2020 Mazda BT-50 keeps 3.5-tonne tow capacity with smaller engine

As part of the changes, the new Mazda BT-50 switches from being based on the Australian-developed 147kW/470Nm 3.2-litre five-cylinder turbo-diesel Ford Ranger to adopting the underpinnings of the upcoming 140kW/450Nm 3.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel Isuzu D-Max.

Of note, the new Mazda BT-50 will keep its one-tonne payload and 3.5-tonne towing capacity when it arrives in Australian showrooms late this year.

Mazda says the new Mazda BT-50 adopts a more fuel-efficient gearbox that, combined with a lighter kerb weight, will deliver more fuel savings at the pump.

How much? Mazda Australia claims the new BT-50 will use up to 20 per cent less fuel, again without quoting exact numbers. All 4×4 versions of the current model use around 10.0L/100km, so the new model should match the new D-MAX and drop to around 8.0L/100km.

“There will be a significant improvement in fuel consumption, which takes us from the back of the pack to the front,”  Mazda Australia marketing director Alastair Doak said.

The new Mazda BT-50 will also make big strides in safety, finally matching its top-selling rivals – the Toyota HiLux, Ford Ranger and Mitsubishi Triton – with standard autonomous emergency braking (AEB).

Along with lane-keeping, blind-spot monitoring and adaptive cruise control, the new BT-50 will be able to accelerate, brake and steer by itself.

“Safety takes a huge step up,” Doak said. “One of the criticisms of utes is that they’ve always been half a step behind passenger cars; that absolutely won’t be the case with new BT-50, which will be class-leading when it comes to all the safety features like AEB and radar cruise.”

Mazda expects the new BT to achieve a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating under the strict new testing regime introduced in 2019 – something that’s unlikely to be matched by the Ford Ranger, Mitsubishi Triton or the updated versions of the Toyota HiLux and Nissan Navara also due on sale later this year.

“Our target will be a top safety rating, which will give us new fleet opportunities in the market place,” said Doak.

“And obviously it will be a 2020 rating, which is a lot harder than even a 2018 rating, and it will probably be only ourselves and Isuzu with that kind of rating, for a while at least.”

So far revealed only in dual-cab form, which is again expected to account for 70 per cent of sales, the new Mazda BT-50 will once again be available with 4×2 and 4×4 drivetrains (the latter with a locking rear diff) and in single-cab and extra-cab body styles, just as the new D-MAX already is in Thailand.

However, unlike the existing Mazda BT-50 Freestyle Cab, the new extended-cab model won’t carry four occupants because homologation and safety regulations rule out the fitment of two rear seats.

There will also be a smaller turbo-diesel engine for entry-level models, replacing the current 110kW/375Nm 2.2-litre 4×2 single-cab that has a payload of up to 1389kg in auto form and opens the outgoing BT-50 line-up at $29,060 in cab/chassis manual guise.

Mazda Australia expects the new BT-50 to be far more popular than the current model, which ranks eighth for sales in the volume-selling 4×4 segment behind the HiLux, Ranger, Triton, Holden Colorado, Toyota LandCruiser, D-MAX and Navara with 2426 sales to May this year (down 30.8% year-to-date). But it stops short of predicting market leadership.

“It’s never going to be number one, but it will do better than the current ute,” Doak said.

Full specs and pricing for Australia’s Mazda BT-50 model line-up are yet to be announced, but many new features in a more upmarket interior were evident during our walk-round of a high-spec dual-cab 4×4 pick-up variant shipped in prior to the ute's global debut, demonstrating the importance of this market for Mazda’s new ute.

Just as the new Mazda BT-50 wears entirely different sheet metal to the Isuzu D-MAX, the look and feel of the cabin in the pre-production model we crawled around is far more sophisticated than before.

Inside, only the 9.0-inch colour touchscreen infotainment system (with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto) and the climate control unit is shared with the D-MAX. The rear seats in the dual-cab version offer decent legroom and score face-level air-vents and ISOFIX child seat anchors.

Premium versions will come with exposed stitching, a digital speedo, eight-speaker sound system, double glovebox, dual-zone automatic climate control, keyless entry/start, automatic headlights and wipers, and parking sensors both front and rear.

Mazda Australia says more than 100 genuine accessories will again be available for new BT-50 – many of them locally developed – including airbag-compatible bull bars, rear sports bars, tub liners, floor mats and the like.

“We worked closely with Isuzu and tier-one suppliers on accessories,” said Doak. “There are 105 for the current BT-50 and the new model will be similar.”

Beyond marketing clinics, no physical testing of the new Mazda BT-50 took place Down Under, but we believe Mazda Australia is considering a locally developed ‘tough truck’ version for later release, to take on the Toyota HiLux Rugged X and Nissan Navara Warrior.