Mazda sticks to its guns

IF YOU'RE on to a good thing then the idea of ringing the changes can sometimes be unnecessary.

Take the Mazda BT-50 ute. It's fairly typical of the new age ute, able to crossover deftly from workhorse to a lifestyler depending on your needs and wants.

So the makeover that the BT-50 has just experienced might have been seen as an opportunity to make significant change. But apart from giving the BT-50 a bolder front end, Mazda has stuck very much to its knitting.

Bad call? No because the ute remains the "active lifestyle" vehicle Mazda intended it to be.

It's a very solid ute, sitting on a strong chassis and moved along by the 3.2-litre five-cylinder turbo diesel that drove its predecessor. It's a worthy engine, pumping out 147kW of power and 470Nm (from 1750-2500rpm) and is the same one Ford uses in its Ranger line-up. Given the Ranger was the country's best selling vehicle overall in the last 12 months, that's an excellent endorsement. Importantly it has the ability to lug a 3.5-tonne braked load behind the cargo deck.

Buyers can opt for either six-step auto or six-step manual transmissions and while some die-hards will crave the manual, the auto shouldn't be ignored. It's long-legged enough to handle the low end torque from startup and seems right at home at higher speeds too. We especially liked the unobtrusive kick down when decelerating downhill.

It can drive through two or four wheels and the driver can sort out high or low ratio through a centre console-mounted dial. There's a raft of safety and stability functions as well. Along with ABS, dynamic stability control (DSC), emergency brakerforce distribution (EBD), emergency brake assist (EBA) and traction control (TC), the BT-50 is equipped with hill launch assist (HLA), load adaptive control (LAC) and roll stability control (RSC). Toss in trailer sway control and the locking rear diff and all the bases are covered.

We were driving the range-topping GSX double cab wellside auto ($57,295). Mazda has dropped the Limited from the line-up with the GSX stepping into that role. But it doesn't carry over the leather seats, powered driver's seat, powered and folding mirrors and side mirror indicators. What it does get is the side steps, auto dimming rear view mirrors, rain-sensing wipers and auto headlights. And the infotainment unit has been tweaked and includes sat-nav, a reversing camera and rear parking sensors.

Buyers don't have to go for the all-singing, all-dancing model. There are cheaper options in the four-wheel drive variants, starting with the single cab chassis GLX at $45,295. And if two-wheel drive suits your purpose, then the entry level single cab chassis GLX starts things off at $35,295.

What we did like was the reversing camera and the rear parking sensors. In a ute this big they're a definite bonus.

Despite its imposing size the BT-50 was easily handled. With such high ground clearance, the visibility from the roomy cabin is excellent. And believe me that cabin is spacious.

Mazda is targeting sales of 1700 units a year and given the keen buyer interest in this segment it's probably achievable. Remember 20 per cent of all new vehicles sold in NZ last year were utes.

And Mazda has cropped pricing to help achieve its target, drawing back the average price across the range by $1000, while some of the 4WD models have had $2300 pruned off their price.

The GSX also comes with cruise control, Bluetooth, power windows and mirrors and dual zone climate air-conditioning.

Mazda has had a long association with Ford and continues with the BT-50. Both it and the Ranger were developed side-by-side, share the same chassis, and are made on the same production line in Thailand.

Here's a ute that's a more than capable - and adaptable - five-seater. There's plenty of cabin space and a load space in the wellside behind the cabin. Claimed fuel use figure of a shade under 9 litres per 100km isn't too bad remembering this is no shrinking violet with a kerb weight of just over 2 tonne.

Mazda has stuck to its knitting with the BT-50 GSX double cab which was a smart thing to do. Sure, it's front end has got a more mature edge to it but, essentially, it has retained all the underpinnings that made its predecessor so engaging.