This topic has been a red-hot one for many years now. It seems a lot of car-makers can’t seem to get it right when it comes to specifying a Bluetooth system that will work for Australian customers. Toyota had all sorts of crazy issues with the Bluetooth in its vehicles of a few years ago, although recent experience suggests that is now sorted.

I’ve not heard of the Isuzu D-Max as a problem child specifically, but it doesn’t surprise me to hear that you’re having difficulties. There’s a theory that some Bluetooth systems simply don’t play well with some makes and models of phones, and that could be what’s happening to you. A quick check would be to find a friend with an iPhone and see if that will work better in your car. That would at least rule out a blanket problem with the unit in your car.

The D-Max is pretty well regarded in the trade for its ability to go the distance, but modern, common-rail diesel technology has shown that a vehicle with fewer kilometres is usually a better bet than one with more. Although they do an amazing job in terms of power, torque, towing and fuel economy, today’s turbo-diesels are pretty highly strung in some ways and really need their maintenance. And the older they get, the more attention they seem to need in terms of new injectors, filters and pumps.

A D-Max with those kilometres might be ready for a pretty big (and expensive) service, too, so make sure your first trip in it isn’t going to be to a workshop. Ultimately, price, condition and service history should steer your decision as they should in any second-hand vehicle purchase. I’d take a vehicle with 150,000km with a full service history over a 60,000km one with no service records.

It may be sufficient to warrant a recall on the grounds of safety, but more info would be needed to make a definitive call on the issue. But it’s being fixed under warranty, so hopefully you should be back on the road soon. In the meantime if I were you I would be demanding a replacement vehicle to be used while yours is being repaired.