Reasons to be cheerful: even as a massive rain storm lashed across the upper North Island and the clouds of yet another Covid lockdown rolled toward the nation, there was something exciting in the driveway: LDV’s new T60 bi-turbo. This truck is so fresh even LDV’s website refers to it as ‘coming soon’.
NZ4WD has scored the very first media drive of this new offering, and it arrived with less than 150 km on its odometer.
As a result, the arrival of lockdown has hardly been on the radar, in fact level four has enabled us to spend a little more time with the truck.
Endowed with a commanding exterior that takes a step forward from rival offerings, the T60 bi-turbo also has a unique claim: more power, class leading power, smile-inducing onramp-demolishing power. By a narrow margin, and assisted by its bi-turbo induction array, the T60 is indeed the most powerful four cylinder diesel double cab ute on the New Zealand market. The engine now produces 160kW, pipping the 2.8-litre Toyota Hilux (150 kW), the Mazda BT 50 and Isuzu D-Max (140 kW) and the previous power champion, Ford’s Ranger Raptor (157 kW).
More to the point, this is Euro 6 power – complying with the European Union’s toughest vehicle emission standards yet.
With new trucks like the T60, technology and luxury features once the preserve of the leading brands have been brought out to the wider market and are becoming available to all ute buyers. For those looking for a ute packed full of value at a reasonable price, future-proofed with a Euro 6 diesel engine, the line begins here.
Pricing for the LDV T60 bi-turbo starts with the Elite manual $42,538.50 and steps up to Elite with auto transmission at $45,988.50. The Luxe version retails at $50,558.50. More in the October edition of the magazine.
