Utes

Is the Ford Ranger Super Duty actually as good as you've heard? Let's take a look.

Toyota claims the latest HiLux is a 'new generation' of its iconic hay-hauler, but is there enough that's genuinely 'new' to ensure it remains one of Australia's two top-selling utes?

There’s now officially a new best-selling Chinese brand in Australia.

Utes are one of the most popular body styles according to Australian new-vehicle sales, but in recent years some of the bigger name models have increased in price.There's a new breed of ute that's undercutting the old guard, and they're mostly from China.So what are the three cheapest utes in Australia?CarsGuide’s reviewers not only know the answer but we also know what they’re like to live and work with day in and day out.Due to the huge number of ute variants available in Australia, we are focusing on the most popular body style and variant - the 4x4 dual-cab pick-up. So something like a Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux or Nissan Navara, but in this case, more affordable alternatives that can get the job done on a budget.Without further ado, here’s the top three most affordable utes in Australia;GWM’s popular dual-cab Cannon in entry-level Premium guise is currently the most affordable 4x4 dual-cab ute in Australia with a drive-away price of $39,490.The Cannon benefited from a significant update in 2025 that introduced revised exterior styling, a fresh looking cabin and a new engine.The Premium has an extensive standard features list including 18-inch alloys wheels, LED headlights and LED tail-lights, roof rails, side steps, damped tailgate, power-folding mirrors, chrome sports bar, a spay-in bedliner and proximity unlocking.Also standard is single-zone climate control, a 12.3-inch media touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, synthetic leather upholstery and a wireless phone charger.The Premium has a 120kW/400Nm 2.0-litre turbo-diesel engine, four-wheel drive and a braked towing capacity of 3200kg.CarsGuide reviewers like the excellent value and quality of the Cannon, but didn’t like the intrusive steering assistance and the ergonomics of the gear shifter.China's LDV has a newer and shinier ute in its stable now in the shape of the big, bold Terron 9 (a twin of the MG U9), but the ageing T60 Max continues on.Currently priced at $41,042, the T60 is more than $12k cheaper than the most affordable Terron 9.Standard gear includes a 10.25-inch multimedia screen, six-speaker audio, two USB ports, a 12-volt outlet, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, paddle shifters, keyless entry, auto emergency braking (AEB) and adaptive cruise control.It's powered by a gutsy 160kW/500Nm four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine and a 3500kg towing capacity. Payload is 1040kg.We haven't had a chance to review a T60 in a while but CarsGuide reviewers said while safety improvements have helped the ute, the onboard tech is patchy and outdated, and the steering and braking is too heavy. The powertrain might be gutsy but it's still rough on the road.KGM’s (formerly SsangYong) Musso might not have the superstar status of some utes but it’s popular among those after a hardworking machine and its low price has seen it earn a place here in our most affordable top three. As a Korean brand, the KGM is also the only non-Chinese ute on this list. Keep in mind, though, that KGM will bring its next-gen ute to Australia about the middle of 2026 to replace this model and it’ll likely cop a price increase from the $42,500 drive-away price of the current entry-grade ELX.Standard features on the ELX include 17-inch alloy wheels, twin 12.3-inch displays for media and driver instruments, plus Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.There’s also a six-speaker stereo, HID headlights with LED daytime running lights and silver roof rails.Powering the Musso ELX is a 133kW/400Nm 2.2-litre turbo-diesel engine with a six-speed automatic. Braked towing capacity is 3500kg.CarsGuide reviewers like the Musso's comfort and space, and its refined driving manners, but didn’t like how some safety items were only offered on top-of-the-range grades. JAC’s T9 arrived in Australia in 2025 and since then the entry-grade Oasis has undergone a price drop of nearly $5000 to land it here in the top three for $42,662 drive-away.Standard features include 18-inch alloys wheels, LED headlights and daytime running lights, a sprayed tub liner and sports bar.There’s leather upholstery inside, a 10.4-inch media screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a power driver's seat and wireless phone charging.Powering the T9 Oasis is a 125kW/410Nm 2.0-litre four cylinder turbo-diesel. The braked towing capacity is 3200kg. CarsGuide reviewers like the T9’s tough styling, strong value and its ability to do what will please most people. The things we don't like include the lumpy power delivery of the engine, and the intrusive safety tech. 

Polestar Australia boss Scott Maynard has opened fire on Australia's owners of American-style utes, saying they "use and abuse" FBT and LCT subsidies that are aimed at tools of the trade. In a stinging rebuke of government policy that favours some of the nation's biggest vehicles, as similar rebates for electrified vehicles are under the microscope, the executive suggested the Albanese Government would be better off tightening light commercial vehicle policies towards American pickup trucks."It's actually being used and abused in the light commercial vehicle space," Mr Maynard said. "I was a tradie. That's how I started in this industry, as a tech. So I fully support the subsidy of tools of trade to our trades people. I couldn't be more supportive of it."But these vehicles are not even being marketed as tools of trade. You've got $200,000 American-style utes and pickup trucks marketed as towing caravans and boats, and yet they enjoy the same FBT and LCT let-off, which can be tens of thousands of taxpayers dollars, so that they can never, never turn up on a job site."That is entirely unjust. So if the government sets out to save some of the taxpayers' money handed over in FBT deductions, it should be done in reconciling where its support of light commercial vehicles goes, not supporting the electric vehicle industry."Since 2022, electric vehicles positioned below the Luxury Car Tax (LCT) threshold of $91,387 for electrified vehicles, under a novated lease, were no longer eligible for Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) obligations. Numbers crunched by the Australian Financial Review found someone who leases a $60,000 car could save as much as $12,000 per year if they opt for an EV over an ICE vehicle.While spurring EV sales, the program is expected to cost $1.35 billion over the 2025/2026 financial year. The incentives are currently under review, with formal submissions closing last month.Similarly, most utes are not subjected to FBT obligations, provided the vehicle can carry a load of one tonne or more, or carry more than eight passengers, or are not primarily designed for carrying passengers. The vehicles must only have "limited" private use. LCT – which generates as much as $1.3b annually – does not apply to “a commercial vehicle designed mainly for carrying goods and not passengers”..Data from the Australia Institute, published in 2023, found the LCT exemption resulted in lost revenue of around $250m per annum on the sale of American pickup trucks.

At a little more than $50,000, drive-away (nationwide), with twin lockers, a snorkel, underbody protection and Cooper Discoverer AT3 all-terrain tyres, GWM's off-road-focussed top-spec Cannon variant, the XSR, now has a 2.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine rather than the previous-gen’s 2.0L powerplant. Does this new engine make any difference to the XSR’s off-road performance?

The second most popular Chinese ute in Australia is about to get a serious boost.GWM’s Cannon ute will gain a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) powertrain before the end of the first half of this year, giving the brand a second PHEV ute alongside its larger Cannon Alpha PHEV stablemate.The PHEV Cannon was revealed in Chinese government findings in February, but details like electric driving range are scarce. The Australian launch was confirmed by GWM Australia Chief Operating Officer John Kett at a media briefing in Melbourne.The Cannon PHEV’s 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine and electric motor will produce 185kW (torque hasn’t been confirmed), which is off the pace of the popular BYD Shark 6 (321kW) as well as the Cannon Alpha PHEV (300kW).In good news for Aussie ute fans, the new Cannon PHEV won’t lose any of its towing capacity. It will retain the segment-standard 3500kg figure of the diesel-powered versions. This is in part due to the inclusion of GWM’s off-road capable Hi4-T four-wheel drive system found in the Cannon Alpha.The updated Cannon will also ditch one of the Cannon Alpha’s most contentious features - the tub-mounted spare wheel. GWM Australia has confirmed the Cannon PHEV will feature a spare wheel housed under the rear tub.Exact timing is yet to be locked in but expect the plug-in Cannon in showrooms before the end of June.Grades and pricing is a mystery for now, but you can guarantee it will carry a premium over the respective diesel grades. At the moment, PHEV versions of the Cannon Alpha cost $10,000 more than the equivalent diesel grade.The most affordable Cannon Alpha PHEV is the Lux from $61,490 drive-away and the Ultra is $67,990. The Cannon PHEV shouldn’t reach those levels given its smaller size and overall positioning.By comparison, the only other PHEV utes are the BYD Shark 6 PHEV, which is still only offered in one model grade (for now) from $57,900 before on-road costs, and the Ford Ranger PHEV that runs from $71,990 BOC to a hefty $86,990.Some more good news for GWM ute fans is the arrival of the much hyped new 3.0-litre turbo-diesel engine for the Cannon Alpha and the related Tank 500 SUV. The Chinese carmaker says the 3.0L Cannon Alpha will go on sale in Australia in the second half of 2026, but specific timing is yet to be locked in.Outputs for the four-cylinder internal combustion 3.0L diesel haven't been revealed by GWM but it is set to hit similar figures to the 3.0-litre V6 diesel in Ford’s Ranger ute and Everest SUV siblings, and that’s 154kW of power and 600Nm of torque.

Stellantis is reportedly relying on the return of the V8 to one of America’s favourite ‘trucks’ to float its profits in 2026.

Hyundai's new ute promises to be unlike anything we've seen in Australia to date, and the result of 15 years of careful plotting and planning to dethrone the kings of Australia's dual-cab segment.

If you spend any time on the road you’ll see plenty of utes being used for work – but you also see just as many, if not more, vans being used as the conveyance of choice for couriers, tradies and the like.So which is actually better as a work vehicle: a ute or a van? It’s an age-old debate likely to generate more than a few raised voices.I’m ute-biased because I own a ute and use it for my other job(s), but I know plenty of people who are quite happy with their van.So, let’s tackle this touchy subject, shall we?Is the popularity of utes simply a result of hype? Are ute owners actually using entirely the wrong vehicle for work? Not at all.Vans and utes are close in terms of engine and transmission, power and torque outputs, the efficacy of driver-assist technology and even day-to-day useability.But the load space area – the business end of any work vehicle – is where the major difference lies.A ute’s tub or tray, as standard, is not closed-in so the extent of your packing is not limited by your vehicle’s roof-line as it is in a van. You can load beyond the top edge of a ute’s tub, and tall or awkwardly shaped loads aren’t a problem so long as they are safely secured.A ute also offers superior and more flexible load-carrying capabilities than a van.However, if a ute has no cover on its tub/tray, security from thieves and protection from the elements remain a serious issue. The good news is that there are OEM or aftermarket tub coverings available (hard or soft tonneau covers, roller shutters, aluminium lids etc) for utes, so that’s a potentially easily resolved issue.Or you can purchase an aftermarket canopy to be fixed to your ute tub, and some of those options are lockable. The problems is a canopy is not an engineered-at-vehicle-origin solution, so while it offers much better security, water- and dust-proofing than having no cover at all, it’s no match for a van’s factory built-in load space.And, besides, installing a cover on a ute’s tub – whether it’s a tonneau, roller shutter, canopy, or a bit of tarp over the top – defeats the purpose of owning an open-topped ute, because by doing so you’re robbing the ute tub of its load-carrying versatility.On the others side of the fence, vans have plenty of positives in their favour, even as standard.Take, for instance, the Ford Transit Custom Trail which I recently road-tested. Firstly, focusing on the cabin, the Trail can be optioned as a two-seater with hard-wearing plastic everywhere – ready for the messiness of work and life – as well as charge points (USB-A and -C) and storage (including a van-favourite dash-top slot for logbooks etc, outboard moulded cupholders and a nifty pop-out cupholder).Secondly, the load space includes access via a barn door at the rear and the Trail can be optioned up to have a sliding door on both sides.The cargo area is substantial – 3002mm long (to the bulkhead; 3450mm long if load-through hatch is used), 1392mm wide (between wheel arches) and 1425mm high (floor to roof). Easily big enough for work equipment or recreational gear. It can cope with four Euro pallets (1200mm x 800mm each) and it has a listed maximum load volume (with the bulkhead) of 6.8 cubic metres.Load height through the rear barn doors is 531-585mm, depending on how much weight (driver, passenger etc) is already onboard.The load space has a metal bulkhead (with window and load-through hatch), load area protection kit (full height walls and moulded floor), LED lights and eight tie-down loops.It has plenty of potential as a work and/or recreational vehicle with ample scope for modifications inside and out.Back to vans and utes in general, payloads in vans can range upwards of 1000kg, while payloads in utes (e.g. a single-cab) can be upwards of about 1000kg. (US pick-ups can manage more – with listed payloads of 1759kg and up – but in this yarn we’re focussing on mainstream utes.)But a van’s rear load space could be considered a distinct advantage – or at least a major point of difference – over a ute.A van can be big, for example the cargo space in a 2021 long-wheelbase Mercedes-Benz Vito 116 is 3061mm long, 1709mm wide, and 1391mm high; with 1265mm between the rear wheel-arches, so a 1165mm standard Australian pallet will slot in, no worries. Official cargo volume in the Vito is 6.6 square metres.Vans are built to carry loads and as such there is plenty of space in the rear, and amenities back there include tie-down points (with which to secure your load), lighting systems (halogen or LED), wood panelling on the interior walls and rear door, rubber or vinyl matting, or other grippy protective surface on the floor of the cargo area, and even power points.The load spaces in vans are ripe for customisation: maybe shelves for a tradie, or bedding and extra storage for an adventurous person or couple.And the rear load space may provide open access to the driver and front passengers(s), or it may be separated from the cabin of the van by a bulkhead with a built-in cargo barrier.Access to that fully secure load space may be via sliding doors on either side of the van or by using the rear door, which might be 180°-opening rear twin barn doors (with window), or a single lift-up tailgate, and either of those can be fully locked open so, importantly, a forklift can be used to place a heavier load in the cargo area.So while there’s no problem with permitted access, the load space is fully lockable, so theoretically secure, and the contents may be concealed.The cabins of utes and vans are similar in that they can be set up as mobile offices, with an immediate ease of use and comfort as priorities: think cloth seats, durable plastic surfaces and storage spaces aplenty including a lockable glovebox, dash-top slots (for log books, general paperwork etc) as well as door pockets and bottle-holder, a cup-holder at each end of the dash, and a centre console bin.But each type of vehicle has its own particular advantages, as well as exhibiting characteristics that may count against it when it comes to their potential as work vehicles.As mentioned, I’m well and truly in the ute camp but I know lots of people who wouldn’t swap their van for a ute as a work vehicle.To each their own… but to me utes still have the edge.