TESTERS' CHOICE FORD P100 PICKUP
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IN Nine very different vehicles competed in this category, and the final shortiist consisted of three pickups and one carderived-van (CDV). The other discarded vehicles were all CDVs which couldn't match the pickups' excellent payload, speed and fuel consumption. Only the Peugeot 205 hatchback van came anywhere near the winning pickup's productivity, and the little CDV came second to the Ford P100 pickup, with the fourwheel-drive Mitsubishi L200 pickup third, and the 4x4 Nissan pickup ending up in fourth place.
Launched at the beginning of the year, the Sierra-based Ford P100 pickup is still only available in petrol-engined guise, but a diesel version is expected early this year. Its well-thought-out load bed and 1, 012kg payload put it ahead of the fourwheel-drive pickups, and the good fuel consumption from the two-litre petrol unit of 11.41 litres/100km (24.75mpg) won the day.
We still criticised the vehicle, like most other pickups, for the peculiar handling characteristics when laden, although close attention to the rear tyre pressures should minimise this problem. In all, the vehicle's main attraction is the Ford Sierra cab, which ensures a comfortable journey, and has familiar controls.
The second-placed vehicle is the recently-tested Peugeot 205 van, with the new TU series 1.1-litre petrol engine. The vehicle's impressive 6.23 litres/ 100km (45.4mpg) fuel consumption gave it a good start in the productivity section, although the final figure was lower than it could have been as the Peugeot's payload is only 340kg. In the handling section the Peugeot scored high, although it lost marks for its highly-stressed engine.
The appearance of two, four-wheeldrive pickups in third and fourth place is more of an illustration of the massive payload of the pickup (and the consequent effect on productivity), than a specific damnation of the competing CDVs. The diesel Mitsubishi L200 was clearly the better vehicle, with greater fuel consumption, average speed and a superior cab. We also gave it marks for its three-year warranty, and spares prices.
The Nissan 4x4 diesel pickup, although inferior in many aspects to the Mitsubishi, achieved high marks for the retention of its full-length load bed even though this restricts its off-road mobility a little. The Mitsubishi has a special short load bed and short wheelbase, in the search for greater off-road capability, but we did not find this to be significantly better than the Nissan's in tests.