Ashley Lucas and Chas Charlton find out just how good an all-rounder the 2021 Isuzu MU-X really is.

Finally, we are on the road! We have overcome the worst Covid-19 could throw at us and to be frank, we nearly didn’t make it because of Covid lockdowns.
The 2021 model Isuzu MU-X was made available to us on Thursday, and we hit the road south early Friday.
My assistant, Chas Charlton arrived on Thursday, so we were able to plan our trip together.
We planned to head south to the Tukino Road and skifields to find snow.
Packing the MU-X with the gear needed to meet any eventuality was easy, as the load area of this vehicle is huge with the third row of seats folded away.
The four of us, myself, Chas and the ashes of his two dogs, left Te Awamutu and cruised south past Lake Arapuni and the Waikato River, through Mangakino, turning right at Whakamaru, following State Highway (SH) 32, around the Western Bays of lake Taupo to Kuratau and SH 41.  We followed SH 41 to Turangi to join SH1 and kept heading south to the Desert Road.
This route gave ample opportunity to test the highway manners and features of the MU-X.
Isuzu’s three-litre turbo diesel engine coupled to its six-speed transmission used the vehicle’s available power and flexibility on the road, giving a relaxed driver experience.
All the vehicle connectivity features – which include Sat Nav, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto – are set and controlled via the new nine-inch touchscreen.
One of the other new features of the 2021 MU-X has come from the working D-Max ute also from Isuzu. This is the Intelligent Driver Assist System, handily shortened to IDAS.  
This comprehensive suite of safety systems gives ample warning of hazards ahead and couples various systems together for peace of mind motoring and of course, safety.
Take for example, the adaptive cruise control, an integral element if the IDAS system which – thanks to the sensor and control systems – paves the way for other sophisticated safety features.    
At the same time, the Adaptive Cruise Control – when set to the legal speed limit – allows peace of mind motoring while maintaining a good average speed.
As part of its overall package, the IDAS monitors road markings including speed signs and hazards ahead.
Another feature of the IDAS is Lane Assist, which helps the driver keep the vehicle in its lane. We found that a light touch of the steering wheel allowed the vehicle to steer itself around corners, not a recommended practice but we had to see how sensitive the IDAS is.
In terms of safety, the system works a treat with IDAS able to guide the MU-X with a minimum of driver input. Handy on long trips when fatigue might otherwise cause the SUV to drift over the centre line.
Now marry that to another aspect of the IDAS: Lane Assist.
In the normal course of driving, before overtaking or changing lanes, activating the vehicle indicators disengages the Lane Assist function allowing smooth overtaking or repositioning the MU-X into the lane you want.
If the indicators are not activated, the steering becomes heavy, and the Lane Assist attempts to steer the vehicle back into the lane.
Should the driver – for whatever reason – remove their hands from the steering wheel, an alert is activated.
If the system detects the vehicle moving around in the lane or ‘wandering’, the lane assist system continues to attempt to move the vehicle back into the middle of the lane.
There are about nine elements making up the IDAS which your Isuzu dealer can tell you all about. The ones mentioned, we found to be worthy of comment. As far as the overall driving experience of the MU-X:
There was a little turbo lag under acceleration in Drive, though when using the Tiptronic function to manually change the gears, the turbo lag was not noticeable.
In manual mode the vehicle is a joy to drive and allowed us to drive spiritedly through the winding section of road beside the Waikato River, making the most of the big SUV’s positive handling.
The MU-X responds well to being driven, taking corners with ease.
Climbing from Turangi through the Three Sisters to the Desert Road is an easy and stress-free cruise.
The electric front seats are very comfortable, and both are heated, as Chas found out when the passenger seat started to warm up. After colourful discussion, we decided that “Dolly did it”.
We were soon at the Tukino Road turn-off.
The day was clear and dry although there was some cloud cover hanging over Mount Ruapehu and her sister mountains.
We switched to four-wheel drive high-range using the mode switch and engaged the Rough Terrain Button.
This button desensitises the accelerator for rough roading, making it easier to control vehicle speed across challenging terrain, and drove off the Desert Road onto the Tukino Road.
There were a few vehicles parked off the highway here, but none were driving towards Ruapehu.
Chas has spent some time living in the Plateau area. He would bring his dogs up from Waiouru to run in the desert.
Both dogs have since passed away, so he had brought their ashes with him to spread in the desert in the area they favoured. A small ceremony saw the ashes scattered and photographs recorded the event.
We then proceeded up the road and over sand, gravel and rocks, really giving the Isuzu a workout.  
The suspension of the MU-X soaks up the terrain, providing a smooth controlled ride, which didn’t really surprise us, since the Isuzu is delivered standard on 20-inch mag wheels and road-biased All Terrain radial tyres.
We left the tyres at highway pressure and allowed the Traction control to assist the vehicle up and over the sand and gravel portions of the Tukino Road.
The engine took the terrain in an easy no-nonsense fashion and before leaving the two-wheel drive carpark on the Tukino Road, the vehicle was shifted into 4X4 low range where we detected a low – but noticeable – transfer box whine.
We climbed up the steep, loose gravel track to the top of the radio repeater hill and stopped for lunch.
Chas picked out this spot so he could microwave the chicken pieces prepared for us by Linda the day before, and while the chicken was tasty, I have to say the view back to the Desert Road was not too bad either. Photographs were taken.
We were surprised by the cool breeze blowing across the hill as the MU-X’s auto air conditioning had done such a great job protecting us from outside temperatures during the trip.
With lunch out of the way, we continued up the road through The Cut and onto the ridge leading to Tukino Village.
Tukino village was clear of snow, as was the rock garden. There was, however, good snow on the ski slopes and the main rope tow was pulling its weight – and skiers – on the mountain.
More photographs were taken in the rock garden before we moved down to the snow field and backed the MU-X into the snow beside a Snow Cat, giving the traction control a good workout.
Photo opportunities were good and varied here and I indicated to Chas to move the MU-X into a position to get a decent shot with the MU-X and Snow Cat.
The Isuzu started to move forward and then stopped in the snow with the front wheels turned towards the Snow Cat.
Oops! We could be in trouble here were it not for the MU-X.
Carefully reversing back to the original position and straightening the wheels, we tried to drive out of the snow onto the gravel.
The vehicle moved for half a car length and then started to dig into the snow. Another Oops.
We reversed back to the original position and applied the rear diff lock, grateful for the fact that the new MU-X for 2021 has a rear diff lock as standard equipment.
Dropped into second gear, low range and the big SUV started going forward. After a car length it started to slow, a little power was applied (a bit more jandal!) and Isuzu’s all terrain seven-seater continued to move out of the snow onto the gravel; a very good effort on standard tyres at highway pressures. The rear diff lock is a “great to have” safety feature.
We headed off the mountain towards the Desert Road to our accommodation at the Waiouru Welcome Inn.
On the way down, we pulled over twice to allow vehicles climbing the hill to Tukino skifield to pass, while our cruise south on the Desert Road brought back memories of the many Off Limits 4X4 events Chas and I had attended together at Waiouru in the past.
Setting the MU-X cruise control to the speed limit gave us peace of mind and a good average speed to Waiouru.
The overnight stay was comfortable and dinner in the Rustic Café was excellent. Parking at the Welcome Inn, incidentally, is easy access and safe.
The next morning, we were up reasonably early, had breakfast from our tucker box, did a pre-start check on the vehicle and hit the road heading back up north.
On the way, we explored a few of the side roads and tracks including the Rangipo Outlet and Tree Trunk Gorge. Both are worth a visit and show to great advantage, the hidden beauty of our great country.
The MU-X covered 600 kilometres of varying highways, roads and tracks for an overall fuel consumption of 10.1 litres per hundred kilometres. On the highway cruising sections, this consumption dropped to eight litres per hundred.
Both the engine torque and the ability of the suspension to soak up all we threw at it supports the overall flexibility of the MU-X package.
This SUV will be at home taking the children to sports, the family on a holiday, accessing ski fields, on bush tracks, and construction sites.
The MU-X is the ideal all round package for work and play..