Toyota Hilux - Reputation

Reputation

The Hilux has gained a reputation for exceptional sturdiness and reliability, even during sustained heavy use and/or abuse, and is often referred to as "The Indestructible Truck". This was further reinforced on the BBC motoring show Top Gear, when a 1988 diesel Hilux with 305,775 km (190,000 mi) on the odometer was subjected to extraordinary abuse (in series 3, episodes 5 and 6). This consisted of driving it down a flight of steps, scraping buildings, crashing headlong into a tree, being washed out to sea, and being submerged in sea water for four hours, driving it through a garden shed, dropping a caravan onto it, hitting it with a wrecking ball, setting its cabin and bed area on fire, and, finally, placing it on top of a 73 m (240 ft) block of apartments that was next destroyed by a controlled demolition. Although it was now suffering from severe structural damage, the truck was still running after being repaired without spare parts, and with only typical tools that would be found in a truck's toolbox, such as screwdrivers, motor oil, and an adjustable wrench. The Hilux currently rests as one of the background decorations in the Top Gear studio.

In the TV series of 2006, (series 8, episode 3), a Hilux was chosen by Jeremy Clarkson as his platform for creating an amphibious vehicle. With assistance, Clarkson rigged the truck with a massive outboard motor, ironically made by Honda, and steering mechanism in the pickup bed. The truck, redubbed the "Toybota", was driven by Clarkson over several miles by road and 3.2 km (2 mi) across open water, before capsizing (three metres away from the finish) during a quick turn. Once recovered, the vehicle was moved back to the Top Gear Studio, where a confident Clarkson stated that he would be the only one capable of driving his truck home, since it was the indestructible Hilux. Clarkson had finally destroyed the "indestructible" after he could not get the Hilux started. When Clarkson turned the engine over, it produced a puffing and hissing sound as though the injectors or the heater plugs had been removed.

In 2007, Top Gear ran a special program in which Clarkson and James May raced a customized 2005 model Hilux to the 1996 magnetic north pole from Northern Canada against Richard Hammond using a dog sled, and won. This episode, known as the Top Gear Polar Special, made the truck the first motor vehicle to make it to the magnetic north pole. The Hilux used was slightly modified: larger wheels and thicker tyres were installed, a thick sump guard was installed, the front suspension was moved forward, a gun mount was installed, some powerful front lights were installed (although they were not needed, as it was still polar daytime at 23:30) and a toilet seat (first introduced as a joke Christmas present idea in Series 3 Episode 6 which also featured the Hilux challenge) was mounted on the rear bumper.

In 2010, the Top Gear host James May drove a modified Hilux, one which had served as the camera crew's vehicle during the 2007 polar special, to approach the summit of an erupting Icelandic volcano and retrieved a fragment of volcanic lava. The Hilux was modified for this task by the installation of a simple metal "umbrella" and alcohol cooling drips for its tyres (Series 15, Episode 1).

Outside of TV programs, these vehicles have been known to exceed 482,803 km (300,000 mi) with regular maintenance. It is also notorious for being used as an improvised fighting vehicle–a "technical" – by militias and irregular military forces, especially in Third World conflicts. The Toyota War between Libya and Chad was so named because of the use of Hilux trucks as light cavalry vehicles by the army of Chad.

In October 2007, the Swedish auto magazine Teknikens Värld performed an evasive manoeuvre (a moose test) that revealed that the manoeuvrability of Hilux pickup truck was deficient for turning sharply at moderate speeds. The truck failed the test and only the driver's skill prevented it from overturning. After the test Toyota stopped the sales of Hilux equipped with 16" wheels in Europe.

A world record was achieved by the support crew for the participants in the 2008/2009 Amundsen Omega 3 South Pole Race. The crew travelled in specially adapted Toyota Hilux's modified by Arctic Trucks, completing a trip of over 5,000 km (3,100 mi) from Novo, a Russian Scientific Station in Antarctica to the Geographic South Pole and back again, making them the first 4×4s to reach the South Pole. The return journey of 2,500 km (1,600 mi) from the South Pole to Novo Station was completed in a record 8 days and 17 hours.

A team of professional drivers use Toyota Hiluxes for a precision driving show throughout Australia. The Toyota Hilux Heroes began in 2007 and have been entertaining millions of spectators at various agricultural shows and motor sport events. The Hilux's are 2007 petrol V6, 4×2 models and have custom shock absorbers, a custom exhaust, sports seat, racing harnesses, a roll cage and 16 inch alloy wheels fitted. Performance highlights include high speed drifting, close formation driving, cross overs(where the cars race towards one another at speed), a 12 metre ramp jump and balancing a Hilux on two wheels all choreographed into a 15 minute show.

A fourth generation Hilux is also the vehicle mode for the Transformers Autobots Trailbreaker and Hoist.