's a fun off-roader capable of tackling terrain few other standard 4WDs are even able to get near.But with its latest update - including a new 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine replacing the previous Pentastar V6 - is it now even better?
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Nissan Patrol 2025 review: Ti-L - Off-road test
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By Marcus Craft · 01 Sep 2024
The next-generation Nissan Patrol, the Y63, is due in Australia before the end of 2025, but in the meantime Nissan has upgraded the current-generation Patrol in an attempt to address criticisms of the multimedia system and old-style interior.Otherwise there have been no performance upgrades, and so, this much-loved 4WD wagon remains largely unchanged for now, which is exactly what some fans want.
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Ford Ranger 2025 review: Tremor - Australian first drive
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By David Morley · 29 Aug 2024
When you have the number one selling vehicle in the country on your books picking up incremental volume can be a challenge. But expanding the range is one way to do it. Which is why Ford has added yet another variant, the off-highway focused Tremor, to its Ranger ute line-up. Contributing Journalist Dave Morley has slipped behind the wheel to see if the value and performance equation stacks up.
Isuzu D-Max X-Terrain vs Isuzu MU-X LS-T 4x4 3.0 2025 comparison review
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By Marcus Craft · 09 Aug 2024
Which is best for 4WDing, a wagon or ute? We've put two of Isuzu's well-equipped, well-regarded top-shelf 4WDs - the MU-X in LS-T spec and the D-Max X-Terrain - against each other to find out. The D-Max has been given a mid-life facelift and useful multimedia upgrades, while the MU-X has received a more modest model-year update. So which 3.0-litre 4WD is best suited to you?
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Chevrolet Silverado 2025 review: 2500 HD - off-road test
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By Marcus Craft · 07 Aug 2024
Like them or loathe them, US utes here to stay. Bigger and torquier than the usual mainstream utes we're used to seeing in Australia, these US utes have plenty of appeal as load-luggers and towing platforms.And that's where the 2025 Silverado HD (Heavy Duty) LTZ Premium - with a tweaked 6.6-litre turbo-diesel V8 engine (1322Nm) and a braked towing capacity of 4500kg - slots into the market.
Toyota HiLux 2024 review: Rogue V-Active - off-road test
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By Marcus Craft · 15 Jul 2024
The 2024 Toyota HiLux represents a small step in an EV-lite direction. Some new variants have 'V-Active Technology', a combination of a motor generator, 48-volt battery and DC/DC converter aimed at improving performance and fuel efficiency, compared to the standard HiLux's 2.8-litre turbo-diesel engine. It's not a hybrid HiLux, but it's the closest thing you'll get until that arrives in 2025.
Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series 2024 review: 76 Series Wagon GXL - off-road test
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By Mark Oastler · 12 Jul 2024
At the introduction of Toyota's upgraded LandCruiser 70 Series late last year all eyes were on the new four-cylinder version with auto transmission. But the tough as nails 4.5-litre V8 diesel manual hasn't gone away with an order bank stretching from here to Christmas... at least. Time to revisit an all-time classic off-roader.
Volkswagen Amarok 2024 review: TDI600 Style
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By Marcus Craft · 10 Jul 2024
The Volkswagen Amarok has been around since 2011 and it has garnered a stack of awards, a legion of fans and long ago set the standard for refinement in utes. Times changed, though, and the rest of the ute pack eventually caught up or even surpassed it. But the new Amarok is here and it shares the Ford Ranger's platform and many of that ute's components. Is it better than the top-selling Ranger?
GMW Cannon Alpha 2024 review: Lux Diesel - off-road test
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By Marcus Craft · 04 Jul 2024
The latest Chinese-built ute - the GWM Cannon Alpha - brings with it a lot of news: there's a petrol-hybrid version available; a new-for-the-range 2.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine; and this ute is big - bigger than a standard GWM ute, bigger than a Toyota HiLux, Ford Ranger and Isuzu D-Max. But is the new diesel worth your attention?
Ford Ranger 2024 review: Sport V6
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By Marcus Craft · 15 Jun 2024
There are plenty of variations of Australia's best-selling ute, the Ford Ranger, from which to choose. And where once the XLT represented an appealing balance of price and features, has the new mid-spec Ranger, the Sport, taken its place? Then the next question potential buyers have to ask themselves is: should I opt for the 2.0-litre bi-turbo diesel engine or the more expensive 3.0-litre V6?
