Menu

Know How / 4x4s

Personal farm vehicles now take many forms, including 4x4s, SUVs and pick-up trucks from Toyota, Isuzu, Mitsubishi, Nissan and Volkswagen, and once ubiquitous Land Rover Defender. New vehicle reports, first-drives and comparative group tests help you evaluate the best for road and off-road use.

Latest 4x4 articles

4X4S

Contractor transforms Hilux trucks into lightweight sprayers

The 1980s can keep its big hair and shoulder pads, but the 4x4-based, low-ground-pressure sprayer could be a trend worth reviving. One Lincolnshire contractor certainly thinks so. Only this time…

4X4S

On test: Low-cost Dacia Duster 4x4 finally gets its polish

We’re partial to a cheap off-roader on the Farmers Weekly Machinery desk. While top-end vehicles can hide behind their plush trim and expensive add-ons, the budget end of the spectrum…

4X4S

Czech 4x4 specialist toughens up MAN and VW vans

What do you get when you let a MAN TGE van slip into the hands of a military-grade, off-road specialist? The answer is the Terrastorm – a four-wheel-drive load lugger…

4X4S

Kent importer brings rugged Land Cruiser 70-series to UK

Designed to transport people and goods to some of the most inhospitable places on earth, and get them back again, Toyota’s tough-yet-basic Land Cruiser 70-series trucks are built to last.…

4X4S

Plug-in Hybrid Ford Ranger pickup on road for spring 2025

Ford has officially launched its Ranger Plug-In Hybrid pickup, which will deliver considerably more power and lower emissions than its diesel-burning brethren. Scheduled to hit UK roads next spring, its…

4X4S

Pickup and commercial 4×4 buyer’s guide 2024-25

Daihatsu’s diddy Hijet 4x4 and its Suzuki Carry counterpart make their debut in the Ultimate Guide to pickups and commercial SUVs this year, in either standard 4x4 spec or with…

4X4S

Bedeo develops retrofit battery and kit for old Defenders

Land Rover Defender 90s and 110s can now be electrified with in-wheel motors thanks to a retrofit kit from electric drivetrain specialist Bedeo. The “Reborn Electric: Icons” series will eventually…

4x4 reviews and tests

See all

4X4S

On test: Dacia Duster Prestige

When the initial attraction just isn’t there, it’s what’s on the inside that counts, right? Not renowned for good looks or being particularly cool, the Franco-Romanian Dacia Duster isn’t easy…

4X4S

On test: UK's first electric pickup – the Maxus T90EV

Building an electric pickup that can thunder along rough terrain, tow heavy loads and travel a decent distance to a charge is far from straightforward. On the one hand, stacks…

Mercedes ML350 test drive

Mercedes’s flagship 4x4 is one of the most expensive on the market. But do you get what you pay for? Oliver Mark found out. The suspicious success of British bankers…

4X4S

On test: Ford's all-wheel-drive Transit Trail van

For many, the sight of a Transit van barrelling into a farmyard triggers frantic numberplate scribbling and alarm calls to neighbours, but Ford hopes its latest Trail model will have…

4X4S

Pickup test: Nissan Navara Tekna

With the £3,300 hardtop and garish savannah yellow paint extras removed, the Navara slots in around mid-table when compared with the rest of the candidates. The engine is strong enough…

4X4S

On test: Skoda Karoq Edition

Just when you thought you may have been running out of options for compact SUVs (said no-one), up pops another one. Hang on, don’t I recognise you? Well, you’re correct.…

MACHINERY

On test: Audi A6 Allroad

While the bulbous SUV has been dominating the UK’s road network, its svelte, understated cousin – the all-wheel-drive estate – has quietly taken a back seat. But after several years…

Diesel-electric Peugeot 508 on test

Peugeot's new 508 is in the same price bracket as German big hitters like Audi and VW, but the promise of four-wheel drive, zero-emissions motoring might appeal to a bigger…

Range Rover TDV6 on test

The base price is now a tad over £70,000 and it has its sights on Bentley and Rolls Royce, so you know that the new Range Rover is a serious…

4X4S

On test: Isuzu D-Max V-Cross pickup

Isuzu has found its own little slot in the pickup market, with the D-Max traditionally operating at the austere end of the spectrum and, as such, offering farmers and builders…

4X4S

On test: Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV

Since its launch in April 2014, Mitsubishi’s Outlander PHEV has been the go-to model for those wishing to dabble in the world of hybrid SUVs. Almost 52,000 have been sold…

4X4S

Pickup test: Isuzu D-Max Utility

The D-Max Utility is a proper no-frills workhorse with a generous towing capacity, impressive payload and a reasonable price tag. Couple this to a five-year, 125,000-mile warranty, and it makes…

4x4s guides

See all

4X4S

Pickup test: 6 farm trucks compared

Pickups have come a long way in the past couple of decades, going from low-tech load-luggers to luxury runarounds with enough toys to rival the plushest 4x4s. That means features…

4X4S

Pickup buyer's guide 2020-21

Tougher emissions standards and buyers feeling the pinch has led to a number of higher-spec models being withdrawn from the market. We take a look at what options are available…

4X4S

How to patch up farm pickups with second-hand spare parts

Farm pickups are subject to a notoriously rough and loveless life, but patching them up with second-hand spares can push them a few years beyond their sell-by date without costing…

4X4S

On test: Land Rover's plug-in hybrid Defender

The Land Rover Defender’s transformation from rough, tough and gruff to clean, green and surprisingly serene has been completed with the addition of a plug-in hybrid model. Gone are the…

VW Passat 4x4 Alltrack review

Can VW's latest four-wheel drive Passat cut the mustard off road? Oliver Mark decided. Nineteen-seventy-three was the year Roger Moore shot baddies in Live and Let Die, the Sydney Opera…

4X4S

Pickup test: Mitsubishi L200 Club Cab 4Life

A major redesign of Mitsubishi’s L200 has delivered a stand-out exterior, though whether it has actually improved its looks is debatable. Base spec 4Life models get a smart cab with…

4X4S

Pickup buyers guide 2017

Ask your granddad about the farm vehicle he had as a youngster and you can almost guarantee it was a Land Rover Defender of some form. They were the staple,…

4X4S

On test: Electric Tesla Model X serves up taste of future

Rocket-building, weed-smoking billionaire Elon Musk is leading an electric revolution intent on transforming transport on earth and beyond. The engineering entrepreneur only started his Tesla motor business in 2003, but…

4X4S

On test: Ford Ranger Limited pickup

After it stopped pedalling rebadged Mazdas and designed a vehicle of its own, Ford soon became the biggest seller of pickups in the UK. The Ranger consistently tops the sales…

4X4S

First impressions: Ineos completes Grenadier 4x4 development

Pint-fuelled pub chats are the source of many wildly ambitious business ideas, but few can claim to be as efficiently executed as that of the Grenadier 4x4. Ineos Automotive, a…

Latest Toyota Rav 4 tested

Toyota masterminded a new genre of cars when it ushered the Rav 4 into the 4x4 market in 1994. With three doors, a side-hinged boot and a spare wheel mounted…

VW Tiguan proves a classy, if pricey, performer

VW's Tiguan has evolved as a do-anything mixture of the urban hatchback that is the Golf and its tough 4x4 cousin the Touareg. It went under the knife after just…

4x4 insights and practical tips

See all

TRAILERS

10 tips to keep your Ifor Williams trailer road legal

The humble Ifor Williams trailer is a mainstay of livestock farms up and down the country, but its tough-as-nails galvanised body can often fool owners into thinking that everything is…

4X4S

14 top retrofit kit options for farm pickups

If you have just splashed out on a new pickup truck you could soon find yourself sifting through the endless lists of accessories to get it just the way you…

4X4S

Pickup buyer's guide 2020-21

Tougher emissions standards and buyers feeling the pinch has led to a number of higher-spec models being withdrawn from the market. We take a look at what options are available…

4X4S

How to patch up farm pickups with second-hand spare parts

Farm pickups are subject to a notoriously rough and loveless life, but patching them up with second-hand spares can push them a few years beyond their sell-by date without costing…

4X4S

Tips for buying a second-hand pickup: Ford Ranger

For more than 20 years, Ford’s pickups were essentially rebadged Mazdas, and they were pretty simple, solid vehicles. However, in 2011 the firm decided to take the job in-house and…

MACHINERY

Bowler Motorsport powers up Land Rover Defender

If you’ve got a Land Rover Defender, but find it wanting in the power and handling department, you could take it for a pepping-up session at Bowler Motorsport. Bowler Motorsport…

4X4S

Tested: Ford-built Amarok V6 is smart but not very VW

The humble pickup has undergone a marked gentrification over the past decade and few have been as pivotal in its transformation as Volkswagen. Even when it was first launched in…

A nostalgic drive in the retiring Land Rover Defender

Rival 4x4s have come and gone, but until now the Land Rover has been the only choice for thousands of farmers up and down the country. As the sun sets…

Get the best from a second-hand Land Rover Defender

With production of the Land Rover Defender due to cease in just over a year, used car values are hitting new heights. Oliver Mark runs through what to look out…

4X4S

Off-road vehicle 4x4 systems explained

Flick through the marketing bumf for a new four-wheel-drive vehicle and it will generally give little indication as to the type of off-road running gear in place. There are plenty…

4X4S

Pickup buyers guide 2017

Ask your granddad about the farm vehicle he had as a youngster and you can almost guarantee it was a Land Rover Defender of some form. They were the staple,…

4X4S

Electric and hybrid 4x4 vehicles explained

Barely a day goes by without another headline announcing the demise of the internal combustion engine. While many of those predictions are misleading or simply wrong, there is a definite…

Video

See all

4X4S

Video: Three-way farm pickup showdown

The past year saw a clutch of new models enter the ever-growing 4×4 pickup market. However, not all is as it seems, as due to the popularity of these trucks,…

VW Tiguan proves a classy, if pricey, performer

VW's Tiguan has evolved as a do-anything mixture of the urban hatchback that is the Golf and its tough 4x4 cousin the Touareg. It went under the knife after just…

MACHINERY

Video: Isuzu D-Max review

  More comfort in the front and more space in the back will appeal to farmers with a lot of lugging to do. A more car-like ride is good news,…

4X4S

Video: Tesla launches radical Cybertruck electric pickup

Electric car company Tesla has launched a Back to The Future inspired Cybertruck pickup with a design that has torn up the conventional pickup rule book. Hawthorne, California, was the…