WHILE Carnage titans like Turbo Taxi, Trolvo, MX-5, Supermang and so on are the tyre-smoking hero cars that make our crazy YouTube show, we always need a solid workhorse behind the scenes for towing, parts hauling and the like.

Our latest shop ute of choice is this 2020 Isuzu D-MAX SX, a two-wheel drive single cab towing and hauling machine.

With a 140kw/450Nm 3.0-litre turbo diesel donk, six-speed manual, massive alloy tray and a tow rating of 3500kg, it’s perfect for our needs, and the best bit is these things start at just $30k! Like any good ute, it’s fully customisable, and ours has come with a few neat extras to make our life easier.

Underneath the big tray is a water tank with a tap, and on the other side is a toolbox, fitted as optional extras, along with an upgraded tow pack with electronic brake controller and lockable alloy drawer. It comes with plenty of goodies as standard too, including power windows, cruise control, Android Auto and an abundance of cup holders.

What’s really surprising, though, is the amount of safety you get for your money. All D-MAX’s come with Autonomous Emergency Braking, which applies the brakes for you to avoid a crash. D-MAX’s also have blind-spot monitoring to make lane changes a breeze, and, critically for us, they also have Trailer Sway Control. TSC uses the brakes individually on each wheel to stop you tank slapping off the road with a trailer, so you don’t have to be as petrified of those high-speed snakeys.

Telfo has already racked up some towing miles in our D-MAX by taking Turbo Taxi down to the Lang Lang Proving Ground for a mega tow test conducted by WhichCar, and said that it towed the beefy FG Falcon no dramas at all.

As is, our D-MAX’s listed drive-away price in this current spec is $34,345.39 (see below), but if you just wanted the ute with the tow pack it’d only cost $31,421.29 drive away.

We’re really excited to put this thing to good use over the coming months, towing cars to racetracks and picking up parts, which you’ll see in future episodes of Carnage.

PRICE BREAKDOWN

Isuzu D-MAX SX: $30,000

Under Tray Water Tank: $360

Tow Bar with 12-pin plug: $1309

Electronic Brake Controller: $820

Rubber Floor Mats: $120

Lockable Alloy Drawer: $1,615.10

Stamp Duty on accessories: $130.49