NewHilux.net

Yep YepYep
Have had 10 different Hiluxes over the last 35 years or so all have been dual cabs all diesel all manuals never had any problems the new 2.8 is by far & wide the best yet as for the DPF one day we will all get over it.
Very happy hilux driver. Cheers.

First thoughts.

I just got my 2.8 auto double cab with the Malaysian L spec (rocco grill) last week. This is my 3rd Hilux after the LN106, and 2005 Vigo.

Its been less than a week, so here's the short form.

Likes:
It is the nicest and most posh vehicle I've ever owned.
2.8 engine has much more power stock than my previous Hiluxes.
The auto seems to work quite well in city and 1 off trail drive without too much hesitation or gear hunting.
Auto is rev matching even when shifting manually.
More insulation and quieter in the inside.
Stock sound system is quite decent. No car play or android auto though.
Comfy seats that hold me in without much sliding.
It looks pretty good.
Rear diff lock standard
Great driving position and front visibility. It feels like a higher truck even though it isn't compared to my Vigo which was lifted.
I really like the 60/40 split rear seats as I can have a passenger and some bags in the cab. Wish we could have flat rear floors like some American trucks.

Don't Like:
18" wheels, even though they look good. I had a difficult time tracking down MTs. Finally found Achilles MT's same size as stock.265/60R18.
Stock suspension is soft and floaty on road
Stock suspension is pretty crappy off road. I drove on a easy trail and the suspension while soft couldn't seem to respond fast enough with the MT's. Very bumpy and car sickness inducing ride. I have a 75km off road trip coming up. ugh.
Shiny black (piano black) trim with chrome. Let's make it all shiny for more glare!!
The rear seat backs don't move when the bottom is lifted. Looks like we can't do the seat back mod.
Weird and shallow side cup holders that don't seem to hold anything well unless it fits the hole exactly.
Console cup holders too small for 1 liter Nalgene bottle but it does go into the door bottle holders.
Factory paint job is not great. Paint defects and lots of debris in the paint.
The rear underseat storage is still too small.

Other thoughts
I'm two minds about the perforated leather seats. They are not as hot as I thought they would be for Malaysian weather. I think the perforations will fill up quickly with dirt once I go on an off road trip so seat covers may be necessary.
Hill descent only works in 4WD. Limited to 25km/h which is pretty fast, but it will hold it at the slower speed you are going at.
Hill start hold is great.
Traction control switches from TRC to ATRC (apparently) when switching to 4WD. I was in 2H on a road with loose rocks and I was sliding all over.
Put in Neutral before switching to 4 Low. Yes, I should have read the manual.
DRL can't be switched off.
Mine came with a tiny car size tire compressor and jumper cables. Let's see how long that lasts.
Built in dash cam.
Front footwell lights!
Red plastic blanks where the puddle lights could go.
Panorama 360 camera which takes some getting used to. It composites the front, rear and wing mirror cams.
I haven't really sat in the back for long, but it looks mighty upright to me.
Rear aircon vents!
Dealer included the tail gate lift.
Alloy spare!
Aircon cooled upper storage box.
Center console box is smaller probably due to the rear aircon vents and it doesnt extend front far enough to rest my left arm on. The handbrake looks like its moved back but I can't be sure.

Mods so far:
Pedal lock (Probably the most stolen vehicle)
spare tire lock (common for spare tires to be stolen)
Hood lift
Wheel well covers
Achilles Desert Hawk MT 265/60R18
Black handle covers and fender flares. (vain I know)
Safari snorkel

That's my first impressions so far given I've only put a couple hundred KM on it but so far I really like it except for the suspension. I was hoping to hold out for a suspension lift later down the road, but it may have to come sooner.

Hey fooman, just out of interest what PSI are your muddies when you go off road?
They should never be more than 26PSI in my opinion. I'm down around 22 PSI on rocky roads. Smooth as over bumps.

fooman wrote:Stock suspension is soft and floaty on road
Stock suspension is pretty crappy off road. I drove on a easy trail and the suspension while soft couldn't seem to respond fast enough with the MT's. Very bumpy and car sickness inducing ride. I have a 75km off road trip coming up. ugh.

How to improve this without lifting the suspension? I know a funny requirement , but just wan't to have better on-road performance, already more than enough ground clearance for European roads and dirt tracks, off-roading is more or less prohibited.

It seems that stock Ranger is in advantage in this department, so still a little undecided what to buy.

I was thinking of fitting all 4 new shocks maybe a stiffer rear sway bar?

Should be able to get 3rd party suspensions that are stock height.

Tony2 wrote:Hey fooman, just out of interest what PSI are your muddies when you go off road?
They should never be more than 26PSI in my opinion. I'm down around 22 PSI on rocky roads. Smooth as over bumps.

The tire shop had them pumped up all the way to 37 PSI. hahah

I've since taken them down to 29PSI. I've got a trip coming up tomorrow so I'll play around with the pressure.

With my previous KM2s I would take it down to 20PSI for muddy roads and 25 for off road tracks,

gaspergartner wrote:

fooman wrote:Stock suspension is soft and floaty on road
Stock suspension is pretty crappy off road. I drove on a easy trail and the suspension while soft couldn't seem to respond fast enough with the MT's. Very bumpy and car sickness inducing ride. I have a 75km off road trip coming up. ugh.

How to improve this without lifting the suspension? I know a funny requirement , but just wan't to have better on-road performance, already more than enough ground clearance for European roads and dirt tracks, off-roading is more or less prohibited.

It seems that stock Ranger is in advantage in this department, so still a little undecided what to buy.

I was thinking of fitting all 4 new shocks maybe a stiffer rear sway bar?

A common comfort mod here in Borneo is to fit double shackles to the leaves and add a rear sway bar. Some may replace the shocks. Plenty of parts from Thailand.

Thought I'd put my initial thoughts down somewhere, so did a search and found this thread ... so here goes:

Background

Past 9 years have been in a MN Triton. Manual, Dual Cab, GLX ... kepts fairly stock except for tyres when the OEM wore and ended up with D697's.

Now

2019 SR5 Manual. It's pretty much as stock as she comes with just the soft tonneau, ute liner, tow tongue etc.

Thoughts?

Having just put on 200 k's (bitumen roads around Tweed Coast, Northern NSW and Southern Gold Coast with some highway use between Robina and Tweed Coast) in the past 24 hours since picking it up yesterday, my initial thoughts are:

- My car drives SO MUCH BETTER than the demo I tested. Very Happy.
- It's quiet, smooth and 'car like' similar to the Navara ST-X I tested .. but better. No soft arse coil springs.
- The technology onboard is awesome. The 'active' cruise control saves having to reset in traffic. Cool.
- Seat comfort with adjustments, plus steering wheel adjustments, have me feeling very comfortable driving.
- Gearing for 'in town' 40, 50 & 60 zones just seems to 'work' nicely.
- On the open road in the 80 - 110 zones gearing is spot on too.
- Cruise control works well, and does not seem to 'struggle' with wide speed fluctuations.
- The Road Sign Assist is good and hasn't missed a sign yet.
- Economy or "ECO" mode is smooth and gentle.
- Power mode is a beast. Throttle sensitivity and boost is robust to say the least.

A few quirks:

- Cruise control does not disengage on use of clutch.
- The 'active' cruise at lowest setting is still a bit further back from the car in front than I'd drive.
- The 'lane departure alert' is a bit too sensitive for my driving style. I've turned it off.
- Some random beeps that I'm still trying to figure out (mainly when first starting up)

Overall, I'm very happy with the purchase. Meeting expectations. Easy 9.5 / 10.

I'll update again after a few weeks of use.

I wonder how many of you would feel the same with the 2.4d engine version like we have to have in the UK ?

dervdave wrote:I wonder how many of you would feel the same with the 2.4d engine version like we have to have in the UK ?

Why?

Is it bad?

SurferSR5 wrote:

dervdave wrote:I wonder how many of you would feel the same with the 2.4d engine version like we have to have in the UK ?

Why?

Is it bad?

Well put it this way.... I think most would`ve bought the 2.8d if they`d had the choice

SurferSR5 wrote:...


A few quirks:

- Cruise control does not disengage on use of clutch.

...

Ok, quick update. I figured this one out.

Clutch does not disengage cruise control if the "active" cruise (i.e. the radar one which holds you back off the car in front) is used.

Normal cruuse control, and the use of clutch will disengage the cruise control.

I'm finding the normal cruise control more to my driving style.