Dash it all – Ranger vs BT-50

On the basis that not everyone's sick and tired of all the new utes yet, here's a couple of photos showing the dashboard arrangement of the Ford Ranger (below) and the Mazda BT-50 (bottom). The Ford has a manual gearbox, the Mazda, an automatic. In both, the drive mode us selected by the rotary switch that's shown below and just left of the Ranger's shift lever. Either one is good, but I'd choose Mazda's.

In by a nose: the new Mazda BT-50

Back from the Mazda BT-50 launch near Taupo. It's the same as the Ford Ranger only … different. I thought "traditional" ute buyers would avoid it like the plague because of its styling, leaving it to find a niche in the suburbs. But maybe not; after a few hours in its presence it kind-of looks okay. Mazda takes only the five cylinder turbodiesel and some of its suspension settings are different from Ranger's. It seems slightly less jiggly than the Ford when running without a load.

Here are the key earlier BT-50 posts: Accessories, the Freestyle cab, world introduction.

As with the Ranger, BT-50's superb hill descent control allows slow and steady descents even on relatively slippery surfaces.

Doesn't look much in the photo, but this section of track was really slippery, and off-camber as well. Two minders keep a close eye on the BT-50  as it proves yet again that when the street tyres clog up and there ain't no traction, none of its electronic aids or rear diff lock are going to help.