Top Tips to choose the best UTE

Author: Sarah James

When you’re in the market for a Ute, but are not sure which of the fantastic utes on the market is the right one for you then these top tips from Ute Hire on The Gold Coast will help you decide.

Each ute has its pros and cons and it really depends on what you want to use it for, so read on to see if you can find the best ute to suit your needs:

Around Town Utes

Big isn’t always better when you have to navigate some of the narrow streets in metro areas. The skinniest ute is the Mitsubishi Triton at1,815 wide, including the mirrors and a 11.8m turning circle, making it the ideal ute for tight city streets

The big utes like the Land Cruiser 70 and Ram 1500 can be difficult in the city traffic

Best Ute for Towing

If your main thing is towing heavy loads, the clear winner is the RAM 1500, it’s comfortable with pulling a 3.787kg trailer while it has a full payload in the huge tray as well as every seat taken inside. The monster 5.7 liter v8 engine gives it heaps of torque to keep you rolling over anything in any weather conditions.

The Toyota Land Cruiser 70 powered by a 4.5 liter turbo diesel and easily able to pull 3.5 tons also with a full payload and all seats taken is a very close contender

The Ute that’s Best for Carrying Heavy Loads

When you carry a lot of heavy loads such as pallets of cement or drums of fuel, then consider the Colorado 4x2 LS Single cad diesel that can move about 1.487kg. The 4x2 XL single cab Ford Ranger Hi-rider can cope with 1,476kg

The Ute that’s Best for Carrying Large Loads

Big loads are often a problem, especially cumbersome bulky loads so the best answer is a ute with a single cab such as the VW Amarok, Isuzu D-Max or the Colorado by Holden, these beasts have trays that can take a load of up to 2,550mm long.

If you’re after a wide tray on one of the double cab monsters, (measurement taken between the wheelhouses) is the RAM 1500 then the Mazda BT-50 followed by the Ford Ranger

The best Family Ute

All the models come with a 5 star ANCAP safety rating. The highest scoring is the HiLUX which is a super family friendly Ute, with its double cab body and five seats for the family, a good sized tray for luggage and gear.

Other features are Autonomous Emergency Breaking. Lane Keep Assist, lane departure and lane support as standard features. The rear has side air bags and the ute is also equipped with ISOFIX points and fatigue detection. With a 87% score for child occupant safety, this ute is a great family wagon and would be hard to beat

The most Fuel Efficient Ute

At 6.3l/100k the 4x4 Nissan Navara Dual cab ST is the most frugal and the 4x2 Ford Ranger XL Single cab low rider uses 6.5L/100k

As the guys at ute hire on the Gold Coast will tell you it depends on what you want it for and how you use it that will help you decide which is the best ute.