Toyota Hilux GR-Sport III (2024) Review

The Toyota Hilux GR-Sport III is here, looking Dakar-ready but with premium touches inside and real improvements under the skin for a better ride and overall performance. Is this where you should spend your money if you want a luxury leisure bakkie?

Related: Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 4x4 GR-S (2022) First Drive Review

The GR-S III Hilux getting ready for a busy day ahead!

Styling

Our test Hilux GR-S was the envy of many parents at our local high school, and we found ourselves at the receiving end of quite a few jealous glances. My two teenagers felt like the bee's knees when they casually strolled over to the imposing bakkie to be picked up after school; I even had to park at the main gate to be more conspicuous!

The bumper is brand new and boasts air-curtain functionality for less drag. There's also less noise from the wheels—in this case, BF Goodrich (265/65 R17) all-terrain tyres.

The most noticeable features are the embellished GR-S mesh grille, front bumper, and flared wheel arches with black cladding. Other GR-specific accoutrements include a practical sidestep, silver-coloured bash plate, GR Sports bar, black rear bumper, and a smattering of GR logos where they matter. A dynamic GR-S-inspired side decal on the lower flanks is the cherry on top.

This GR-S III Hilux also has slightly higher ground clearance, while its tread has been increased by 14cm in front and 15.5cm at the back.

There's no mistaking this double cab for anything else, and the designers have put its somewhat dated styling to good use. The GR-S III Hilux looks like it came straight off the set of a Mad Max movie! If you want something that competes with it on this level, a new Ford Raptor is the only other bakkie that looks as intrepid, and we're talking big money (and deep pockets for fuel).

Space and Comfort

The interior is like every other top-tier Hilux, but Toyota has made things more lively with sporty red touches, including red safety belts that remind me of AMG products. The carbon fibre-look trim inserts and glossy black surfaces keep things interesting, too. The usual Hilux fare is standard, like the dual cubby holes, large central armrest and storage console, and an 8.0-inch Toyota touchscreen, but this model gets a 9-speaker sound system, compliments of JBL. Sadly, there is only one USB port, but you can always plug a portable USB hub into a 12V power socket.

Toyota keeps this classic with an analogue instrument cluster.

The digital instrument cluster is enhanced with red needles, and you have alloy pedals under your feet. The steering wheel also features paddle shifters, and you'll find menu selection, drive mode, and sound buttons on the athletic-looking steering wheel. If you regularly undertake long journeys, a refrigerated compartment can keep your drinks cold.

It's the interior we know and like, but it's more comfortable. The driver's seat is electrically adjustable.

The chunky, perforated steering wheel also includes buttons for lane-keep assistance, voice control, and a distance setting for the adaptive cruise control.

The kids were sufficiently comfortable on the back, but legroom is not that generous, especially since my 15-year-old had a growth spurt and now stretches to 1.75 metres. When seated behind my 1.8-metre husband, he lacked knee room but was quite right behind me (1.73m). If you want generous legroom for adult-sized rear occupants, the Fortuner might be more to your liking.

Rear passengers can relax in comfort on the Alcantara-style seats.

The Drive

As we mentioned earlier, the updated Hilux GR-S's makeover is not just skin deep; the suspension and brakes have been enhanced (this model now has monotube instead of twin-tube dampers), the approach angle has been increased to 30 degrees, and the steering feels sharper.

The winter in the Western Cape has been infamously cold and stormy, but the Dakar-oriented GR-S Hilux is perfectly built to withstand this weather. Where we live, most of the roads aren't tarred, and we have a variety of mountain passes at our disposal. The Van der Stel Pass is our favourite—it's untarred and can get pretty rutted after the rains, but it allows for a spot of spirited driving if you're in the right vehicle.

The slightly wider Hilux GR-S boasts excellent towing (3 500kg) and payload (1 000kg) capacity.

Performance

 The Hilux GR-S is such a vehicle. Where 'normal' Hiluxes can sometimes feel a little unsettled in the rear (without a few kilos of cement or potting soil in the load bay), the fettled version feels less so. Plus, the 2.8-litre 4-cylinder turbodiesel powerplant has 165 kW (15kW more than the standard 2.8 Hilux) and 550 Nm (50 Nm more) on tap, so it's spritelier too, which supplies that little bit of extra confidence when overtaking. 

I am not a fan of Toyota's adaptive cruise control and lane-keep assistance systems in the Hilux; the latter beeps incessantly every time a tyre touches the yellow line (I switched it off), and the former is not suitable for low speed, i.e., in heavy traffic situations like the rush-hour N2 traffic out of Cape Town, which is where it would make the most sense. 

If dune driving is your thing, the GR-S III Hilux will gladly oblige.

But what impressed me was the sheer sophistication of the drive on the smooth, wet tarmac of the Houwhoek Pass on the N2 between Caledon and Grabouw. 

After all, the fashionable yet functional GR-S III will spend most of its time on tar, but it's good to know that you can tackle the dunes of Atlantis or a 4x4 contest at Rust De Winter if needed.

The well-insulated cabin is quiet (hardly any road or wind noise), and you don't feel like you're driving a bakkie. This is sure to make family road trips more bearable.

The Hliux GR-S III is always up to the challenge off-road, but it's pretty decent on tar.

Fuel Consumption

Despite having more power underfoot, the GR-S III's thirst for diesel isn't any bigger than its 'regular' 2.8 GD-6 counterpart and gave us an average consumption of 9.7 L/100 km in mixed driving conditions, unladen.

A rubberised load bay and tonneau cover with a GR sports bar is standard on this model.   

Safety

The Hilux GR-Sport is one of the highest-specified models and, therefore, gets the full suite of safety systems, such as the adaptive cruise control and lane-keep assistance mentioned above, along with a rearview/surround-view camera, hill-start assistance and hill-descent control, seven airbags, park distance control in the front and back, front fog lamps, daytime running lamps, and auto-levelling LED headlamps.

Those LED headlamps are highly effective, but they need one more thing.

What I sorely missed is auto high-beam assistance that prevents you from dazzling oncoming traffic with your car's brights. This should be a standard feature when a bakkie costs a million Rand.

Price

The GR-Sport III wears a price tag of R999 000 (inclusive of VAT) and is sold with a 3-year/100 000 km warranty, and a 9-service/90 000 km service plan is included. Read our article below for more info.

Hilux GR-Sport III pricing and specifications

A million rand for a Hilux? There are way more expensive bakkies out there (even from the same stables), but not many that look quite like this.

Competitors

Many upper-crust leisure bakkies compete with the GR-S Hilux, but none have the same tough, mean, off-road demeanour. More specifically, the teenagers felt more like VIPs in the back of the GR-S Hilux than in any of the Rangers and Amaroks we've had.

The massive over-fenders and BF Goodrich tyres with rugged alloys cut a striking picture.

The Ranger 2.0 BiTurbo double Cab Tremor 4WD is the closest in price to the GR-S Hilux, at R978 600. The Wildtrak X derivative costs R1 040 600, and it has some nice off-road equipment thrown in—but how often will you use it? Then there's the V6 Ranger Wildtrak 4WD, which will set you back R1 057 200. The VW Amarok 3.0TDI V6 double cab Style 4Motion is priced at R1 065 200.

The Verdict

The GR-S III Hilux drives better than ever but most of its magic is found in its masculine, sporty exterior, but those technical enhancements sure sweeten the deal, and you have the backup of that legendary Toyota reliability. I can see myself parking a GR-Sport Hilux in my garage; if I had the money!

(Want to see the Hilux GR-S's spec sheet? Click here.)