Isuzu MU-X RJ 4WD LS-T 3.0L Turbo-Diesel (2017-2026)

After 10 months and 12,000Km I still like my MUX-LST 2024. Issues. 1. Service Centres are 3rd rate at best. This is the real achilles heel. Isuzu needs to break free of the monopolised Automatic Sales and service corporations and invest in genuine local independant dealers and mechanics who are trusted. Break away “go your own way” and succeed.… Read more

2. Fuel gauge is a major let down. Eg. Tank can be 50% full. Park the car on a slope front down hill. It will show empty over a few hours. 3. The automated breaking is extremely dangerous and annoying. 4. The Driver's sun visor hits the revision mirror. Had to replace the passenger sun visor already as it sags. 5. Cruise control overshooting. This is very dangerous. There appears to be an ineffective Engine management system. If you have your cruise control on 100k say and going up hill, then after it reaches the top it continues to accelerate and you can end up doing 110K. It should be able to sense the hill climb resistance change. My previous 12 years old non-Isuzu, did it well. 6 Engine breaks unresponsive to benign release when you hit the accelerator. Takes too long. 7. Cruise control, even non-adaptive CC stops working when rain, fog etc stops the cameras from being able to focus. I can understand that for adaptive CC. but normal CC should not be impacted. 8. ELK, lane depature etc should be default off. 9. Tie pressures - mannual and tag says 210KPa, but service centers and everyone says use 36-40PSI (> 260Kpa). which helps prevent the ties wearing out prematurely and improve fuel consumption, but the ride is then hard. Needs to be addressed. 10. Sold as a 4x4 for off-road. Has no thought and consideration in offering or catering for standard off-road and 4x4 traveling. Eg. No consideration for recovery points (only has tow points). Nudge and bumper bars are not comparable with aftermarket recovery points, winches etc. so don't buy them, you will have to throw them away later if you want any standard 4x4 items. No cabin provision for CB radio handsets, or Mobile phones to be mounted. 11. The optional Electronic brake control (for towing) is an unmarked rotary dial. So cannot know it's set to a specific level or levels for when you tow loaded or unload trailer/caravan. Again, buy after market. 12. No back seat fold down release in the boot, which is standard in other brands. 13. Manual is poorly constructed, jumping page to section, duplication etc. 14. Oil leak has appeared at 12,300km. Have had roadside assistance tow to the service centre. 15. Does sound like a truck, more noisy than it should be.

Unload around the city fuel consumption has settled down to approx 10L/100Km when I drive carefully. Which is ok.

I could not trade this MUX LST 2023 in quick enough! – I purchased this MUX LST in December 2023 thinking this would be my last car. What a shock it was. My son rang me up one day & said are you driving a truck? It was rough & nousy. Interior lining was cheap & like plastic but was supposed to be leather. Tailgate would not open with trailer on & wanted to close before you could unload it. 4X4 was… Read more

good but I never used it. To top this story off the Oil Contamination light came on & was diagnosed by Fosseys in Tamworth as having Deisel Fuel in the Engine oil at only 4800 K. I paid $68000 for this cheap car that was just made to a price & received 0nly $55000 as a trade in at only 7200 K. Fuel effeciency would range from 13L/100K to 8.2 L/100K, depending on conditions.

A great family car option for those who like to go off-road often – Sub-$100,000 4x4s pour their R&D budget into off-road capability first, followed by on-road development, then features, then build quality. The MU-X’s doors are a little tinny; some materials are a clear carry over from the commercial sister car to the MU-X - the D-MAX. It’s not luxury-level refinement, but there’s an obvious amount of care… Read more

that’s been taken to improve the quality of the MU-X.

Everything feels solid in how it’s been put together. I feel confident putting my body weight on the side steps and the buttons feel like they’ll resist failing even when covered in dust and dirt. Additionally, panel gaps are somewhat minimal, and all the exterior trim lines up nicely.

Maxing out at $65,900 for this LS-T variant, the value for money proposition could be high or average, depending on how you look at this SUV.

On one hand, it carries 7 people comfortably and has enough features to keep everyone safe and entertained. It’ll also comfortably tackle a steep rock shelf with all of its 4x4 tech and capability.

On the other hand, for the money, there are cars with more features, are better at cornering and are easier to get into a multi-storey car park. If that’s more appealing to you, this isn’t the car for you.

This 4x4 SUV is valued as it packs a reliable turbo-diesel powertrain, tried and tested off-road handling and has plenty of space to pack for that long road trip.

What’s curious is that Isuzu offers not a 5-year, but a 6-year/150,000 kilometre warranty with the MU-X. There’s also 7 years of roadside assist and capped price servicing available too, which will cost you $3,373 over that period. Services are every 12 months or 15,000km.

One, the sound system really was a massive improvement over the previous car. I found myself really enjoying the sound produced, rather than having to play around too much with the equaliser settings.

Although, it wasn't an amazing experience with some select songs I played for some strange reason - would love to narrow down a genre, but it was a little hard to narrow down.

Additionally, the way revs were kept low once up to speed meant there was no need to compete with a noisy diesel motor. Instead, it sounded like additional deadening was placed to keep the cabin a more family-friendly environment (especially compared to the D-MAX).

There is a but; because this is a large, high-off-the-ground 4x4 SUV, there were some shortcomings. There was noticeable wind noise at higher speeds, and a lot of tire noise when turning sharply.

Braking performance in the MU-X was enough to provide plenty of confidence in bringing all 2 tonnes of 4x4 to a stop across a variety of scenarios.

There’s an autonomous emergency braking system fitted to intervene when the car’s safety system believes you’re not going to react in time.

This is the same power plant found in the new D-MAX. 140kW at 3,600rpm and 450Nm at 1,600-2,600rpm produced from a 3.0L turbo-diesel four cylinder - this is the short and early rpm access for peak torque is a major plus for off-road enthusiasts. It allows for almost no need to jump hard on the throttle and give you better control at low speeds on difficult surfaces.

Initially, I was a little let down that more gears weren’t added to the MU-X’s 6-speed automatic transmission. This feeling was quickly forgotten when operating this 4x4 from rock-crawling speeds through to highway velocity.

Revs are almost always kept below 2,500rpm, providing a pleasant and refined-feeling experience.

In traditional, non-adjustable suspension fashion, you’re trading comfort for cornering ability. Outside of hard corners, the suspension really floats the body of the car above the road. It feels like Jello-O on top of sponge cake. I just couldn’t help but notice the way the body operates just a little more softly on top of its chassis. It’s by no means a bad thing, it’s just a very softly sprung car.

All of that comfort and soft suspension makes a whole lot of sense when out on a tough trail. The old MU-X wasn’t this refined off-road. The new MU-X simply ironed out a lot of the bumps and undulations on our off-road track, so you could feel the track, without being violently thrown around the cabin.

By far, the off-road comfort is the biggest positive change for the MU-X.

Claimed fuel efficiency is 8.3L per 100km combined, and costs on average $127 for a full tank of diesel.

That tank will easily see you travel distances as far as 1000km. My consumption averaged around 10L per 100km over a couple of hundred kilometres during a week. I was pleasantly surprised to see 7 days of driving only require half a tank of diesel.

Arguably the most important update, along with off-road comfort, for the new MU-X, is this interior. This interior is clearly taken from the new D-MAX, but with some slight tweaks to make it suited for a family car.

From the driver’s display, centre infotainment and layout of buttons, it’s all a big step up from the last generation. Even though there’s no digital driver’s display, the analogue buttons and supporting 4.3-inch information display do look great.

The 9-inch drivers display has been executed in such a way that allows for easy navigation and viewing of the content on the screen. Apple CarPlay/Android Auto takes full advantage of the square shape, and you can even connect wirelessly if you use Apple CarPlay. Just note that your phone will take a few minutes to connect, but it’s usually up and running by the time you’ve started and pulled away from where you parked.

Boot space is a minimum of 311L with all seats upright, and 2138L with all the seats folded flat. A power tailgate, second row climate controls, front heated seats, automatic headlights, automatic wipers, radar cruise control with lane keep assist and wireless Apple CarPlay really highlight just how comfortable the new MU-X is.

There’s plenty of space for adults in all three rows, however that third row isn’t ideal for long trips. I could certainly imagine 5 adults travelling comfortably with plenty of cargo, although there is one caveat.

The towing capacity for the MU-X is rated at 3.5 tonne (braked). Keep in mind that once you load up 3 tonnes, it only gives you a few hundred kilos to load up with people and cargo on the inside.

The new MU-X gives you a modern experience, with modern features. It looks great both on and off-road, and has plenty of space to carry everyone and everything with you.

The big mechanical upgrades to the suspension mean off-roading is a lot more comfortable. It no longer feels like you’re compromising comfort for capability, like the old generation MU-X did.

For less than $100,000, this is one of the best 7-seater off-roaders you can buy. If you don’t need the space, then you could consider the likes of the Suzuki Jimny.

*Disclaimer - I work for ProductReview as their independent car and motorbike expert. I borrow new cars and motorbikes from manufacturers and owners to review. I am not paid or incentivised by these brands to post reviews. I write and create content to provide insight and information about any new or used vehicle I can get my hands on.

Broken after only 2 months, waited 12 months to get car!! – After waiting 12+ months for car, less than 2 months on road and navigation system failed and needs to be replaced which Isuzu reports will take up to 9 months to get replacement? No empathy or compassion from Isuzu, they simply don’t see a problem with this after you’ve spent hard earned dollars to by a supposed rugged and capable vehicle that… Read more

doesn’t even last 2 months of driving on bitumen only. As the nav system is integrated with the operating interface this affects more than just nav system. Definitely would not recommend the Isuzu MUX to anyone.