Vehicle test
D.
GOULD
Isuzu D-Max Uta
Huntsman Plus
Isuzuhasenjoyeda goodreputationforbuildingoff-roadvehicles for
manyyears,andtheD-MaxHuntsman doesn’t disappoint, saysEdColes
38 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE
Businessend
Atthebusinessendofthings,shiny
protectionplatesguardthediff
and4x4vitals,andit’sthesameat
thefrontwiththestrengthened
undertray— suggestingIsuzumeans
businesswiththis.Glancingleftand
right,thesuspensionconfirmsit.
Thisis the‘Plus’bittotheHuntsman;
it’sfittedwitha Pedderssuspension
kitwithincreasedtravel— stability
is thenameofthegame.Somenice
shiny red uprated springs and shock
I
waswaitingeagerlyforthe
IsuzuHuntsmantoturnup,
andat firstglanceit hasthe
airofa stealthfighteraboutit,
particularlyinthiscolourwithblack
wheels.If BruceWaynehada 4x4in
thecave,it wouldprobably have been
theHuntsman.
TheD-Maxhasearneda good
reputationasa 4x4pickup.It’sbeen
awardedbestpickupseveraltimes,
sotheDNAoftheHuntsmanis sound.
Isuzuhastakenthedouble-cab,
D-MaxUtahandputtogether an
optionalextraskit.
Thebeastontestis theHuntsman
Plus— beinga Utah,theinterior spec
is already pretty high.
absorberspushtheD-Maxupa little
at thefrontandat theback,withthe
additionofupgradedsuspensionand
ananti-rollbar.It looksas if it can
handlemostterrain.
The18inwheelscomewiththekit
andaresuppliedwithruggedPirelli
AllTerraintyres,includinga spare.
They’reblack,soyouwon’tbegiven
awaybymoonlightglareoffshiny
silverwheels.Similarly,thegrille,
mirrors,sidestepsanddoorhandles
are in a matt fi nish, or ‘dechromed’
ISUZUHUNTSMAN |PRICE£25,709
PROS:COMFORTABLE,HIGH-SPEC INTERIOR,
UPGRADED SUSPENSION
CONS:NONE,THOUGHTHEUPGRADED
SUSPENSION MIGHT BE OVERKILL
“TheD-Maxhasa goodreputationasa
4x4, so the DNA of the Huntsman is sound ”
E XCL. VAT
Isuzu’sPlusversion
oftheHuntsman
doesn’tdisappoint