Isuzu Heads Off-Piste With a 4×4 Driving Day in Yorkshire

Isuzu has hosted a special range driving day in our region, with a keen focus on its off-road offerings and launching a new special project called “Mudmaster”.

The event, which saw several NGMW members in attendance, took place at an outdoors centre near Bradford called Parkwood Outdoors. This facility hosts all kinds of outdoor activities, including camping, fishing, and “alpaca experiences”, but also has an extensive set of off-road courses that range from the slow-and-steady mudcrawling to full-on rally stages.

Of course it was the former that was required for the Isuzu event, with the brand bringing a range of D-Max vehicles for the day’s driving experiences — which also included some on-road driving too.

The Mudmaster was of course the star of the show, and it features a huge range of extras over and above the D-Max V-Cross on which it’s based.

Most are pretty obvious, as you won’t miss the huge snorkel for wading the deepest water, rally-style lamps and lightbar, additional cladding for further protection (including steel underbody guards), and the Mudmaster decals splashed down the sides.

There’s also a Pedders off-road suspension kit, with a 1¾-inch suspension lift, an ARB base rack mounted to the roof for carrying your tools, spares and accessories, 20-inch Hurricane alloy wheels with Toyo Open Country off-road tyres, a full tow-bar kitt, and a hidden COMEUP winch.

Naturally it dispatched the offroad course — with pro instructors guiding the drivers — with aplomb, but even if you don’t want to spend the £14,000 in extras, the D-Max V-Cross is no less capable in the hands of those who don’t regularly go off-road. Hill-descent control and a lockable rear differential are both standard.

Like the V-Cross, the Mudmaster is available with both a six-speed manual and a six-speed automatic, and they come well-equipped on the inside too with leather seats, electrically adjustable on the driver’s side, dual-zone climate control, and a 9-inch touchscreen that supports both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.