Monday, Jul 29, 2013 at 22:15
Not a
Ranger, but a BT 50 which I can report on: I drive a current model Mazda BT 50 dual cab auto with a tub body. I've done 48,000 km since April 2012 when I bought it new.
These are hard desert
miles and the only black top driving I do is getting to
the desert from
Adelaide. (I don't use the BT 50 in town as I have others for that job). Driving for days on corrugates and sand and hard packed dirt exploits weaknesses; at present I can't see many on the BT 50.
Generally I am running at 3 tonne weight with either 4 or 5 people inside. Occasionally I tow a 1.5 t trailer. So I'm working just within manufacturers specs nearly all the time. I drive with tyres from approx 15 to 38 psi, depending upon conditions. I'm not shy about dropping pressures. The Bridgestone 697's have done 43,00 km and I'll get another 5 to 10,000 km out of them. Talk about good value!!!
The OE
suspension sagged and had a lean on the near side at 25,000 km.
I now have an ARB
suspension kit (300 kg rating) and the lift has been 80 mm - handy.The shocks have been burning hot to touch at times but have never faded over endless bad corrugates.No dash squeaks or flex of
the tub onto the body. I seriously rate this chassis.
I am surprised that the OE side steps have not fouled on sand hills, muddy sections etc. The plastic trim at each end of the near side steps has fallen off: it reveals a wicked looking sharp aluminium edge. Mazda can't supply a single replacement; only two new side steps complete (not one), so I'll replace
the steps with ARB brand or similar asap.
The front of
the tub has cracked and split around the folds on the top section of
the tub. I have welded them up and the repair has now held for 3000 tough km + 1500 km easy bitumen coming
home. I reckon the factory panel work here is really sus, but I exacerbated the issue by constant loads of approx 100 k on a custom alloy r/rack which sits on the top surface of
the tub sides.
Cabin comfort after a long day: at the end of the day’s driving, I find I am less tired than in my two previous Patrol. Leg room, head room &
seat comfort in front & rear is fine. iPod functionality & blue tooth for the phone is appreciated, (Bluetooth in a vehicle is new to me).
The rear middle passenger is a bit squeezed on account of the transmission hump. The middle passenger seems to prefer to sit with a foot on either side of
the hump. I chopped the bin out of the console to allow feet to be placed there to ease the foot space problem, but this is rarely utilised by the middle occupants.
Roadholding is excellent and it hangs on in dirt & on the blacktop like you would not believe. It's a point & shoot vehicle and that makes it very easy to drive. It's a torquey beastie, but with so much power on tap that aspect is not immediately noticeable. Believe it or not, the Mazda has more torque than the 76 series Toyota (workmate wagon & troopy) & about 5 Kw less power !!!
I have been regularly checking the air cleaner (have
snorkel fitted) and I blow it out/tap it out roughly every 1500 km. A few sticks & seeds seem to find their way into the bottom of the filter assy. However, I drive along many narrow bush tracks with vegetation constantly scraping the sides. But not often at
snorkel height, so buggered if I know how this stuff gets in.
Duco seems to retain dirt/dust stains. The dealer told me it might be soft paint and nothing could be done! I’ve since used truck wash and polish to good effect.
Dust ingress around tailgate is a serious issue. This is a design flaw that is a real negative. I filled as many gaps with door sealer tape + other foam tapes as I could, and that helped. But it is still bad. I have to cover
the tub contents with a tarp under the tonneau to be thrown back when un-packing. This gets 90 % of the red dirt off the contents. It’s easy to see where the dirt floods in – it’s not from the tonneau seal. I have now fitted a seal kit which has helped significantly - got it off ebay.
Highway cruising economy with an empty roof rack @ 110 kph gives between 10 and 11 Litres/100 km, depending on weather conditions. Fully loaded for 11 day outback trip, weighing 3.1 t, incl 4 people + swags on roof + 1.4 t trailer with roof rack, driving on dirt at speeds up to 80 kph gets up to 17 L/100 km. I estimate the roof rack sucks about 1 to 2 L/100 km. These figures are derived from the readout in the dash. Comparing these to GPS tracked km + litres of diesel at fill up shows a consistent under reporting of between 1 to 1.5 Litres/100 km
Cheers
AnswerID:
515576
Follow Up By: Rockape - Tuesday, Jul 30, 2013 at 05:58
Tuesday, Jul 30, 2013 at 05:58
Rick, thanks for the report.
As you said dust is a pain in
the tub. I also stuck in a seal kit plus the canopy has a pressurising vent. Also I fit a couple of circular foam pieces on the between the top edge of the tailgate and the canopy, after I close the tailgate. This virtually eliminates all dust.
I don't even look at the litres per hundred on the dash or the litres to empty. They are just a joke. Having a long range tank, I have run it down to when the fuel light comes on. That leaves me approximately 22 litres left. My fuel calculations are also with gps and the amount of fuel I have to fill the tank with.
Went for a run over the Conandale Range an couple of days ago on a wet track, I was very happy with the performance and the only thing that annoys me is the factory tow bar. Bottomed out on it 3 times. The auto was a blessing in the clay and slippery conditions. I had to intervene a couple of times when coming up to a sharp pinch by slipping the lever across to sports mode.
FollowupID:
794864
Follow Up By: KennyBWilson - Wednesday, Jul 31, 2013 at 03:20
Wednesday, Jul 31, 2013 at 03:20
I'm looking at getting the
Ranger but that low towbar has me worried.
FollowupID:
794928