How practical is the UTE?
Not very I’m afraid. If you have serious farming ambitions and you want a true bakkie (pickup) for the job then this ain’t for you. The most it will take are a few cases of beer for the park braai or your queen size bed, but that’s about it. You might know that performance cars perform best when sitting close to the tarmac. As such the Ute sits low thus defeating the purpose of what a pickup should be. Also stay away from pavements.
What’s the point then?
Possibly to enjoy limited utility in combination with limitless fun and joy.
I was getting to that part.
I’m ahead of you. As a pickup it sucks but as a performance car it excels quite naturally. Just look at the performance figures on the stats list and you’ll notice how dangerously close it gets to being labelled a sports car. We could have gone quicker too had it been a manual in our hands. Traction is also negotiable depending on circumstances. In extreme situations like takeoff a masterful set of hands is needed to keep things straight; this is a dancer of note thanks to its rear-wheel-drive/ light rear end and high torque combination.
The fuel bill must be high.
Not unexpectedly so, but yes, you’ll need a petrol card in the wallet at all times. Although, with careful tiptoeing around the accelerator and more open freeway driving the figures would come down slightly. Then you’d have to be outside of construction-constricted Gauteng.
I can’t say I like the cabin too much.
It’s quite suited actually. Adjustable leather seats, air con, trip computer, leather-covered steering wheel with audio and cruise control settings, and other niceties make for repeatedly comfortable rides. The Bluetooth connectivity function takes a while to connect though and requires a page-through of the owner’s manual for the code. Post-pairing it works fine with most cell phones. Some plastic finishings could be of higher quality but that would come with a financial penalty I suspect. Having said that, nothing broke or came loose during our test.
Worth having?
Think of the Chevrolet Ute SS as a two-seat sports coupe that can help you move house. No other can claim that.
QUICK STATS
CHEVROLET UTE SS
ENGINE: 6.0-litre naturally aspirated V8
POWER: 270kW (367hp) at 5700rpm
TORQUE: 530Nm at 4400rpm
0 – 100KM/H: 6.6 seconds
GEARBOX: 6-speed automatic
TOP SPEED: 240km/h
FUEL AVERAGE: 13.4 l/100km
CO2 e: 336 g/km
TEST ALTITUDE: 1600m
TEST AIR TEMPERATURE: 18° C
WHEELS AND TYRES: 18” x 8” alloy wheels, P245/45R18 Tyres
PRICE STANDARD: R405 600
NATURAL RIVALS: None
*PRICE RIVALS: Toyota Fortuner 4.0 Epic Limited Edition Auto, Chevrolet Captiva 2.0D LTZ, Land Rover Freelander 2.2 TD4 S 4x4 Auto, Dodge Journey 2.0 CRD Auto, BMW 320i Coupe Auto, Audi S3 hatch, Volvo S80 2.5 T Geartronic, Audi TT Coupe 2.0 TFSI S-Tronic, Chrysler Grand Voyager LX 2.8 CRD Auto, Volkswagen Passat 3.2 V6 Sportline DSG 4Motion, Volkswagen Tiguan 2.0 TSI Sport&Style 4-Motion Tiptronic
STANDARD FEATURES: Leather seats, Bluetooth connection, 6-CD changer, cruise control, ESP, dual zone air conditioning
BABE-MAGNETIC FACTOR: High
*A price rival falls within R20 000 or so of the subject’s price on either side of its price spectrum for cars over R350 000, R10 000 for cars of between R250 000 and R350 000 and R5 000 for cars below R250 000.
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