2022 Toyota Hilux Review: Workmate Petrol Manual 4x2 Single Cab Chassis Cab
Through the end of November, the Toyota HiLux 4x4 outsold Ford's Ranger 4x4 in 2021, but the HiLux continued to hold onto its top spot in Australian utility vehicle sales due to its firm grip on the 4x2-focused market. At work, where he has an enviable sales share of around 40 percent.
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| 2022 Toyota Hilux Review |
Toyota offers a selection of HiLux 4x2 models, body/chassis types, and transmissions in a segment that appeals to many governments and commercial fleet buyers, as well as businesses that need rugged, reliable, low-cost workhorses with strong performance values. Resale.
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Toyota's continued dominance in this market segment prompted Cars Guide to test one of the many HiLux models on offer, in this case, the only one without a diesel engine or "Hi-Rider" suspension.
Does it represent good value for money? What features are provided?
- Our test vehicle is the Workmate single cab chassis which, along with a crew cab variant, represents the base model in the 4x2 lineup.
- It comes standard with a 2.7-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine and five-speed manual transmission (optional six-speed automatic) for a list price of $24,225. Our example is equipped with Toyota's General Purpose Aluminum (GPA) tray and optional Silver Sky metallic paint, which translates to a starting price of $30,522. There is no doubt that fleet buyers and ABN holders can make more precise deals.
- This Workmate 4x2 is the cheapest entry point for HiLux ownership, with a clean spec fit for the rugged Yakka. No fancy alloys here, just 16-inch black-painted steel wheels with 215/65R16C tires and a full-size spare. Inside, you'll find comfortable easy-to-clean vinyl flooring, cloth-trimmed driver and passenger bucket seats with minimal adjustment, no intermittent windshield wipers, and prominent white inserts where the buttons and switches are located on higher-end models.
- Still, there are plenty of features you might not expect at this level, like remote keyless entry, grab handles on the A-pillars, a height and reach the adjustable steering wheel, cruise control adaptive speed, and a two-speaker infotainment system with an 8.0 screen. One-inch color touchscreen (thankfully now with knob settings for volume/adjustment), steering wheel-mounted controls, and multiple collectivities including Apple CarPlay/Android Auto. Toyota hasn't skimped on safety either, with AEB, seven airbags, and more.
Is there anything interesting in your design?
The base Workmate sticks to the original NG HiLux front styling in place of the trapezoidal rear grille found on higher-grade models, along with tough black plastic in high wear areas such as the fender. -front shocks/lower front fascia, exterior mirrors, and door handle. Still, there's the usual high level of finish and solid build quality you'd expect from a HiLux.
What are the key engine and transmission stats?
The standard 2.7-liter 2TR-FE four-cylinder gasoline engine with Dual Variable Valve Timing (VVT-i) delivers competent performance under heavy loads. However, its peak power and torque are utilized much more across the rev range than a diesel equivalent, with 122kW at 5,200rpm and a relatively modest 245Nm at 4,000rpm.
The manual gearbox is a five-speed with an overdrive top ratio (0.838:1) primarily for highway operation, while its combination of 4.3:1 short first gear and 4.1:1 final drive is sufficient to start heavy loads from a standstill.
How much fuel does it consume?
Toyota claims an official combined figure of 11.1l/100 km and the dashboard display showed 13.1 at the end of our test, which covered 317 km, around a third of which was at maximum payload. That was pretty close to our figure, calculated from trip odometer and fuel tank readings, which was slightly better at 12.9L/100 km.
Still, the gasoline engine is considerably more thirsty than the 2.4-liter turbo diesel we previously tested in the same (but no longer available) vehicle with the same payload. On this occasion, the diesel produced 8.9 l/100 km much cheaper, or 4.0 l/100 km less than gasoline. So, based on our numbers, you can also expect a proportionally shorter range of around 620 km from its 80-liter tank.
Is the interior space practical?
Regular cabs usually have limited storage options, but Toyota does a good job here with a large bottle holder and storage bin in each door, fold-down cup holders, and bottle holders on either side of the dash lower, upper and lower glove box bins (upper non-refrigerated, lower one lockable) and a cup holder in the roof. The center console has an open storage compartment in front, another next to the parking brake, and two more cup/small bottle holders in the rear.
Measuring 1777 mm wide and 2550 mm long internally, the expanding GPA tray has rattle-free movable sides, a strong front bulkhead frame / rear window guard, 16 internal cargo tie-down points, and four rails external ropes along each bottom.
With an empty weight of 1,495 kg and a GVM of 2,700 kg, this Workmate has a high payload of 1,205 kg. The aluminum bed adds 140 kg to the empty weight, reducing the payload by the same amount to 1065 kg, but still making it a true one-tonne weight.
It can also tow up to 2,500 kg of the braked trailer and, as is typical of Toyota's light commercial vehicles, its 5,200 kg GCM means it can legally tow its maximum trailer weight while hauling its maximum payload. This makes it very versatile in tackling a variety of load-carrying tasks.
How is it as a daily driver?
The stiff rear leaf springs are designed to handle heavy loads, so without decent weight on the rear wheels, this vehicle can sometimes feel like it has no suspension movement, especially on hilly trails and heavily patched asphalt roads. You can feel each hit as a solid hit to your butt and lower back, which can tire you out after a while.
Still, the cabin looks good and is reasonably quiet. Thanks to the height and reach of the adjustable steering wheel, most drivers can find a comfortable position despite the lack of height or tilt adjustment of the seat and the limited angle of the backrest due to the proximity of the rear bulkhead of the cabin. Although there's no dedicated left foot peg, there's plenty of room next to the clutch pedal to stretch out your leg.
Steering is well-weighted, braking is reassuringly strong, clutch pedal pressure is as light as a Corolla, and the five-speed manual shift action is decisive, even if we find the downshift through the gate of third to second a little tentative and hesitant to commit at times.
As mentioned above, the 2.7-liter petrol engine needs higher revs than the diesel to access its peak performance, so its relatively short fifth-gear overdrive meets this requirement when driving. Road use. However, thanks to dual variable valve timing, it offers more flexibility and low-end traction performance than you'd expect.
So as a daily driver, our only major complaint is poor to ride quality without a load. We also noticed that excessive play in the parking brake lever when not engaged triggered the parking brake warning alarm on larger potholes, which happened quite often.
What about commercial use?
We inflated the tires to the recommended label pressures and hoisted 975 kg aboard a forklift that, along with the driver, equaled its 1,065 kg payload capacity (with platform).
The heavy-duty rear springs compressed just 50 mm, leaving a substantial 60 mm of clearance and not the slightest chance of bottoming out on big bumps and sags. As expected, the ride quality has been transformed, delivering a noticeably smoother feel on all surfaces with good overall stability and negligible reduction in steering and braking response.
In urban and suburban driving, the short ratio of the first gear and differential made it easy to move this payload when the brake lights turned green, while at highway speeds, quick downshifts from fifth to third were needed on hills to keep the engine running at or near its maximum outputs to maintain momentum.
It showed good flexibility on our 13% incline for 2.0 km to get to 60 km/h. It navigated that climb in second gear with ease, so we tried it again in third gear, with revs dropping to 1600rpm at 40kph on the steepest corner as it continued to head resolutely for the top. So it's not as sharp as its modest power and torque figures might suggest.
Second-gear engine braking on the descent was also good, accelerating to 4,500 rpm in excess (5,600 rpm redline) with only a brief squeeze of the brake needed to stay under the 60 km/h limit. So if you need to regularly haul heavy loads over a variety of paths, including hills, this would be a capable workhorse.
What safety equipment is installed? What security clearance?
It features the highest ANCAP rating of five stars (achieved in 2015), seven airbags, a pre-collision safety system (AEB) with daytime protection for pedestrians and cyclists, highway speed sign assist, and cruise control. Speed. Active. However, there's no trailer sway control, which is a noticeable omission if you need to tow, and no parking sensors or rearview camera.
How much does it cost to own? What warranty is offered?
The HiLux is backed by Toyota's five-year/unlimited-mileage warranty. Scheduled maintenance every six months/10,000 km, whichever occurs first. Service capped at $3,220 for five years/100,000 km, whichever comes first, or an average of $322.00 per service.