4x4 Dual-Cab Ute Comparison Review: HiLux vs Colorado vs Ranger vs Navara vs D-Max vs Triton

No tables for this section of the test - this is based on storage, comfort and convenience, not to mention design and materials.

Our entire team offered their thoughts and feedback across these six utes, from the front seats to the back, and there was a standout for comfort and convenience - the Ford.

The Ranger's back seat comfort was judged best of all, with a comfortable, broad feeling seat. The storage is good in the back and up front, with the only criticism being a lack of rear air vents. Up front the design and usability of the space was a highlight, with big door pockets, good cup holders and loose item storage, and the digital elements to the instrument cluster all garnering positive praise.

The Triton and Navara were next best.

The Navara's almost SUV-like dash design was welcome, and its clever storage options were applauded too - though the driver's seat position isn't as good as it could be. The back seat was comfy and well cushioned, and accommodating for back seat occupants. In fact, after getting out of one of the other utes, the Navara was described as "being like getting from a Mazda2 into a Mazda6".

The Triton also had welcoming rear seat accommodation, and was found to be comfy, if a little narrow - though the roof-mounted air recirculation in this model was a big plus. The front also feels a little cramped for taller occupants due to its more raked window line, but the seats were judged to be the most comfortable and supportive of all of these utes. The controls and features are all easy to navigate and simple to use.

Next was the Colorado, which attracted some comments for its rugged presentation - but the materials used are on the nasty side when it comes to how they feel. But the front seat experience was pretty good aside from very hard seats, and in the back the Colorado felt "more like an SUV than a ute" for one of our passengers.

It was a draw at the back of the pack, with the Isuzu and Toyota both copping some criticism.

The Isuzu was found to be the cheapest looking and cheapest feeling inside, with one judge suggesting it feels like "it hasn't changed for nearly a decade, where the rest of the ute segment has moved on by light years". But basic and budget as it may have been, the D-Max was judge to offer "100 per cent the most comfortable rear seat" by one of our experts.

The HiLux's cabin looks okay, but the way its designed actually eats into the usable space a lot up front. The dash intrudes, the screen looks tacked on, and it feels really small compared to the other utes here. There are good storage options up front, though. In the back the Lux's hard, jutting grab handles were deemed a "possible danger" for taller occupants, while the seat comfort was mid-pack.

The smallest is seemingly the mightiest of this bunch, with the Ford Ranger XLT Bi-turbo fitted with the smallest capacity engine yet offering the most power and equal-most torque of this mix of utes - that's what sensible engineering and a couple of turbos will do for you!

The only other twin-turbo ute here is the Navara, though it's not as strong for pulling power as the Colorado.

All told there's a 27kW and 70Nm spread across these models.

The Ford isn't just the benchmark for these engines, it also has the most gears to make use of. Trust us, that makes a big difference when it comes to the drive experience - we'll get to that soon.

The Ford is also the heaviest of these six utes - almost 200kg more than the Navara! But it has the best gross vehicle mass (GVM) of these six utes, and equal-best gross combined mass (GCM) - meaning it can take a load and tow one, too.

The scores for this section take power, torque, and towing potential into account. It's the Ford that tops the class, with the Colorado close by. In the middle are the D-Max and Navara, and at the back of the pack are the HiLux and Triton.

These utes are all ladder-frame trucks, and five out of six have leaf springs at the rear (the Nissan has a sophisticated five-link coil rear suspension). All have disc brakes up front and drums at the rear, and all are diesel, automatic, four-wheel drive and around the 2.0- to 2.2-tonne mark.

It should be pretty close. But there were some that were really impressive, and others that left us longing for a lot more.

We'll go through each ute, one by one, in order of best to worst.

No real surprise, it's the Ford that comes first. We've know it as the benchmark in the segment for driver and passenger comfort for years now, and this test showed up the same strengths against its competitors.

It feels lighter, more agile, more predictable and more comfortable than anything else in this test. The way it controls its size and weight is the most impressive element, because it's the biggest ute here, but never, ever feels like its out of its comfort zone.

The steering is excellent - light and easy to turn at lower speeds for parking moves, and nicely weighted and predictable at higher pace. The ride is comfortable in almost all situations - it is firm, but it's controlled and the most SUV-like of this mix to drive and be a passenger in.

Plus its drivetrain is excellent - there's supreme refinement and flexibility from the 2.0-litre bi-turbo and 10-speed auto, and it never feels breathless at speed, nor is it noisy like some of its rivals. There's a moment of turbo-lag at take-off, but that's a common factor in all of these utes. Plus its brake pedal response is the most positive and predictable of these utes, adding to the confidence you have as a driver. It is, simply, the best of this bunch.

Second for on-road impressiveness was a bit of a surprise - the Nissan Navara N-Trek.

A lot of this came down to the fact the ride was really well sorted - no doubt down to the re-re-retuned rear suspension for the Series 4 Navara. It deal really well with bumpy sections of road, offering a similar sort of experience to the Ford: firm, but controlled. Anyone who drove the early iterations of this generation Navara will know it was previously wobbly and shaky, but not any more. It also sits surprisingly flat through corners, making for more comfortable progress for the driver and the passengers.

There are still issues with the twin-turbo engine being very noisy at lower speeds, and the steering still takes a bit of effort (and we still bump the horn when twirling the wheel) because it has a slower rack with heavier weighting.

The Navara's twin-turbo engine felt willing, and the fact it's the lightest ute here helps with that. The seven-speed auto is mostly unobtrusive, aside from being a little busy up steep hills.

Next best was the Colorado, which has benefitted from Australian input when it comes to the suspension and steering. And in those 'country back road' situations, it felt - again - firm but controlled, which was put down to the "Holden mentality".

Indeed the suspension felt tight and controlled at lower speeds, and it had the best low-speed ride in general.

Its steering was well sorted, too, but the brake feel was wooden, with no real feel or progression to the pedal. We liked that it would offer up engine braking on descents, and even blipped the throttle, but it didn't cover up the fact that the actual braking was substandard.

The engine - with second-most power and equal-most torque - was good, too, if a bit gruff. The transmission was hard to catch out, and did a good job at high speeds and around town.

Fourth best (but still very close to the Colorado) was the Triton.

The Triton was the quietest of our six utes, and that helped it feel quite nice on the road. Its engine offered decent pulling power, the transmission was well sorted, and its steering was accurate and easy to judge, despite being a bit chatty - the steering wheel constantly felt like it was jiggling in the driver's hands.

The ride was sharper over crisp edges, and also offered up more dip and dive over bigger bumps and under braking. Generally, there was a fair bit more movement noticeable from the chassis inside the cabin.

In fifth spot was the HiLux. Its steering was a highlight, offering precise feel and good feedback, and it was one of the quieter utes, too.

But the ride is fierce, enough to make one of our backseat testers feel car sick. It simply feels like its set up to cope with weight in the back, and the unladen ride suffers hugely as a result. It bucks over sharp edges, fumbles over lumpy country roads, and never feels like it settles down, even if the road surface below is smooth.

Its engine also felt a bit lethargic comparatively, and while the six-speed auto didn't do a bad job in most instances, it wasn't quite as clever or composed up our steep hill climb.

Last place was the D-Max.

It was described as being the "gruffest of the lot", with a "more truck-like experience" than any of the others. Its engine was lazy, noisy and lacking refinement. Admittedly it pulled fairly well in its sweet spot (we found it most acceptable between 50-80km/h), but that wasn't enough to excuse some of its other issues.

For instance, the transmission was overly busy when climbing hills, while at speeds between 80km/h and 110km/h it really struggles to make up its mind, no matter the gradient. And a lower speeds it has pronounced turbo-lag, too.

Its steering was heavy and dull, the ride was choppy at low speeds and unsettled at higher pace, and while the HiLux was harsh in its ride, it at least had some positive attributes - we struggled to find much to like about the D-Max from the driver's seat, or any of the other seats inside. Oh, its brakes were okay, and so was its gradient brake control system. But that's about it.

It's important to note the first row in this table, because you can see all of these utes have a five-star ANCAP rating... but not all of them got it under today's strict criteria. The HiLux is the only one tested under 2019 criteria, though the Triton and Ranger would both theoretically achieve the maximum score. The Colorado, Navara and D-Max all fall well behind the class standard for safety technology, despite having maximum crash test safety scores.

As for the technology inclusions, there's a clear last place here - the Isuzu. It's behind the times. The Holden and Nissan are better, but not great.

It's Mitsubishi, Ford and Toyota now duking it out on safety spec - there are some omissions in each of their columns, but the fact that you can finally get advanced safety tech in these utes is welcome. You might prefer blind spot monitoring over lane keeping assistance, or a surround camera over auto high-beam lights - but we're scoring these three equal.

All six utes have ISOFIX child seat anchors, though some miss out on top tether points for all three spots across the back row (Ranger has two for the outboard seats, HiLux has one centrally mounted). Make sure you check the ease of use and fitment if you plan to fit a baby seat - there are some issues you will need to contend with if you do.

It took us days to complete this test, but coming to a decision over which was the best ute out of these six was a much quicker process.

Our winner is the Ford Ranger XLT Bi-turbo, which feels like the best engineered of these six models, not to mention offering the greatest levels of comfort, control and driving manners across a mix of terrains. It's not as affordable as it arguably should be, but you're paying more because you're getting a better vehicle.

Second was the Mitsubishi Triton GLS Premium, which – across the criteria – offered up some surprises. It offers amazing value for money, and while it could be more polished, the current model is a superb ute for the cash.

Which ute would you have out of this bunch?

Third was another surprise – the Nissan Navara N-Trek and Holden Colorado Z71 – these two were tied at the end of our scoring procedure. They both offer a lot of presence for the money, and each has its strengths that makes them both worthy of consideration.

Further behind was the Toyota HiLux SR5, which now thankfully gets the safety gear it should have had for a while, and though it is more accomplished off-road than all of its rivals, it falls short in a number of other ways that lead it to run second-last here.

And in bottom place was the Isuzu D-Max LS-T, which couldn't stack up for refinement, comfort, convenience or value against its rivals. This is still a good ute if you need a workhorse truck, but the top-spec model just can't match its competitors in terms of what you get for your money.