Reveals and deals at Fieldays this year 

The National Fieldays kicked off in Hamilton today, thousands in attendance, many looking for a bargain on something. Billed as the Southern Hemisphere’s largest agricultural event, all manner of machinery and farming innovations are on display, the vast majority of which a townie like myself knows absolutely nothing about. 

Amongst the farm machinery however are a few of the car brands with their latest wares on display. Fieldays is about as close to a car show there is in New Zealand, and this year there were a few new vehicles making their public debut.

Among them is the LDV Terron 9, one big double cab ute that is landing at $59,990. Its 2.5-litre turbodiesel makes 163.5kW and 520Nm of torque and the Terron 9 has the usual 3500kg braked towing capacity. It’s 5.5m long, and 1997mm wide with a 1100kg payload. 4WD is standard with multi-terrain modes.

Along with dual 12.3-inch screens inside, there is wireless CarPlay and Android Auto and a 360 degree camera. Terron 9 is backed by a seven-year/200,000km warranty. There’s just one variant at launch, and it will sell alongside the T60, which remains in the range as a (slightly) smaller double cab option for buyers. 

The Subaru Forester was also on display, the new generation making its debut as well. Leading the line up is a new and improved hybrid version touting Subaru’s full time AWD system. The news is that supply will be limited as the Japanese market alone is already holding 15,000 orders for the new model, which is beyond the firm’s yearly production capacity. So if you’re interested, register your intent now. Find out all the details and pricing here. 

KGM, formerly known as SsangYong if you haven’t been paying attention, pulled the covers off a new hybrid version of the Torres mid-sized SUV. At this stage, the details are scant, other than to say the brand will be testing the model locally and evaluating it for our market. But given the interest and rising demand for hybrid SUVs, you can bet it will be added to the local showroom at some point alongside the petrol and EV versions already on sale.    

Ford had its Ranger Super Duty on display, a pre-production model fitted with a locally-sourced work body on the rear. No word on pricing yet, but Ford sees opportunities with both the wellside version for those that like to tow and the cab chassis for more specialised work vehicles. 

Also new is the Transit Courier Trend, a city-friendly small van that is priced at $49,990. It has two rows of seats, the ones in the rear able to fold up out of the way to increase cargo space. It’s powered by a 1.0-litre petrol turbo with 92kW and 170Nm and channels that to the front wheels via a seven-speed auto. It has dual sliding side doors and a pair of barn style doors on the rear.

It looks to be a versatile machine that some businesses might find to be the right fit. There is also a passenger version called the Tourneo Courier Active at $55,990 with the same powertrain and sliding side doors but the interior is more civilised and there is a rear hatch. 

BYD had its Shark 6 on display, sporting a range of different canopy options and other accessories, among them one with a flat deck conversion. This is done by BYD NZ, which ensures the accessory power outlets, charge ports and venting fuel filler are all sorted properly. The deck on display wasn’t cheap, some $15,990, due to the relocation of those things mentioned and others like the blind spot monitoring and reverse sensors.

BYD NZ said that it expects to have a cab chassis Shark 6 available in the near future, costing between $1500 and $2000 less than the current wellside. Further down the line, expect single and extra cab versions of the Shark also.  

Next door you’ll find GWM with its Cannon Alpha PHEV front and centre, another of the hybrid utes on display, with Ford also having its PHEV Ranger on show too. Toyota had a big presence with all manner of Cruisers and Hilux models decked out in accessories, and you get a deal on Triton at the Mitsubishi stand. JAC also has a big presence, with its PHEV ute on display, the Hunter, though that is not yet ready for sale, described as being in its prototype stage.  

Mahindra had its new XUV 3XO on site, read all about that here, and the massive GMC Yukon Denali was there too, read more about that here. Even Tesla was there, with its pointless Cybertruck, proving the brand must be in bad shape 

Fieldays is on now until 14 June at Mystery Creek, Hamilton.