Can Ford regain lost ground with Transit? – Words by Chris Mullett Recent history shows that Ford Motor Company has been incapable of performing even basic marketing activities when it comes to presenting its light commercial range to the Australian buyer. Despite producing excellent products such as the Ford Transit Custom and Transit standard van that rank competitively against all-comers ...

Renault’s Trafic Crew blends business and pleasure – Words by Warren Caves, Images by Torque it Up.  The European assault on the hotly contested, 1.0- to 3.5-tonne van market continues to gain traction, with the likes of Mercedes Benz, Volkswagen, Fiat and Renault all taking firm swipes at traditional Australian consumer choices, Toyota’s HiAce and Hyundai’s i-Load. If you move ...

Warren Caves finds that Fuso is geared up to start work with pre-bodied options. Fuso plans to help customers to “hit the ground running “with its Built Ready range of pre-bodied trucks, centred around its hard-working Canter and larger Fighter models. As dependable as a pair of old boots, Fuso’s Canter range has been a common sight on Australian roads ...

Mazda’s BT-50 retains its appeal as it heads towards future product sharing with Isuzu Ute  Words by Warren Caves, Images by Torque it Up Photography In a bid to secure continued sales of its popular dual cab ute, Mazda has freshened up the venerable BT-50 with styling and equipment changes in the most comprehensive upgrade of the model since 2011. ...

The return of SsangYong brings a capable and well-equipped ute to Australia – words by Chris Mullett.  It’s easy to become a bit complacent when evaluating the current range of utes on the Australian market, because in many cases there is not much to commend one brand over another. Most technologies available in the various products are a decade  old ...

As Isuzu Trucks’ approaches its 30th consecutive year as the overall market leader in commercial vehicles, Ed Higginson evaluates the appeal of the N-Series. The N-Series enters the new year with a broad range of updates and improvements, matching the timing of the company’s move into new corporate head office at Truganina, in south western Melbourne. Delivery Magazine was on ...

Stuart Martin reviews the new Sprinter from Mercedes-Benz.  Shots have been fired back across the bow of former bedfellow Volkswagen with the arrival of the new Mercedes-Benz Sprinter. No longer will Sprinter and Crafter follow down the same production line under the terms of the original joint venture with similarities as to body but with differences of engine, driveline and ...

Hino’s 300 Series joins the battle to conserve water – Report by Chris Mullett Forget about the gold, silver and coal mining magnates, none of the multi-billion-dollar projects are worth a cracker if the areas in which they are based are totally devoid of water. Until Australia has a cohesive federal government programme in place that stores, creates or moves ...

Brenton O’Connor lives with the X-Class in the inner suburbs of Melbourne Following on from the successful media launch of the X Class in Tasmania earlier this year, a follow-up opportunity was provided by Mercedes-Benz to spend a week behind the wheel to gain a greater knowledge of the vehicle through regular driving. For the purposes of testing, I put ...

Will Mazda remain the underachiever in the ute market? – Words and image by Stuart Martin. There’s something to be said about going it alone, and Mazda Australia’s efforts with the revamped BT-50 demonstrate the brand’s determination in Australia. Packing the same amount of grunt as the Ranger, and arguably sitting on a better suspension tune, the BT didn’t go ...