Mazda BT-50 2022 Review

By Bruce Newton, carsales.com.au

The Mazda BT-50 dual cab ute and Isuzu D-MAX are the automotive equivalent of non-identical twins.

They share the same fundamental DNA – body structure, engines, gearboxes, suspension and more – but have enough visual differences to tell them apart.

This philosophy is not new to Mazda for its hard-working ute range, as its predecessor had a different parent in the highly acclaimed Ford Ranger.

But the switch to join forces with fellow Japanese car maker Isuzu seems to have been happily accepted by buyers, as Mazda sold more BT-50s than ever before in Australia last year.

Now, it has expanded the model range with new top-and-tail variants, a dressed-up SP flagship and an entry-level XS powered by a smaller 1.9-litre turbo diesel four-cylinder engine.

How do they stack up? Let’s go for a drive and find out…

Building on the momentum

Following Mazda’s surprising decision to separate from Ford after 48 years and hook-up with Isuzu, the third-generation Mazda BT-50 ute range officially arrived in Australia in September 2020 with a limited model range.

Now, the Japanese car maker has filled-out its portfolio and what you are looking at here are the headliners in the 2022 update.

The flashy SP model is a supposed ‘sporty’ black-pack version of the already-familiar 3.0-litre turbo diesel 4x4 dual-cab.

Priced at $63,390 (plus on road costs) for the manual and $66,390 (plus ORCs) for the auto it slots in between the luxury-focused GT and adventurous Thunder models at the top of the range and is positioned directly as a competitor to the popular Ford Ranger Wildtrak.

At the other end of the scale, the XS is a new badge for Mazda and denotes a stripped-back model that is powered by a 1.9-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel and aimed at tradie sales, where the Toyota HiLux dominates.

Pricing starts from as low as $33,650 (plus ORCs) for the 4x2 single-cab chassis, rises to $42,890 (plus ORCs) for the 4x2 dual-cab ute and tops out at $51,510 (plus ORCs) with a four-wheel drive transmission – the model we’re taste testing here.

Perhaps surprisingly, the XS only comes as an auto. Mazda says the low level of manual transmission demand doesn’t justify its inclusion. It’s an interesting omission when you look at other entry-level utes including the 1.9-litre Isuzu D-MAX.

When we say the XS drive was just a taste it was actually a swig, with a quick blat on sealed roads without any real challenges.

Instead, we spent most of the time during the media launch driving the SP model for hours of enjoyable and rugged off-road action.

Back in Black

So, what separates the SP from the GT? Essentially, it’s a bit of cosmetic surgery.

The sail plane sports bar, fender flares, mirror caps, door and tailgate handles are all now gloss black. And, just for something different, the 18-inch wheels are black metallic and the roof rails are dark grey.

Key equipment upgrades compared to the GT are a manually operated roller tonneau cover, a drop-in tub liner and two-tone leather seat trim.

Some of the key equipment the SP shares with other models includes side steps, dual-zone climate control, a 9.0-inch infotainment screen with embedded satellite navigation, wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto connection, a digital speedo in the instrument panel (as well as the analogue dials), a powered driver’s seat, heated front seats, keyless entry and remote engine start.

Because of its position lower down the ladder, the XS obviously misses out on some of the fruit and dress-up gear. It has a smaller 7.0-inch infotainment screen without sat-nav but with the Apple and Android smartphone mirroring tech, and smaller 17-inch alloy wheels (on the 4x4 only, with 4x2 variants riding on steel wheels). And it misses out on push-button start, rear air con vents and the fold-down centre arm rest in the rear seat.

As such, there is no real sense of occasion in the cabin. It’s all dark, pretty basic and built for a life on the worksite.

Like all BT-50s, the SP and XS are covered by a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty.

Service intervals are a commendable 12 months/15,000km and a capped-price service plan comes out slightly cheaper for the XS over five years at $2088. The SP auto is $2308 and the manual $2357.

Safety for all

The 2022 Mazda BT-50 range continues with a comprehensive suite of advanced safety systems. And, commendably, that includes the new entry-level XS.

The list of standard equipment includes autonomous emergency braking (AEB) that operates between 5km/h to 160km/h and includes pedestrian and cyclist detection, adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go (auto only), blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning and assistance (the latter also in auto models only), rear cross traffic alert, rollover protection and a secondary collision function that slams on the brakes when the airbag sensors detect a impact to prevent the car from rolling into another vehicle.

New for 2022 is a button on the steering wheel that makes it easier to switch off the lane support systems.

Previously, if you found the lane keeping functions intrusive (yep!), you had to drill into a menu to switch them off. Frustratingly, they would automatically re-engage every time the vehicle was turned on. No more.

A reversing camera is also standard, along with rear parking sensors, on all models but front sensors aren’t fitted until you get up to the GT.

LED headlights are standard across the range, along with front, curtain, centre and driver’s knee airbags.

Twinned from birth

It is well known the current 2022 Mazda BT-50 is an Isuzu D-MAX in drag.

The exterior is clearly differentiated by that beaming Mazda grille and different headlights while, inside the cabin, there’s very little to tell them apart besides the badges and some unique trim elements.

Under the skin, the BT-50 and D-MAX are the same vehicle. They are even built together in the same Isuzu assembly plant in Thailand. Even the detail tuning of the BT and D-MAX are fundamentally the same.

The core building block is a seven cross-member ladder frame, which has double wishbone suspension up front and leaf springs at the rear.

The familiar 3.0-litre engine in the SP makes 140kW of power at 3600rpm and 450Nm of torque at 1600-2600rpm. The official fuel consumption average is 8.0L/100km for the SP as a six-speed manual or auto.

The 1.9-litre four cylinder makes 110kW at 3600rpm and 350Nm at 1800-2600rpm. The claimed fuel consumption rate is 6.9L/100km for the 4x4 we’re assessing. It drops as low as 6.7L/100km as a 4x2.

Both engines have a cast-iron block and an aluminium cylinder head with chain-driven double overhead camshafts, four valves per cylinder, common rail fuel injection and a single variable geometry turbocharger.

The gearing of the 1.9’s auto features a shorter final drive to give it a bit more acceleration pep. In both models, drivers can choose to change gears manually via the gear lever, but, strangely, the allegedly sporty SP misses out on flappy paddles on the steering wheel.

The part-time 4x4 system common to both includes a low-range transfer case and a rear differential lock, which disengages traction control. Hill descent control provides further assistance on steep terrain. There are no sand, mud or rock modes that some rivals like the Ford Ranger offer.

The brakes are disc up front and drums at the rear. Many rivals are shifting to discs all-round and hopefully Isuzu and Mazda will soon do the same.

Completing the tech specs is an electric-assist power steering system that gets heavier as road speeds rise. The turning circle is rated at 12.5m.

On to the numbers, and there are no changes to the tub size, which means an Aussie pallet still won’t fit between the wheel-arches. The payload of the SP is rated at 902kg (manual) and 892kg (auto) whereas the XS, which is about 190kg lighter, can carry up to 1165kg.

The XS has a 5500kg gross combined mass compared to the 6000kg for its big bro. GCM is identical at 3100kg and the SP and XS 4x4 are both rated to tow 3500kg.

Off-road, the XS has a better approach angle (30 versus 27 degrees), but the SP does slightly better for departure (24.3 v 23.3), breakover (24.2 v 23.9) and ground clearance (240mm v 235mm). Wading depth is an excellent 800mm for both utes.

Getting down and dirty

Like we said at the start, the majority of our drive time during this exercise was in the 2022 Mazda BT-50 SP on some pretty rough gravel roads and capped off by some gnarly sections in a 4x4 park.

It’s worth noting at this point that all driving was conducted without a load in the back.

Mazda pitches the SP as a sporty new version of the BT-50 range. That’s underlined by the use of the ‘SP’ badge, which traces its lineage back to locally developed race-winning Mazda RX-7, RX-8 and turbocharged MX-5 models.

More recently, it’s been applied to a wide selection of models without any performance modifications. There’s even a Mazda2 SP.

So, considering the SP has no mechanical upgrades compared to other BT models like the GT, it should be no surprise that the driving character hasn’t changed and the BT-50 remains amongst the best-behaved dual-cab 4x4 on and off the road.

The engine is gutsy if a little raucous, and the six-speed Aisin automatic gearbox is well-tuned to work with it. A bit more low-down response would be appreciated, but it’s no deal-breaker.

The on-road ride on crap Aussie bitumen is decent. Without a load there’s some springiness out of the rear, but it’s only annoying when the road is really bad.

The BT-50 points and handles neatly with positive steering and good body control.

The BT was happy enough to roll along in 4x2 most of the time, quickly swapping into 4x4 via a dial on the dashboard when required.

The more challenging obstacles were easily overcome when low-range and then the diff lock were engaged, but the side steps did grind over some of the larger rocks – but that is hardly an issue exclusive to the BT-50.

The dry conditions were no trouble for the standard Bridgestone Dueler tyres. But if you want to off-road in all conditions then a change might be needed.

And what of the XS? Well, the smaller 1.9-litre engine definitely needs to be worked harder to provide similar acceleration to the SP.

On a level road with two solid bodies onboard, the throttle pedal went to the floor more than once. The upside was it felt smoother than the 3.0-litre, which is a big engine for a four-cylinder.

Being nearly 200kg lighter, the XS also felt a little more agile on the road but maybe not quite as settled, tending to pop off the bumps that bit more.

Inside the cabin, the SP and the XS offer the same dimensions and fundamental design. We’ve already noted some differences, like the smaller infotainment screen, which does look pretty cheap.

But you can make yourself comfortable in both. The driver’s seat has plenty of adjustment and the steering wheel moves for reach and rake.

There are also plenty of storage cubbyholes to shove your stuff into, although the Isuzu’s lidded bin atop the dashboard is conspicuously absent in the Mazda.

The back seat is not the most generous in its class when it comes to leg space. The Ford Ranger does it better. It’s also pretty knees-up, but that’s a typical signature of ladder-frame utes.

Let the record play

The Mazda BT-50 is more popular than ever before, with record sales in 2021.

These two new models should help Mazda build on that momentum.

The 2022 Mazda BT-50 SP is all about cosmetics, so if you like the look and want to spend that sort of money then it has done its job.

It would be nice if the SP badge actually meant something more (as it did in the past), but it doesn’t so that’s that.

The XS is the more interesting vehicle. It’s short on cosmetic appeal but is in a more affordable price bracket without being gutted of safety gear.

At first lick it still seems to offer acceptable performance. We’re already looking to a longer drive with some off-road sections and a load onboard to get a better feel for it.

How much does the 2022 Mazda BT-50 SP cost?

Price:  $63,390 manual/$66,390 auto (plus on-road costs)	Transmission:  Six-speed manual/six-speed automatic
Available:  Now	Fuel:  8.0L/100km (ADR combined)
Engine:  3.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel	CO2:  206g/100km (ADR combined)
Output: 140kW/450Nm	Safety rating:  Five-star (ANCAP 2020)

 

How much does the Mazda BT-50 XS Dual Cab 4x4 cost?

Price:  $51,510 (plus on-road costs)	Transmission:  Six-speed automatic
Available:  Now	Fuel:  6.9L/100km (ADR combined)
Engine:  1.9-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel	CO2:  185g/100km (ADR combined)
Output: 110kW/350Nm	Safety rating:  Five-star (ANCAP 2020)

 

Disclaimer: Images supplied by Mazda Australia.

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