Mako goes after Raptor
With Ford holding the reins of the ute market since about 2014, it was always going to be a case of when – not if – Toyota NZ would deliver a model to compete.
All its New Zealand new vehicle offerings will now have high-spec safety features as standard. So, all Hilux variants -- from the 2WD single cab chassis to the range topping SR5 Cruiser – will have the Toyota Safety Sense (TSS) package as part of a range-wide upgrade.
All variants will have the maker’s pre-collision system with autonomous emergency braking (acting for vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists), dynamic radar cruise control, lane departure alert with yaw assist (brake control) and road sign assist.
Toyota NZ chief operating officer Neeraj Lala says TSS will make the Hilux even safer.
“The revised Hilux is the first vehicle to be put forward to ANCAP for retesting and is currently the only ute with a 2019 five-star ANCAP rating.”
Using a camera and radar sensors, the pre-collision system is designed to detect vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists, and to give the driver visual and audible warnings, braking assistance or autonomous emergency braking if they fail to heed these warnings. The lane departure alert function will warn the driver with visual and audible alerts if the vehicle deviates from its lane and, if necessary, will use the braking system to create yaw to keep the vehicle within the lane.
Dynamic radar cruise control (DRCC), standard on the Hilux range, uses sensors to maintain a suitable following distance from the vehicle ahead. The DRCC system operates at speeds above 40 km/h. All Hilux variants will also have a road sign assist system which recognises speed limit signs and displays them on a 4.2-inch colour display now standard in all variants.
Two rear tray options are being made available for the cab-chassis variants. The Toyota Genuine alloy tray has galvanised steel bearers and mounts, and the T Custom steel and timber tray is made of heavy duty galvanised steel with a Transtex industrial plywood deck. Both tray options include mud flaps, mud guards, and tail light protectors.
The former ‘S’ Hilux variants have been discontinued and will be replaced by a new entry-grade model later in the year, and a new PreRunner SR single cab chassis, manual transmission variant with extra cab variants will be available from October.
