THE DREAMAX

DOES THIS COMPREHENSIVE FRONT-TO-BACK BUILD OF THE ISUZU PICK-UP MAKE IT THE BEST TOURING D-MAX IN THE COUNTRY?

- BRAD MISKIEWICZ

THE north-west of Western Australia. The mighty Pilbara. Chock-full of eye-popping vistas and more endless kilometres than you could poke a stick at. Staying in the one place, well, that's a choice, but there's a strong argument it would be the wrong one. Port Hedland locals Chris and Bekk Gillis decided they wanted to see more of it in style, so they pushed all their chips in to the pile, going all-in on their home-away-from-home.

If you were looking for som like 'still peeling the plastic off' kind of new, then this Obsidian Grey 2021 new, D-Max X-Terrain ticks the box. But it's much more than just a spec-built camper, with exceptional attention to detail and forethought at every progression.

Being a heavy-diesel mechanic, Chris was on the hunt for a new rig with proven driveline reliability and all the up-to-date tech after cutting his teeth on a keenly priced but not so dependable 1989 Pajero. "I paid a carton for it, and rebuilt it for no more than $5000," he tells us. "I learnt a lot about vehicle set-ups and what we wanted if we were to build our dream 4x4. Let's get it done from the start and leave it at that."

The new design of the D-Max over other dual cabs was something that appealed straight out of the gate.

"As soon as I had seen the new D-Max, I fell in love with it," Chris admits. "Being short, the driver position was a factor and I felt more comfortable in it and we both enjoyed the (leather) interior, safety functions and factory accessories more than the Hilux."

Those modern driver aids included Isuzu's IDAS (Intelligent Driver Assist System) which helps with things like lane assist and adaptive cruise control. Remote engine start is also standard, but Chris also added the ability to drop and raise all four windows via the Isuzu key fob using the plug-and-play TRAC Electronics window module.