2023 Mazda BT-50 XT 4x4 review

The ute race is basically a three-way battle: Toyota, Ford and Isuzu. All of them are big and bluff and seem to be in a competition to slap names on them like Baby Eater or Necksnapper or Destroyer of Worlds.

Mazda’s BT-50 has taken a different approach, at least in the styling. Mazda’s attractive slim headlights and multi-point grille work very nicely to deliver a sleek-looking ute, if such a thing were possible.

Is Mazda’s heart in it, though? Because this isn’t a Mazda, it’s an Isuzu with the aforementioned grille and lights treatment.

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JUMP AHEAD

• How much is it, and what do you get?
• How do rivals compare on value?
• Interior comfort, space and storage
• What is it like to drive?
• How is it on fuel?
• How safe is it?
• Warranty and running costs
• VERDICT
• Specifications

How much is it, and what do you get?

The XT sits one step up from the bottom of the expansive BT-50 range and comes in various combinations of tub, cab chassis, 4x2, 4x4, manual and automatic.

Most ship with the 3.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel, but you can also get a 1.9-litre turbo-diesel four if you don’t mind going even slower. My ute for the week was towards the upper end of the XT list, the 4x4 dual-cab auto for $55,080 before on-road costs.

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How do rivals compare on value?

Where do you start? Well, I guess you start with its mechanical twin, the Isuzu D-Max.

The D-Max LS-M auto 4x4 is very close to the Mazda’s pricing and is mechanically extraordinarily similar (some would say identical). Obviously, it looks quite different at least from the doors forward but you’ll be hard-pressed to tell the interiors apart with the exception of the steering wheel.

Ford’s Ranger is a classic of the breed and like the Mazda has a dizzying array of trim options that grow by the day. For a snip under the BT-50’s price, you can get a Ranger XLS auto 4x4 with a huge number of gears in the transmission and a smaller but more powerful 2.0-litre turbo-diesel.

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The evergreen Toyota HiLux – if you have the patience to wait – is available in SR Auto 4x4 spec with a 2.8-litre turbo-diesel and a six-speed auto. It’s probably the most basic-looking in this list and, weirdly, competes with the Mazda and Isuzu for having the worst media screen software.

While all these machines come from Thailand, China’s GWM offers the Cannon Ute. You basically can’t spend more than $52,990 on the Cannon, which nets you a specced-up XSR. It looks a bit like the old HiLux and has some charming and clever features as well as a fully-loaded interior.

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Interior comfort, space and storage

Despite the slimline nose making the BT-50 look smaller and less imposing than most of its competition, it’s still a huge unit.

Inside the cabin, you get two cup holders up front, a bottle holder in each door, a large glovebox that is overwhelmed by the instruction manual and a smaller box above with a lid. There’s a space under the centre stack for your phone that sadly does not also feature wireless charging.

The front seats feel like actual Mazda seats to me rather than carryovers from the donor Isuzu D-Max and they even look good in a combination of two-tone cloth.

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It’s a bit quiet in the back, with just a couple of seatback pockets and no armrest, although the day is partially saved by the presence of air vents. Like the front seats, they’re pretty comfortable, although legroom isn’t amazing and your head feels close to the glass behind you. Mostly because it is. Having said that, the outboard seats feature generous headrests, so you don’t feel too exposed.

Like most utes, you can’t fit a standard pallet between the wheelarches but the tray will take between 1055kg and 1081kg depending on the chassis and transmission combination. The cargo area is 1572mm long and 1120mm between the wheelarches. The cargo box’s height is 490mm and the maximum width is 1540mm.

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Maximum payload is 1090kg. Front axle capacity comes out at 1450kg and the rear’s 1910kg. The GCM ranges from 5850kg to 5950kg and the GVM 3000kg to 3100kg, both from kerb weights of between 1805kg and 2035kg.

This BT-50 has a GVM of 3100kg so also has a higher GCM of 5950kg and Goldilocks kerb weight of 2010kg. Towing capacity is rated at 3500kg.

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What is it like to drive?

Like all utes, there are swings and roundabouts to the driving experience.

Mazda hasn’t made its own ute from the ground up for a long time, so this is not a machine that necessarily imbues all that is Mazda in the way it drives or sounds. Or, let’s be honest, the interior.

Now, I don’t think most folks who buy BT-50s are going to be too worried about Mazda’s jinba ittai (horse and rider) philosophy or will be asking the dealer if it has G-Vectoring. But a lot of CX-5 owners might be eyeing up their next purchase thinking, “I like the cut of this thing’s jib, maybe the ute will be like that.”

In short, no.

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And that’s not an insult, either to Mazda or partner Isuzu. Utes just can’t feel like cars or even SUVs that are built with an eye on dynamics. A dual-cab load carrier has other things to do, and expectations on its shoulders. In some cases three-and-a-half tonnes of expectation, for those eyeing up towing capacity specs.

The diesel engine is a strong unit and while it doesn’t match all its rivals for power – or refinement in some cases – it certainly is enthusiastic. Its six-speed partner in crime is smooth and easygoing and only occasionally gets confused on light throttle. It’s pretty noisy, though, and doesn’t fade into the background.

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Given it’s a 3.0L four-cylinder, it’s not as gruff as it could be, so there are some points to be awarded there.

Steering is necessarily slow to ensure easy maneuverability in the rough stuff and can become a little tiring in town. It’s reasonably light, though, but direct it isn’t, although I’ve driven much worse.

Despite fairly high-profile tyres, the BT-50 will hop about at the rear. A live axle with leaf springs is never going to be plush but one would expect it to be a little less bouncy with a load packed in.

Vision out the front is great but parking this thing in a dark car park is not much fun. The reversing camera is fine but with more than five metres of vehicle to squeeze into a parking space, it can be a challenge. And you have to be mindful of its height. Trying to gauge where the tailgate is fuels my nightmares, so the rear parking sensors are also very helpful.

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How is it on fuel?

Mazda’s ADR testing delivered a combined cycle result of 8.0L/100km.

That’s not bad for a big unit like this and I would expect the engine to lean out quite a bit at a cruise.

You’ll probably get 1000km of tank range on a highway run as long as it wasn’t loaded to the gunnels with gear and a giant boat on the back.

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How safe is it?

The BT-50 scored a five-star rating in 2022 based on the performance of the Isuzu D-Max, as well as the addition of a new driver's knee airbag and instrument panel.

The BT-50 has a front-centre airbag to help prevent head clashes in side impacts. The forward auto emergency braking also detects pedestrians and cyclists. Reverse cross-traffic alert is welcome in any car but a huge thing like this renders that feature essential.

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Warranty and running costs

Mazda offers a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty with roadside assist for the duration.

Servicing intervals for the BT-50 are every 12 months/15,000km and the first five visits are covered by a fixed-price program. The prices ping around a bit, as low as $334 (the fifth service) and as high as $713 (the third).

All up you’ll pay $2443 over the five years and despite price rises since this generation of BT-50 debuted in 2020, it’s still cheaper to service than the old one by a few hundred bucks.

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VERDICT

I began by asking if Mazda’s heart is in the BT-50. Technically, it isn’t and you have to wonder what the point of it is.

But there is a point to it – people love the brand and want a ute and if you want a ute with a Mazda badge, all power to you. The fact it’s built on a smash-hit best-seller from Isuzu is a good thing (even though the old one was based on the Ranger which is even more of a smash hit) because you know it’s tough and dependable but, in Mazda guise, doesn’t look over-wrought.

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If you’re looking for jinba ittai, you’ve probably come to the wrong Mazda. But if you’re a horse rider needing to get your horses to the right place, this will do the trick.

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