Isuzu MU-X LS-M 1.9L 2024 Tow Test

The 1.9-litre versions of the 2024 Isuzu MU-X start with the LS-M 4x2 1.9L at $47,400, while the LS-M 4x4 1.9L is priced at $53,400 and the higher-spec LS-U 4x4 1.9L at $59,900 (all prices exclude on-road costs). That’s just over $2000 less in 4x2 and $2000 exactly less in 4x4 than the 3.0-litre engine equivalents in the MU-X range.

As tested, the LS-U 4x4 was $56,816, plus on-road costs. Accessories fitted included the tow bar kit ($1182.25), 12-pin plug ($393.25), electronic brake controller ($896.05), rubber mats ($249.65) and premium paint ($695).

Like the rest of the Isuzu Ute Australia range, the 1.9-litre has a six-year/150,000km warranty and capped-price servicing arrangements imitating those for 3.0-litre MU-X, which is to say a $449 fee for each scheduled service.

The cost totals $2245 for the first five years or 75,000km, and services are required every 12 months or 15,000km (whichever occurs first).

The base LS-M has 17-inch silver alloy wheels with 255/65R17 Dunlop AT25 all-terrain tyres, black door mirrors and door handles, black and gunmetal grey grille, black side steps, black window trims, electric park brake with auto-hold function, push-button start, polyurethane steering wheel and gear selector, dual vanity mirrors, carpet flooring and seven cloth-covered seats.

The 2024 Isuzu MU-X has a solid safety features list, starting with updated features added last year, tyre pressure monitoring and automatic deactivation of rear cross traffic alert and blind spot monitoring systems when towing.

The MU-X has eight airbags, comprising front, front side, and side curtain airbags (extending to all three rows of seats), a driver knee airbag and a front centre airbag.

Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) include autonomous emergency braking (AEB) that detects vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians between speeds of 8km/h and 160km/h (day and night) and also incorporates turn assist and forward collision warning. There’s also a rear cross-traffic alert.

The MU-X has adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go and traffic sign recognition (real-time speed limit updates), while lane keeping assist (semi-autonomous steering), emergency lane keeping, and lane departure warning are also standard fare.

Beyond that, there is trailer sway control, driver attention monitoring, rollover mitigation, post-collision braking, mis-acceleration mitigation, LED headlights and taillights, automatic high-beam control and automatic wipers rear parking sensors and a reversing camera with dynamic guidelines.

Two ISOFIX and three top tether point child seat anchorage points are fitted in the second row.

The MU-X has a five-star ANCAP rating awarded in 2022.

While the ADAS systems are much more refined in operation than some other brands, the forward collision warning did have a couple of false alerts in the test (typically parked cars on road kinks upset the system) and active cruise control became inactive during a heavy rain shower.

The 2024 Isuzu MU-X LS-M tech, like the rest of the vehicle, is not exactly high-tech stuff for 2024. So it has a 7.0-inch central touch-screen with wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto, DAB+ digital radio, voice recognition and four-speaker audio. The instrument cluster is late 1990s chic with its analogue dials and 4.2-inch centre digital screen, but it ll works simply and logically – there are no complaints about complexity or ease of use here.

The headline act for the 2024 Isuzu MU-X tow-tested here is of course the 1.9-litre diesel engine. It has a relatively low 110kW of peak power, while torque is also below par these days at 350Nm. The 3.0-litre turbo-diesel offering -- for just $2000 more -- has 140kW/450Nm outputs.

Peak power arrives at 3600rpm, with the peak torque available between 1800-2600rpm, and a minimum of 300Nm is on call between 1550-3700rpm.

All MU-Xs are offered in Australia with an Aisin six-speed automatic transmission only. The 4WD drivetrain includes a part-time system called Terrain Command, while an electronically engaged mechanical rear differential lock and off-rod electronic traction control called Rough Terrain Mode, is also standard.

Driving unladen around the 1.9-litre MU-X doesn’t feel short of power or torque; it has good initial acceleration and keeps up with traffic without effort. At highway speeds, it does begin to feel a bit slow when, for example, overtaking.

The 2024 Isuzu MU-X 1.9L’s main advantage over the 3.0L version is lower fuel consumption, although the difference is marginal. The combined consumption average is 7.4L/100km, just 0.9L/100km less than the 3.0L -litre 4x4 models.

On test, towing a 2100kg caravan, the MU-X achieved an average of 15.1L/100km. With this average, you should see about a 479km touring range (with a 50km safety margin included) before running low on the 80-litre fuel tank.

Although we initially wanted to tow a trailer weighing close to the 2024 Isuzu MU-X’s 3000kg limit, as it turned out the caravan we borrowed from Auswide Caravans at just 2100kg was about as much as you’d want to tow regularly with this vehicle anyway. No doubt the MU-X 1.9L could tow more, but you would have to be very patient if doing so.

The reversing camera gave the driver a good perspective of the tow ball and coupling for solo hitching-up, while the side mirrors worked well for adding towing mirrors if you use the type that clips onto the side mirror shells. With about 200kg of the caravan’s mass plonked onto the tow ball, the front of the MU-X rose just 5mm and the rear drooped 30mm – both within a reasonable amount and not enough to suggest needing any load levelling devices.

The weather conditions were against us on the tow test day, with a southerly wind blustering its way across the highway for much of the drive. So if stability was going to be put to the test, here was the scenario where it would be pushed to the limit – literally. While it was obvious the buffeting was affecting the MU-X ‘s tracking on the highway, it didn’t ever progress to a dangerous sway. Towing ride quality was good, not something you can guarantee with a tow vehicle.

Once up to a 100km/h turning speed, the MU-X was happiest in fourth gear with the engine spinning at about 2500rpm. We had to resort to manual mode, holding it in fourth gear, because when left to its own devices in drive, the transmission would not settle in a gear for long, trying to upshift to fifth (where the engine was turning over at about 1800rpm), but lacking torque, would kick down again to fourth.

As we were not towing on our usual tow test route, we were unable to benchmark hill-climbing performance. It is safe to say that the MU-X has to work hard to climb most highway hill, although a relatively steep one that sees some heavy trucks slow to 80km/h was dispatched in the MU-X at 100km/h – with the accelerator to the floor.

As this is a towing test, we didn’t take the MU-X off-road this time, but previous experience with MU-X suggests that in the main the 1.9L would still make a capable off-road machine, in most off-road situations. It has 235mm of ground clearance, 800mm wading depth, dual-range transmission with a rear diff lock, and quite good rear axle articulation.

The fact is, when you need to squeeze every last drop of momentum in sand or mud, or when tackling a steep slippery climb – well, the 1.9L might not find it an easy task.

The 2024 Isuzu MU-X has a payload capacity of 735kg and GVM is 2800kg. As we have already mentioned, towing capacity is 500kg lower than 3.0-litre models, down, from 3500kg to 3000kg and GCM is lowered from 5900kg to 5500kg. If you’re towing 3000kg, you will need exactly 300kg towball mass and 435kg of payload to not exceed weight maximums if towing a 3000kg trailer.

The cargo area space is 311 litres with all three rows of seats up, 1119L with the first two rows up and 2138L with just the front row up.

The 2024 Isuzu MU-X interior in this base trim level does look a bit bare in an age where luxury has become normalised. It does, however, feature a leather-look dashtop and the white stitching on this dash cover and the cloth seats do set off the otherwise dark interior.

There are comfortable seats for up to five adults and two sub-teens in the third row. While it only has manual, dial controls for the air conditioning, this is not necessarily a bad thing for simplicity and avoiding driver distraction over touchscreen controls.

The 2024 Isuzu MU-X with the 1.9-litre engine is certainly a little more affordable and would prove slightly cheaper to run, but it comes at a cost. That cost is less performance, lower towing capacity and ultimately, the lack of performance is why this is not one of the best vehicles for heavy trailer towing.

2024 Isuzu MU-X 1.9L at a glance:
Price: From $47,400 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 1.9-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel
Output: 110kW/350Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel: 7.4L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 196g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2022)