2023 Mahindra PikUp S11 auto review

As Mahindra reinvents itself in Australia with its new range of SUVs including the recently released Scorpio and the soon-to-arrive XUV7OO, the stalwart for the brand here in recent years has always been the durable PikUp.

The current model Mahindra PikUp has been on sale in Australia since 2007 making it one of the oldest new vehicles still available here today. Over that time the range and specifications have changed and now we are only offered the single model – the S11 double-cab with the only real choice being a styleside rear tub or a tray-back.

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Gone are the farmer’s-friend single-cab and dressed-up Black mHawk models, and also the manual gearbox, as the S11 now only comes with an automatic. That’s not to say that these other models won’t make a return but for now there is no stock of them in Australia.

With the Scorpio wagon recently tested we thought it time to revisit the PikUp and sample its added auto transmission.

JUMP AHEAD

• What do you get?
• Interior
• Safety
• Powertrain and performance
• On-road performance
• Off-road performance
• Living with it
• Verdict
• Specs

What do you get?

The S11 PikUp styleside sells for $38,500 driveaway, making it exceptionally attractive to buyers looking at the double-cab 4x4 ute market. Throw in a five-year/150,000km warranty, five-years roadside assist and four-years capped-price servicing, and it looks even better value.

But as the PikUp is an older design and architecture, it lacks many of the features and comforts that most buyers are looking for in a ute these days.

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Despite a few upgrades over the years, the PikUp remains an honest workhorse of a ute. Agricultural in design and function it is a true LCV in a market of vehicles becoming softer and more passenger car-like. Spend some time in the PikUp and you can see why the single-cab became popular with farmers and small businesses; it’s rugged, simple and built for purpose.

With its relatively narrow cabin and upright windscreen, driving it reminds me of driving my old 70 Series LandCruiser, only the PikUp is much more refined and better performing. Not so refined by modern passenger-car standards but certainly by 35-year-old Cruiser standards.

Interior

The PikUp’s interior is pretty basic but has most of what you want.

The A/V screen is a seven-inch high-res jobbie with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capability, using cable connection only. The screen sits lower in the centre stack than what is ideal but you learn to live with it. Below that are the controls for the automatic climate control aircon, which has vents that run through to the rear compartment.

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There’s space for five in the cloth-covered seats but the cabin is pretty narrow so it’s a tight fit with three across the back row. Rear-seat legroom isn’t great either but there’s heaps of headroom inside which is plus for those who wear big hats – like farmers.

Central locking is standard and the steering column is adjustable for height only. It’s a basic cabin that shows its working-class design, and that’s great for some, and it’s priced accordingly, which is what a lot of people want from a basic ute.

Safety

Safety kit is another area where the Pik up falls behind the more popular, more modern 4x4 utes. There’s a pair of front airbags, ABS brakes and electronic stability control and traction control, but that’s about the extent of it.

There’s no AEB or lane-keeping devices to save you, just the driver’s skill and commonsense. But again, this lack of tech will be appealing to some buyers of this style of work ute.

Powertrain and performance

The PikUp’S 2.2-litre common-rail diesel ‘mHawk’ engine makes a modest 320Nm of torque and a seemingly paltry 103kW of power yet it pushes the unladen ute along at a reasonable clip. The PikUp weighs less than 2200kg, making it lighter than most of the popular utes in this class.

The mHawk is a tractable engine with a strong torque spread but when it was backed with the six-speed manual gearbox you had to use the gears to get the best out of it, particularly when you had a load on.

There’s none of that with the new-to-PikUp six-speed automatic transmission which does all the work for you in an unfussed manner. This is an Aisin six-speed auto, so a similar ’box to that found in Prado, Hilux and Isuzu 4x4 vehicles, and well proven for its performance and durability.

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As we’ve found with this transmission in other vehicles, it is quite aggressive in its shift protocols, often holding gears a bit longer than you might like and sometimes downshifting a ratio too many on descents, making the engine rev harder than you might like.

It does give the powertrain more of a sporting attitude, but this is not a sportscar and the mHawk engine is happy to just lope along in the higher gears and lower in the rev range. The transmission shifter has a separate gate to allow fore and aft movement for manual gear selection which is handy on steep tracks or when towing.

The automatic transmission has affected fuel economy and consumption has jumped to 9.3L/100km from the manual’s 8.8L/100km.

The powertrain is backed by a part-time, dual-range transfer case and there’s an Eaton auto-locking differential to back up the electronic traction control in the rough.

On-road performance

The PikUp might feel a bit agricultural when you climb into the tall upright cabin but it surprises with its overall refinement and quiet ride on suburban streets and the highway.

The torsion bar-sprung IFS gives nice control but can feel a bit soft at times, while the leaf-sprung live axle at the rear is sportingly compliant and comfortable. Again, this is a commercial vehicle, and those tall narrow tyres ensure that it feels like one, and not a sportscar.

Off-road performance

With its large upright glasshouse and relatively narrow width the PikUp should be an easy rig to manoeuvrer off road but it is hampered by a wide turning radius. Thankfully the great vision from the cab and a reversing camera make three-point turns as easy as possible.

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The rear suspension offers reasonable articulation but the IFS not so much, and it easily hangs wheels in the air across uneven terrain. What gets the PikUp though is its auto-locking rear differential; this isn’t a switchable RDL like used in most other utes but one that automatically locks drive across the rear axle when it detects wheel spin.

As one of the lower-priced double-cab 4x4 utes on the market the Mahindra PikUp is very appealing

It’s a bit slow to react and it would be better if you could pre-empt the spin and lock it in manually, but once it locks itself, it is very effective in getting you moving.

Off-road specs

Living with the PikUp

As a low fuss and relatively basic ute the PikUp is super easy to live with. The high seating position and large glasshouse give plenty of vision and make driving it easy while the new auto gearbox adds to the ease of use.

Personally, I thought the manual added to the PikUp’s charm, but most buyers want an auto these days.

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The large turning circle makes manoeuvring a bit of a chore around town and when negotiating tight tracks, but it really just means more three-point turns than you might be used to. For those who need to tow a trailer it must be noted that the PikUp only has a 2500kg braked towing capacity, but payload is a healthy 1035kg, so it will happily carry a heavy load.

Verdict

As one of the lower-priced double-cab 4x4 utes on the market the Mahindra PikUp is very appealing, but its agricultural design and basic equipment will put many buyers off. If you can get past the missing safety tech, the modest power output and the large turning circle, then the PikUp could be the perfect ute for you.

We reckon the single-cab PikUp was the model’s sweet spot as it was ideally suited to farmers and small businesses that needed a work ute with rugged construction and some off-road ability. The double-cab retains those traits but adds the flexibility of being able to carry more passengers.

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Specs