Isuzu has added to its range of seventh-gen double-cabs with a reintroduction of the D-Max X-Rider. Oliver Keohane spent a few days up the Garden Route getting familiar with the updated bakkie.
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Isuzu D-Max X-Rider Fast Facts
- Price: R640 500 (starting)
- Engine: 1.9-litre, four-cylinder, turbo diesel
- Transmission: 6-speed manual/ 6-speed automatic
- Power: 110 kW @ 6 600 r/min
- Torque: 359 N.m @ 1 800 – 2 600 r/min
- Driven wheels: Rear-wheel-drive / selectable four-wheel-drive
- Fuel consumption (claimed): 7.4 L/100km
- Rivals: Nissan Navara 2.5 Pro 2X, GWM P-Series LTD, Toyota Hilux GR-S
What are we driving?
Based on the LS spec D-Max, the X-RIDER distinguishes itself from the rest of Isuzu’s range primarily through aesthetic enhancements, appealing to buyers looking for something unique, but still reasonably priced within the lifestyle bakkie market.
Related: Isuzu Reintroduces D-Max X-RIDER Offshoot For Local Market
The X-RIDER is available as a 4×2 with either a six-speed manual or automatic transmission, while the 4×4 option is only available with the automatic transmission. For now, all three models retain Isuzu’s 1.9-lite turbodiesel engine, though Kevin Fouché, Isuzu’s Department Executive for Planning and Programme Management, did allude to the 3.0-litre engine that is found in higher spec D-Max models like the LSE, V-cross and AT35, possibly being an option for the future.
Dimensions for the X-RIDER remain the same as other seventh-generation D-maxs, and the 4×4 features a low-range transfer case for off-roading, while both the 4×2 and 4×4 models come standard with a rear locking differential.
Why is the X-Rider significant?
Introduced in 2016, the X-RIDER was an instant hit for Isuzu. The reintroduction of the X-RIDER badge, in 2024, should appeal to a local market looking for value packaging in a popular, premium-priced segment.
Related: Review: Isuzu D-Max Arctic AT35
The 4×2 manual transmission X-RIDER starts at R640 500, a R55 000 difference from the entry-level LS model, with the same drivetrain configuration. During the media briefing, Fouché enforced that the X-RDIER is designed to provide customers with a choice of something sportier and something different, but not at at an excessive extra cost. So you aren’t getting any suspension tweaks or engine tuning, but what a customer does get, in the fairly homogenous double-cab segment, is a design and a road presence that distinguishes the vehicle from its contemporaries.
What’s new on the X-rider?
Pretty much a host of X-RIDER-specific design cues. Most notably, the X-RIDER comes in four colour ways; Spinel Red, Islay Grey and Splash White, with Mercury Silver available from April. The most striking, for me, had to be the maroon hue of Spinel Red.
The bakkie sports a two-tone front bumper with a blacked-out gloss grille, red ISUZU badging, a bumper guard, LED headlamps, and foglamps. The black and red finishes run throughout the vehicle, with black mirror covers, black door handles, dark grey roof rails and 18-inch diamond-cut wheels with red ISUZU badging on the centre cap.
The X-RIDER emblem sits on both front doors, as well as the tailgate. Other features on the tailgate include black ISUZU lettering (all other D-Maxs have the name written in silver), black tailgate decal, LED tail lamps and a 2.1T Towbar. The exterior enhancements are finished off by a sleek set of black sports bars, specific to the X-RIDER.
Inside, the infotainment system and digital display remain the same as in the LS models, though ISUZU has opted to do up the cabin in darker tones. Black leather seats are complemented by red X-RIDER stitching, while a red ISUZU logo sits at the centre of leather leather-wrapped steering wheel. Red detailing lines the otherwise dark dashboard and interior door handles.
What does the X-RIDER cost?
- Isuzu 1.9 X-RIDER – R640 500
- Isuzu 1.9 X-RIDER A/T – R659 200
- Isuzu 1.9 X-RIDER 4×4 A/T – R740 700
What are the X-RIDER’s rivals?
It is hard to make direct comparisons for what is a fairly niche offering, as every manufacturer approaches their version of the “sporty, adventure-oriented vehicle” quite differently. Given that the seventh-gen X-RIDER presents a style-focused update, rivals remain the same as before, including the Nissan Navara 2.5 DTi PRO-2X, GWM’s P-Series LTD and the Toyota Hilux GR-S. The latter, however, is well above the X-RIDER’s price-tag and features substantially more power. The P-Series is the most aligned in terms of price and engine size, while the Navara shares similar design cues to the X-RIDER but still possesses a larger displacement.
What is the X-RIDER like to drive?
The X-Rider drives just how you would expect an Isuzu double-cab to drive. Loudly and confidently, and seemingly most comfortably on gravel. As I mentioned, no changes have been made to the drivetrain or the suspension, so if one is familiar with the driving experience of any of the D-Max models, the X-RIDER will offer a familiar experience.
The 1.9-litre turbodiesel engine pushes out 110 kW of power and 350 N.m of torque which is more than enough for comfortable highway driving. Most of our launch route was controlled by the big family of speed traps between Plettenberg Bay and Knysna, with the faster driving took place leaving and returning to George Airport via the N2. Initial upshifts in the automatic configuration do tend to grumble a bit as you work your way up the lower gears, but the vehicle levels out nicely at cruising speeds and offers a confident driving experience at higher speeds.
On Day 1, the convoy has to take on a short stretch of gravel. Fitted with General Grabber All-Terrain Tyres, this was no issue, and I always find that D-Maxs, whether in 4×2 or 4×4 configuration, handle gravel driving exceptionally – something pertinent to the local market, where dirt-road driving is a big consideration for many bakkie buyers.
We averaged 9.2 L/100 km over the two days, but this figure was recorded doing relatively short trips. Over time, I would trust Isuzu’s economic drivetrain to level out closer to the claimed consumption of 7.4 L/100 km.
Verdict
The D-Max X-RIDER is a great stylistic addition to Isuzu’s range and should find favour in a local market seeking differentiation in such a popular motoring segment. While the vehicle does not present any changes in engineering, Isuzu has garnered a loyal following for the build quality and reliable engineering prevalent in all its model. The X-RIDER is no different, offering the same robust build, all the necessary capabilities to venture off into the dirt, and just the right amount of luxury to fight right back in on the city streets. With the top-spec X-RIDER priced at under R750 000 – in a market where R800k plus is becoming all too familiar – Isuzu’s new bakkie should become a strong contender.
