Readers' Rides

There’s nothing better than going your own way. Tell us about it—and win.

MICHELE HARDY

LIVES: THE GURDIES, VIC

DRIVES: 2022 D-MAX LS-U 4X4 SPACE CAB

Last month we took our D-MAX on some of the toughest 4WD tracks in the country! From Victoria we headed to Coober Pedy and along the Anne Beadell Highway from Coober Pedy to Laverton, WA. The corrugations were relentless! Then, we travelled along the Great Central Road from Laverton. We took on lots of routes we hadn’t experienced before: the Madigan Line and then down the Hay River track to the QAA line—so many camels!—and used the Eyre Creek Bypass road to cross the recently flooded creek. Then we did Big Red and had a curried camel pie at the Birdsville Bakery. Our most expensive diesel fill was $3.65 per litre, and you’ve gotta be happy with the D-MAX’s fuel economy! Damage included one solar panel that shook loose, a totally trashed tyre and an aftermarket bullbar that we had welded back on at Laverton (the cost was a slab of beer).

TIM BAKER

LIVES: BRISBANE, QLD

DRIVES: 2023 D-MAX 4X4 X-TERRAIN

The D-MAX is the first new vehicle I’ve owned, so I’m very proud of it. I chose it because we use D-MAXs for fleet vehicles at work and they’re just so dependable—I’m an air-side safety officer at Brisbane Airport. It’s nice to have an upgraded spec from the work vehicle in my own ute! Since the pandemic I’ve had more of an urge to see Australia. I even bought physical maps to plot our trips, although the satnav can always save you. I love having a beer in a local pub, meeting people and making little discoveries. There was a greasy spoon in Lorne that served me the best hotdog ever!

BRETT THURLOW

LIVES: UPPER COOMERA, QLD

DRIVES: 2022 ISUZU MU-X 4X4 LS-T

We recently did a two-week trip up to Darwin, but we wanted to go remote off-roading and get the beast dirty, and not just follow the normal highway route. That meant we ended up adding an extra 1000km or so! We’re both quite short, which means we both fit and we can lie down and sleep in the back! We took this pic when we were washing off some of the dust that we’d collected in Quilpie, in Queensland. The old girl handled beautifully and it was a great way to learn more things about the MU-X and take her to the limits. We saw many wild pigs, emus, donkeys and dingos, and swam in artesian bores. We even survived a dip in Bitter Springs in the NT, where we later found out a saltwater croc was sighted just after we left! We love the new rig … less so the salties.

TREVOR HARVEY

LIVES: BRIGHTON, QLD

DRIVES: 2022 MU-X 4X4 LS-T

We recently went on a school holiday adventure to K’gari and we couldn’t have had better weather. We were the first people on the beach this day—we beat everybody to it and had the sunrise to ourselves for an hour. Now that our daughters are 22 and 19 we wanted to be able to get out and go our own way a bit more, which was the motivation behind buying the MU-X. We test drove everything in the category, but once we were in the Isuzu my wife just looked at me and went, “Yes, this is the one”. We just haven’t looked back. From the inland tracks on our debut trip to the Big Red Bash to beach driving on the island, it’s just been a lot of fun. The 4WD is just so easy to use!

MADDIE WALSH

LIVES: SYDNEY, NSW

DRIVES: 2022 D-MAX 4X4 LS-M CREW CAB UTE

I wasn’t sure where to start about my D-MAX, but I absolutely love it! As a country girl at heart, now learning to dance to the beat of the big city, my interests take me from the hustle and bustle to the Outback. So I need reliable wheels! My D-MAX means I can take on any journey, from driving on the dunes, to highway cruising, to waltzing down dirt tracks to sniff out a picturesque campsite. There’s nothing I love more than packing up the back of the ute for a spot of solo camping. I’ve just got a new fridge wired up in the tray, and who knows what might be next. No matter what, I trust this rig to get me where I need to go in style. I might not have struck literal gold on my adventures just yet, but one thing is for sure: the D-MAX is a gem!