{"id":630816,"date":"2026-04-25T22:34:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T22:34:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/630816\/"},"modified":"2026-04-25T22:34:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T22:34:13","slug":"toyota-hilux-vs-mitsubishi-triton-australias-last-manual-utes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/630816\/","title":{"rendered":"Toyota HiLux vs Mitsubishi Triton: Australia\u2019s last manual utes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mitsubishi has confirmed it will offer just one manual version of its updated 2026 model year Triton<\/a> \u2013 down from three \u2013 making it one of only two mid-size utes on sale in Australia with three pedals, alongside the Toyota HiLux<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The top-selling Ford Ranger<\/a> dropped the option of a manual transmission entirely when the current generation was introduced in 2022, ending a run of cog-swappers dating back to Lew Bandt\u2019s famous Model 40 Coupe Utility, which pioneered Australia\u2019s ute genre in 1934.<\/p>\n

While Ford\u2019s global boss Jim Farley told CarExpert last month the manual version of its iconic Mustang<\/a> sports car would have to be extracted from the automaker\u2019s \u201ccold, dead hands<\/a>\u201d, manual dual-cab 4\u00d74 utes have proven to be not-so-sacred.<\/p>\n

The Isuzu D-Max<\/a> \u2013 the third-best selling ute in Australia last year behind the Ranger and HiLux \u2013 also dropped manual options in 2025.<\/p>\n

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Fourth on Australia\u2019s crowded ute sales ladder was the Mitsubishi Triton<\/a>, which has since reduced its manual offering.<\/p>\n

For its MY26 update<\/a> due in local showrooms next month, however, Mitsubishi has retained a single three-pedal model variant: the Triton GLX 4\u00d74 dual-cab\/chassis, priced at $47,490 before on-road costs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe move to reducing number of manual models is following the market, particularly in fleets, where many now demand automatics only,\u201d a spokesperson from Mitsubishi Australia told CarExpert.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere has remained some demand (around 11 per cent) for GLX Dual Cab Chassis 4\u00d74 in manual transmission, geared for the smaller fleet\/private buyer types.\u201d<\/p>\n

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That 11 per cent equates to around 2079 Tritons with manual gearboxes, based on combined sales of the entire lineup in 2025.<\/p>\n

The HiLux, which entered a new generation in December 2025, continues to offer two manual variants: the $33,990 (plus on-road costs) Workmate 4\u00d72 and the SR 4\u00d74.<\/p>\n

Toyota told CarExpert the manual remains a strong seller, reflecting the company\u2019s previous disclosure that almost half of all HiLuxes sold go to fleets.<\/p>\n

\u201cManual variants currently account for approximately 10 per cent of HiLux sales,\u201d Toyota Australia said.<\/p>\n

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Based on 2025 figures \u2013 totalling 51,297 units across 4\u00d72 and 4\u00d74 HiLux variants \u2013 that equates to more than 5129 manual HiLux buyers, which is enough for the Toyota to continue offering the option.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are no immediate plans to change the availability of manual variants in the HiLux range,\u201d said Toyota.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe regularly review the lineup to ensure it continues to reflect customer demand, market conditions and regulatory requirements.\u201d<\/p>\n

That leaves the HiLux SR5 as the only mid-size manual styleside (pickup) ute \u2013 as opposed to cab\/chassis \u2013 on sale in Australia, and when it comes to manual cab\/chassis variants, it\u2019s HiLux, Triton or nothing.<\/p>\n

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Even stepping up a size, manual options are limited to the LandCruiser 70 Series<\/a> in two variants, which Toyota says accounts for around 40 per cent of total sales \u2013 roughly 4000 vehicles based on full-year 2025 figures.<\/p>\n

Full-size US pickups \u2013 including the Toyota Tundra<\/a>, Ford F-150<\/a>, Chevrolet Silverado<\/a> and Ram 1500<\/a> \u2013 are sold locally in automatic guise only.<\/p>\n

With the rise of plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and electric utes, there are no new manual pickups on the horizon, leaving the HiLux and Triton in a stand-off to be the last one standing in Australia\u2019s popular mid-size ute segment.<\/p>\n

MORE: Explore the Mitsubishi Triton showroom<\/a>
\nMORE: Explore the Toyota HiLux showroom<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Mitsubishi has confirmed it will offer just one manual version of its updated 2026 model year Triton \u2013…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":630817,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[64,63,44],"class_list":{"0":"post-630816","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-australia","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/630816","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=630816"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/630816\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/630817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=630816"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=630816"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=630816"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}