An adventure utility vehicle with many roles

More than 15 feet in length, a beast to look at, with 16-inch wheels and chunky tyres, apart from a 1,485 mm-long cargo deck. These are some of the great features of Isuzu’s latest model, which will attract and drive you crazy to be off the road all the time.

Seeing this big machine lumber up to you in traffic certainly makes the eyes grow wider. However, the lack of parking sensors or a reverse camera is not very pleasant for the driver trying to squeeze into a tight parking spot! Isuzu D Max V Cross is an Adventurous Utility Vehicle (AUV), part of a rare segment that we see in India.

Targeting the adventurous buyers of the country, the Japan-based UV-maker has provided the maximum utilities, which will make us understand the importance of every feature, when you are in ‘The Lost World’. Be it a cargo space behind or a space inside, the machine makes you feel a home, far from home, if you are on an adventurous tour.

Though the steering is hydraulically assisted, the driver will know the pain as the machine looks heavy at low speeds. The generous ground clearance and suspension seems to be a different, when compared with other cars of this segment, which makes us roam freely off the road. It gets a thumbs-up for the ground clearance, because the chassis will not come into contact with the ground even at any deadly uneven paths. Beside the good speed on straight roads, the torque will get the machine to the tough terrains easily. A rotary dial lets us switch between 2WD, 4WD High, and 4WD Low (if you have to scramble over some serious rocks), all of which work very effectively.

Tailor-made feature
The drive mode that can be switched from two-wheel to four-wheel, makes a huge difference especially when the car is on sloppy region. The 4 WD L feature is a tailor-made feature for the vehicle that makes the car a mud-plugger of it, with its high-pulling capacity. The machine can be modified with the still better road grip tyres, which makes your off-road drive smooth.

Even as the width of the big machine is normal, the length will makes us extra cautious, while taking turns in the hairpin curves. The length would have been reduced, as the user might consider it before taking it on city traffic. The spacious front seat and back seat, with two ABS in the front will make any customer to go for it without a second thought.

The electrically-operated mirrors and the updated seven-inch touchscreen sound system are very impressive. The height and the steering adjustment in the driving seat is the welcoming feature that makes the driver of any size to feel comfortable on the wheel. But the machine misses satellite navigation, which can be ignored in the pick-up trucks.

Besides adventure, the Isuzu D Max V Cross is a machine that also serves for businesses such as moving cargo. If you own the vehicle, you will definitely be the few to own a multi-utility vehicle that takes on multiple roles.