Isuzu D-Max Huntsman

You may remember in our December issue, Muddy Madam and I borrowed an Isuzu D-Max Huntsman for a trip to France, specifically for a 4x4 and camping weekend at Parc Du Marquenterre organised by Ardent Off-Road. Since then we’ve been inundated with requests for more details on the D-Max. I say ‘inundated’, at least 4 of you have shown a slight interest in it.

What is it? We all know that the D-Max is a hard working pickup, and not only is it loved by many, but it continues to fill Isuzu’s trophy cabinet year after year with top awards.

What is the Huntsman then? Well, based on the Utah model, Isuzu say that it’s designed specifically with the professional huntsman and countryman (or woman) in mind.

Available in Obsidian Grey or Cosmic Black, it’s not only easy on the eyes but it also blends into the background - they’ve even done away chrome door handles and mirrors. It comes with black 18” wheels with Pirelli 255-60-R18 All Terrain tyres, sturdy side steps and a high-mounted tow bar allow for better ground clearance.

In the back, under the colour coded Aeroklas canopy with roof rails, and sitting on top of a bed-liner is a Gearmate lockable drawer system which has a full Raptor coating.

To enhance ride comfort and handling, there’s a Pedders suspension kit which is designed for increased suspension travel whilst improving vehicle stability.

On the road Our first drive was a 5-1/2 motorway haul from Muddy Towers in Lancashire down to the ferry terminal at Dover, then a further 1-1/2 drive to the campsite, and apart from utter boredom, the D-Max kept us comfy and alert.

Being the first time I’ve taken a UK car abroad, I liked how the Sat-Nav automatically kept us in check showing our speed in kilometres. This might be a common thing, I don’t know, but it was useful.

Once home I drove to the NEC in Birmingham, then to Wales for the Isuzu XTR launch, and with well over a thousand miles under our belt within the week I had nothing but praise for the smooth and comfortable ride. The Pedders kit kept everything stable on the twisty bits too.

Off road I’ve taken standard D-Maxs along some pretty gnarly green-lanes in the past and they’ve always conquered them, despite bucking the trend and not having a rear locker. In fact, in the October issue I wrote how the new D-Max XTR left me speechless with its ability to thread its way through rough forest tracks and tackle some extreme terrain at Ffestiniog Slate Quarry without the aid of a locker.

However, as you can read in last month’s issue, the Pirelli 255-60-R18 All Terrains were not the best choice for soft sand as we kept getting bogged. I can’t criticise the vehicle for that, nor the actual tyres, just the tyre size as even at 20psi they didn’t create much of a footprint The manual gearbox wasn’t best suited either as 2nd low wouldn’t give me the momentum I needed for the long and steep sand dunes, whilst 3rd ran out of puff when I reached the top and sank. In all it wasn’t a good combination for soft sand.

Back in blighty though and driving a few local muddy and rocky green-lanes the Huntsman didn’t miss a beat, it crawled everywhere.

Interior The Huntsman is based on the Utah model, so comes equipped with keyless entry, push button start, rear parking sensors, automatic air conditioning, heated front seats, leather upholstery, and an electric height adjustable driver’s seat. There’s also Apple CarPlay, Android and quite a decent sound system.

The D-Max has always had a spacious and practical cabin, not the most luxurious it has to be said, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

The Huntsman comes with a fantastic set of rubberised floor mats that are very grippy and cover every last bit of carpeting. Staying on the practical bits, there’s plenty of cubby space up front with a double glovebox in front of the passenger as well as a lidded cubbyhole on top of the dash.

Pickup stuff The D-Max has a 3.5t towing capacity and one tonne payload, and although it has a load bed that’s wider and deeper than most of its competitors, at 1,485mm long it’s one of the smallest in the double-cab segment.

Engines ‘n’ transmissions As I’ve written previously, the D-Max only comes with their 1.9ltr diesel engine which doesn’t require the extra expense of AdBlue. It produces 162bhp (at 3,600rpm) and 360Nm (between 2,000 and 2,500rpm). You do have the option of a smooth automatic gearbox or 6-speed manual.

Conclusion As I’ve mentioned, the Huntsman wasn’t the ideal truck for soft sand, and that was purely down to the manual box and tyre choice, but it excelled at other off-road obstacles and road work. If I was to go to Marquenterre again I’d love to take an automatic XTR, that thing would eat soft sand for breakfast!

Although the Huntsman is designed for a specific purpose, it actually lends itself quite well green-laning. The Pedders kit, sturdy steering and engine guards and the Gearmate set-up makes for an almost ideal ‘off-roader’.

The Huntsman Pack is available for £7,250.00 on top of the standard vehicle price of £25,709 (+VAT).