Toyota’s Hilux Gladiator ute
Decked out in bold, brawny accessories, the Hilux Gladiator Concept vehicle turned plenty of heads during the 2017 Mystery Creek Fieldays, near Hamilton. So much so that Toyota NZ is currently considering a detuned version or special limited edition Hilux Gladiator inspired by the Hilux Gladiator Concept. “We built it as a showcase vehicle for the Toyota display at the 2017 Mystery Creek Fieldays demonstrating a broad spectrum of customisation,” said Spencer Morris, Toyota New Zealand’s General Manager of Product. “And we were thrilled at the response.” The Gladiator concept was built with help from Auckland-based Retro Vehicle Enhancements and included a special BP-51 suspension-based lift kit from ARBowned Australian specialist Old Man Emu and a much broader and more aggressive stance thanks to low offset 20-inch alloy wheels and 33 inch Atturo Trail Blade M/ T tyres. The suspension’s aggressive look was complemented by a bull bar, winch and sump guard up front, snorkel, bolt on flares, sports bar with custom mounts for the spare tyre and tools and LED lights on the roof rack and bull bar, offset with custom Gladiator graphics. The cabin included a full custom red leather interior, with carbon fibre styled trim and Gladiator branded mats. The Gladiator Concept had started out life as a standard 4WD Hilux SR5 model. “Any commercially available Gladiator model will be slightly more practical,” said Mr Morris, “because some of the parts on the concept would need a special low volume certification.” He is confident the Gladiator will find favour with buyers, having already had sales success ( over 100 sold) with a previous accessorised Hilux Gladiator. Tricked-up versions of current market favourites are very much flavour of the month at the moment. Holden set the
ball rolling 18 months ago with its highriding Chev-based Colorado double-cab turbo diesel Concept ute and since then distributors and dealers alike have got into the act. Locally the move has culminated in the Mitsubishi Triton Huntaway we featured last month, and this month we report in our news pages of Ford NZ’s decision to add a Raptor-branded off-road performance model to its Ranger line-up. Toyota has plenty of precedent in building and selling tricked up utes in the States. There you can buy from your local dealer a TRD Pro version of the Tacoma ( US Hilux equivalent) which comes complete with Fox 2.5 internal bypass shocks front and rear, an uprated skidplate and performance exhaust. Ford also sells an uprated ( Raptor) version of its top-selling F-150 ‘truck’ which comes standard with Fox 3.0 internal bypass shocks and choice of either twin-turbo DOHC/ 24-valve V6 or 6.2L V8!