This BT-75 six-wheeler is a BT-50 on steroids!

Let’s say you wanted to tow something big, like a 22ft caravan around Australia.

Let’s also say you wanted a ute with a canopy for practicality, and acres of storage, and just to make it even curlier, say you had to do it on a relatively sane budget.

That was the conundrum facing Jen and James back in 2023. Rather than opt for a full-size American diesel ute or light truck that can be tricky to manoeuvre down tight tracks, and cost a kidney to purchase, they instead went for a Mazda BT-50. As you do.

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While the stock Mazda is no slouch, it’s not exactly the first thing you think of when you need a heavy-duty tow rig, but Jen and James had a plan. And despite our initial misgivings, it was one that actually made a lot of sense the more we thought about it.

“We love Mazdas and the Isuzu engine made it ideal for what we were building it for,” James told us. “On top of that, this was the most economical way for us to be able to build something that can legally tow 4.5t with a full canopy on the back.”

Hmmm… 4.5t legal towing capability when loaded up with all of the camping gear, fuel, water and their son’s quadbike? We needed to find out more about this weapon…

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The third wheel... er, axle

“We ordered it brand new in 2023,” James says. “Before we even got it registered it was delivered to Six-Wheel Conversions in Toowoomba where the chassis and suspension mods were carried out.”

The conversion involves stretching and reinforcing the frame to accommodate the new lazy axle, as well as the installation of new leaf springs, with the whole show being designed to distribute the weight in a 60:40 split between the drive axle and the new lazy boy.

Interestingly, the off-road ability is not unduly hampered by the new addition. In fact, on sand the floatation is increased (especially when loaded up compared to a regular 4x4) and the articulation is still a respectable 300mm thanks to the leverage effect of the second axle tube.

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On-road driving and towing manners are also improved thanks to the extra wheelbase and optimum weight distribution between the six tyres’ contact patches.

As for the numbers, well, they’re pretty impressive. The new GVM is 4630kg (3100kg as stock) and the GCM is a hulk-like 8130kg (up from 6000kg). And in case you’re wondering, the front axle load is 1450kg while the rear axle group is rated at a massive 3183kg.

All of this necessitated registering the BT-75 as a truck, so a licence upgrade to LR is required to drive it, but the results and not having to worry about what is being carried or towed is priceless.

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That cavernous canopy

With the chassis stretch completed, a lot more real estate was made available for the canopy which, to put it mildly, is expansive.

A full custom setup, James initially sketched out what he was after and gave it to Jamie and his team at AMVE who turned it into a scale drawing and fabricated it into reality.

In keeping with the theme of the build, the canopy is divided into six compartments – three primary ones for the essentials and three secondary storage areas for the rest of the gear. There are two of the primary housings on the driver’s side, the first of which holds a pair of 100Ah Revolution Power lithium batteries that are overseen by enough Victron gear to fill a catalogue, and topped up by a 140W solar panel up on the roof.

The second is the housing for the quadbike, which has to be the coolest thing ever, but if we spent too much time on every cool aspect of this rig we’d be here forever, so let’s move on.

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The passenger’s side compartment spans the length of the canopy and houses a full custom kitchen that’d be right at home in a luxury apartment.

A fully functional bench is made possible thanks to the three slide-outs, two of which are double-slide, and a pair of pantries for huge amounts of storage.

There’s also a coffee machine, air-fryer, induction cooktop, griller, microwave (of course) and an 85L Bushman upright fridge centrally mounted for easy access. We’re guessing Jen and James don’t often resort to the home-brand loaf of white bread and cheap snags, or a tin of cold soup for their evening meals when out in the bush.

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The secondary drop-down storage boxes house the ARB twin-pump compressor and accessories, the shower and water-based gear, and the tools and recovery gear should they be required at short notice.

Under the tray there’s 191L of diesel available thanks to the ARB Frontier tank and BOAB 58L feeder tank, which gives this rig well north of 1200km of range, opening up trips like the Canning Stock Route or pretty much anywhere else for that matter. Water is stored in an AMVE custom made 80L stainless tank that feeds the 58L BOAB poly water tank. A high-pressure pump then sends it to the shower, sink or wash-down outlet after a run near the salt water.

The Bushwakka 270 awning and Bushwakka double ensuite rounds out what has to be one of the most comprehensive canopies we’ve ever seen.

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The other bits

The Isuzu 4J engine family has long been accepted as one of the best four-cylinder turbo-diesels on the block.

Under-stressed from stock and capable of big dyno numbers and bigger kays when treated right, it’s a solid engine for a tow rig like this. A Safari snorkel, PWR radiator, intercooler upgrade and trans cooler have been installed ready for the tune, which should be done by the time you read this.

As for the exhaust, a custom dump pipe from the turbo flows into the standard DPF for legal reasons, then into 2.75-inch pipe to keep things moving along nicely.

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The suspension is roughly two-inches higher than stock which allowed fitment of the 265/75R17 Falken Wildpeak rubber.

To keep the front end protected an AFN colour-matched bar leads the way while a Custom Off Road stainless steel three-piece bashplate covers everything underneath back to the rear diff solednoid. A Carbon 12,000lb electric winch is also installed should the big rig encounter something it can’t power through on its own.

A Stedi lightbar keeps the ’roos visible after dark and there are LEDs pointing rearward and on all the canopy doors and underside of the awning so meal-prep or camp-chair-to-fridge journeys are well catered for.

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What next?

Or rather, where next? Jen and James have a much shorter list than when they started this build and are more focused on getting out with their van and using the Light Truck BT-75 for what they designed it to do.

With that said, there are still plans for a boat loader (if the scales permit) and a full vehicle wrap to make it really stand out like the dog’s jangly bits. They’re never 100 per cent done, right?

After that there are plans to head to the left coast to see Ningaloo and the thousands of other spots worth stopping at over in WA. Oh, and K’gari has also been calling and daring the big BT and 22ft van to come try its luck on the sand. If we were betting men, we’d be quietly putting a pineapple on the Mazda.

Either way, when it comes to living life on (and off) the road in comfort and style this is one set-up that’s tough to beat.

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