Off road

At the bottom of the new 2025 Toyota Prado range is the GX. Historically pitched at fleet buyers, the latest iteration is much more than a miner's delight.Yes it has rubber floor mats, a polyurethane steering wheel and manual-adjust seats but the cloth upholstery — made from 30 per cent recycled PET bottles — is soft, temperature stable and the seats are mighty supportive.The Prado GX also gets all the technology of the GXL, including a 12.3-inch multimedia touchscreen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, 7.0-inch digital driver's display and remarkably clear, powerful 10-speaker sound system. Visually distinguishing features include LED daytime running lights and main beams, black wheelarch cladding, 18-inch alloy wheels and no roof racks.The treatment really suits the new Prado's heritage-inspired styling. It's a blocky shape with carefully-sculpted reliefs adding drama. Nods to previous Toyota products include the HiLux Surf-inspired tailgate and heritage look square mesh grille. Aussie cars sadly miss out on the retro round headlights.Stowage spaces are generously sized, including the centre cubby, and icy cold dual-zone climate control is standard. Five USB-C ports match the GX's five-seat capacity and the second row is more spacious than the car it replaces with a good range of adjustment on the reclinable back rest. Thanks to a 30mm lower window line, vision out is excellent, too.The floor is still high, though, and there's a hard plastic cover on the transmission tunnel that renders the middle seat rather uncomfortable.Toyota quotes VDA boot capacities of 954 litres with five seats in place or 1895L with the 60/40 backrest folded. There's a step from the boot floor to the back seats, making the load bay uneven. It also has quite a high floor owing to Toyota having to pack a now-smaller 110-litre fuel tank, 4.3 amp hour battery and full-size spare tyre under the floor.Out on the road is where you feel the biggest changes between the new 250 Series and its 150 Series forebear, with the new 3.24 turn lock-to-lock electronic power assistance system the star. Light at low speeds, it firms up on country roads with minimal dead-zone around the straight-ahead. There's almost no kickback over bumps, either.With 18-inch alloy wheels, highway terrain tyres and passive dampers, the GX is the most basic Prado chassis you can get and also the most resolved. Plenty of body control even at the NT’s elevated 130km/h speed limit, excellent bump absorption and great cabin isolation over rough corrugations and broken surfaces. Point the long, attractive aluminium-bonneted snout towards some unsealed roads and the Prado reveals another level of talent. The full-time 4WD system with lockable Torsen centre diff means plenty of traction no matter the grip levels. Smart ESC tuning helps trim lines in loose conditions without clamping down on fun and visibility is excellent thanks to those upright A-Pillars. With a smaller wheel and tyre package, the GX’s on-paper off-road credentials aren’t incredible; approach and departure angles of 31º and 17º are decent but the 210mm ground clearance is less than a Subaru Forester. Lucky we don’t drive on paper — the Prado’s seamless Crawl Assist and clever off-road traction control mean the GX effortlessly clears the sort of challenges a weekend warrior might throw at it. The Altitude, with its locking rear diff and stabiliser disconnect, is the choice for hardcore off-roaders. You can also replace individual pieces of the front bumper system, rather than needing to get a whole new single piece item. We didn’t get to sample how the new Prado pulls a load with its improved 3500kg braked towing rating. The carry-over 2.8-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder gets a new V-Active 48-volt starter generator, turbocharger, intercooler and still produces 150kW and 500Nm. It's adequate motivation, but for a similar price Ford will serve you a V6-powered Everest.A new eight-speed torque converter automatic shifts smoothly and quickly with decisive logic. The lower first gear means you rarely need to engage four-low, while a higher top ratio contributes to an improved 7.6L/100km combined fuel efficiency rating. To lower NOx emissions, the Prado now has a 17.4-litre AdBlue tank that should go around 8700km between fill-ups. A glimpse at the spec sheet would suggest the new, much-improved Prado is best in GXL guise but don't write the sub-$80K drive-away GX off, it has everything you need and is remarkably well-appointed. The Prado’s practical boot in five-seat guise only adds to the base model’s appeal.

With the launch of Toyota’s right-hand drive Tundra in Australia very clear in the rear-view mirror, the brand’s local arm is waiting to see what will happen with the segment it lives in.

Kia will launch an "unprecedented" pre-launch campaign for its new Tasman ute, essentially touring the country to connect customers with the vehicle so they can see, sit in and experience the brand's first dual-cab for themselves.

If you regularly go bush, there’s something that might jump at you on the new 250 Series Toyota Prado’s spec sheet: a lack of locking rear differential on all but the Altitude trim. Previously, the 150 Series Prado range offered a rear locker on GXL, VX and Kakadu trims and now it comes exclusively on the Altitude off-roader, with the VX getting a limited-slip item. All other grades have open front and rear diffs.The inclusion of a locking rear differential aids off-road capability, particularly in very demanding situations such as off-set mogul climbs and deep mud or sand.They work by splitting 50 per cent of the drive equally between each wheel; an open differential, on the other hand, simply drives the wheel with least resistance. For 4WDs without lockers, this means the car relies on traction control to minimise wheel slip on tricky climbs or deep mud and this sometimes isn’t enough. Yet the Prado’s Australian vehicle development team is adamant the new 250 Series is more capable than the car it replaces despite missing the rear locker.“For the Prado, just the frame alone — that stiffer frame — eliminated a lot of need for tuning and adjustment on the software, on the safety systems,” in this case, Australian Vehicle Evaluation Engineer Russel Tomlinson is describing stability and traction control programs in the new Prado. “The safety systems had to work less because of the rigidity and then when we came to diff locks, the car was fit for purpose. “If we needed to go through mud, water crossings, loose stones, whatever, the target that we set — which was to improve on the previous LandCruiser — we achieved .” That’s the rationale for rolling with open rear differentials on most Prado trims.  All 250 Series Prados are equipped with a full-time four-wheel drive, an eight-speed automatic transmission, torsen centre differential with the ability to fully lock along with both high and low range transfer cases. Clever systems, including Crawl Control (an off-road cruise control) and multi-terrain select, are similar to the equipment offered in a Land Rover Discovery, for example. These are generally enough for most trails you’ll encounter and the rear diff-lock is usually reserved for only the toughest manoeuvres, for example when you’re bogged or bellied out. But it’s a nice insurance policy to have in remote areas.Vehicles you might cross-shop with the Prado, including the Ford Everest and Isuzu MU-X, are equipped with locking rear differentials on all 4x4 grades, while new cut-price alternatives, such as the GWM Tank 500, are arriving with front lockers, too. The Prado’s rear differential lock situation is similar to that of the larger 300 Series, with front and rear diff locks reserved for the GR Sport off-road flagship. That said, the bigger 300 Series gets a limited-slip rear differential on all trims (like Prado Kakadu). There is currently no GR Sport model, with the Altitude the most off-road focused trim. Along with the rear locker, there’s also a new electronic stabiliser disconnect system and 18-inch Toyo Open Country all-terrain rubber. 

Stellantis officially reveals its STLA Frame platform which will underpin its next-generation RAM 1500, but will it be enough to keep the brand in the fight against Ford and GM?

Ford has announced its strongest and most capable Ranger yet in the shape of the new Super Duty line-up. While little has been revealed for now, since sales won’t commence until 2026, Ford has confirmed a breakthrough 4500kg towing capacity, as well as 4500kg Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM) and 8000kg Gross Combined Mass (GCM) ratings.

I have a 2018 Isuzu D-Max ute with a canopy fitted by the dealer prior to delivery. The canopy has developed a crack (I do not go off-road). A four-wheel-drive dealer has quoted $6500 to fit a new canopy as it is out of warranty. That works out at over $1000 per year. Is this a common problem?

Should I get 18-inch tyres for my 2013 Jeep Compass North? It currently has 17s?

My 2020 LDV T60 was slightly surging on the way to work, and after work the check-engine light came on and the vehicle could only do 70km/h. The coolant level was fine and the engine oil level was fine but it was really black in colour.

Hi, I am looking at buying a 2008 Mitsubishi Triton MN. I took it for a test drive, and the gear stick was super loose, it just flailed around in neutral with no self-centring. Trying to find first and second gear was very difficult as you had to move the stick in about an inch to find the gear. What could be causing this and is it a major concern?