Tradies

Toyota could be developing a little SUV-based ute in a throwback to the glory days of the Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore utes, according to reports.

Five airbags. AM/FM radio. CD player. Don't know how to use anything else. It has a screen, but not sure how it works. Keyless remote broke after five years and is far too expensive to replace. So as I cannot lock it, I don't leave valuables inside. Suits me fine.As it is a utility, it is perfect for my business. Perfect for carrying one tonne of weight (e.g. 1sqm of rocks or a pallet of pavers). Interior is basic but has everything that is needed. Air-con, electric windows, nice driving position, great vision, easy turning and parking.The easiest car (utility) to drive. Heaps of power (2.7 petrol). Five-speed manual with perfect gearing. Light. Great cornering. Good brakes. Drives better with a not-so-heavy load in the back. Armrest at the right height. Everything is positioned for effortless driving. Steering is light but direct and safe.With petrol at roughly $1.90 per litre on average, and a 60L tank, it costs over $100 to fill from empty. But the distance is a miserable 450-500km on a full tank. My previous two Hiluxes would achieve 600km on a full tank. Maybe emission control?One word: Toyota. This is the 6th Toyota (three Corollas and three Hiluxes) I have owned. The most reliable car on the road. Starts first time every time, and when it doesn't start first time, you know the battery will need replacing soon enough. Just keep regular servicing of the vehicle.

Tech is great with a big screen and Apple CarPlay compatibility. Plenty of safe driving features including a reversing camera and sensors seemingly everywhere on the car. The anti-collision warning system can be quite jarring if you are not expecting it and sometimes it can incorrectly inform you of an imminent car crash (in fact, reacting to cars turning out of your lane). Navigating through screen menus to the climate control system is a bit of an annoyance. Given not all the buttons are available on the centre console you have to navigate from Apple CarPlay into the Ford SYNC system to adjust certain settings.For everyday life the Ranger is a great addition with plenty of space available to throw a surfboard on the roof or in the tray, as well as off-road capability that allows it to hold its own on the farm. The Ford Ranger has stood up to any task I have thrown at it so far. With a length over 5.0 metres it can be difficult fitting into city parking spots and it often tests my reverse parallel parking skills. Getting into shopping centres, even with roof racks, proves to be simple and easy with a max height under 1.9m. No matter the situation you can trust that when you put your foot down the Ranger is going to take you exactly where you need to go, with great handling and a seemingly low centre of gravity you feel stuck to the ground. Driving the Ranger is almost always smooth even when off-roading (trying to find the best surf spots). With a great suspension system you barely feel any bumps in the road.Even when towing, the handling is top tier and I have yet to run into any issues. Running costs is where the sting comes for the Ranger. An average fuel fill costs me $150 which I'll run through every two to three weeks. Not cheap, especially with the cost of diesel remaining quite high thanks to the ongoing economic conditions. But this has just had to become a part of my budgeting the last few years.  Insurance also comes at a bit of a premium, however I would attribute that to my younger age. Insurance costs are higher than for a normal car.Finally, servicing. This is the only running cost I haven't seen increase considerably since changing cars with the average service running me for a couple of hundred dollars.There has never been a situation where I haven't had the upmost trust in my Ranger to respond as needed, from snow, to mud, to sand and asphalt. Have never had an issue.  In my three years of owning this car I have not had any large repair costs. With regular use I have only had slight issues with a rattle here and there which were cheap and easy to rectify. Overall, the reliability has been great and I've been very impressed with it. 

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The Mazda BT-50 boasts good looks and solid Isuzu engineering, so how does it measure up as a tradie's tool-of-trade in cab-chassis form?