Personally, I love the ‘JAC of all trades slogan’ and it was the first thing to pop into my mind when it came to crafting a catchy headline. Unfortunately, the clever JAC marketing folk beat me to the punch as I quickly discovered it was one of their catchphrases.
Now whilst we love the Jack and Jills of all trades in the building and construction industry here at Farm Trader, we don’t feel they have the blatant disregard for their trucks’ wellbeing and daily punishment levels that the Kiwi rural folk put their trucks through.
So, we didn’t just want to take their word for it, we wanted to check out the ute’s promises for ourselves – from the impressive 3.2T towing capacity and spacious tray, to the advanced technology and comfortable cabin promoted as being ideal for long drives across rural areas.
We didn’t hold back and travelled over 2000kms in a week, hauling a large three-horse float for our autumn calving gypsy day move: another rural institution, just like that of the beloved ute in the farm driveway.
While JAC may be a relative newcomer to the New Zealand market, Jianghuai Automobile Co Ltd (JAC) is China’s top-selling commercial brand and has sold trucks under the JAC name for more than 60 years. That’s right folks, six decades and more than 350,000 have left the manufacturing floor in that time. So, there’s plenty of experience and heritage behind this new release.
Engine
The JAC 4th gen pickup engine boasts max power stats of 125kW and 410Nm of torque from the 2.0-litre common rail turbo diesel engine. Fitted with the usual wizardry we’re use to in the ag tractor market such as EGR, DOC, and DPF there’s a swag of techy inclusions here.
The engine felt like it had plenty of power and go. The max torque comes on deck at a relatively low 1500rpm, so towing never felt like the engine was overrevving. Speaking of towing, I loaded up the float with our worldly possessions and got stuck into the 700km journey from Northland to Taranaki (making the journey more than once). The total load tipped the scales at 2800kg, so this was always going to be a good test for JAC. One feature I found really clever was the automatic detection of a trailer, putting the JAC instantly into trailer mode (confirmed with a little icon at the top of the large screen).
Towing that heavy trailer on a mix of country roads and highway over that 700km journey saw fuel consumption at around 14L/100km, sipping from the 76L tank. Just as a side note for context, we did the same trip, with the same trailer, moving our possessions in both our 3.0L TD Toyota Prado and 2.2L diesel Hyundai Santa Fe, which both registered similar fuel consumption statistics.
Transmission
The transmission of the JAC T9 is equally impressive, featuring a smooth and responsive eight-speed ZF-manufactured gearbox. Shifting was seamless yet responsive to driving on a variety of metal, country and highway conditions with just the tray loaded or the heavy trailer. Part of this stable towing ability is due to the leaf spring rigid rear axle, double wishbone, independent suspension covers the front axle with 4WD and difflock when the going gets a bit sketchy.
Technology
The T9 is packed with plenty of tech, including a big 10.4-inch touchscreen infotainment system complete with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, a 360-degree camera, rain sensing wipers, automatic, auto-levelling LED headlights, wireless phone charging and a bass inducing six-speaker audio system.
We then move to the full suite of driver assists and safety tech, and there are many, 18 in total, the list has more acronyms than a corporate boardroom strategy meeting. Surprisingly most are well-calibrated and perform well but there are a couple that did make me get a small twitch.
First up, if the driver’s door is not shut, it will not let you move a solitary inch. I’m not talking wide open; I’m talking a millimetre open and it’s no dice. This was problematic with a trailer, as the reversing camera showed the trailer and not the tow ball, which made hitching a little challenging. And yes, you can reverse using your mirrors or the old Ace Ventura with your head out the widow, but our large box horse float made that hard because honestly, if you opened the door while backing, the JAC automatically stopped, put you into P and wouldn’t go back into R until the door was completely shut again. I get it – it’s safety and we can’t compromise, but I found it a little tedious (as I often do with safety features, whether in a vehicle or a tractor. The reality is they are there for a reason though).
The other niggle was Speed Limit Assist, which accused me of exceeding the speed limit even when I was well under it. I can sympathise with the JAC as the number of cones and variations in speed limits on our roads is hard for even the most eagle-eyed motorist to keep an eye on. In hindsight, I may also have accidentally set it to alert me when I was -10kph (you can change it to -10kph, 0kph +10kph).
Speaking of keeping an eye on things, the eye monitoring system will tell you to pay attention to the road even when you haven’t looked away, except to look at the screen telling you to look at the road, which again I will forgive as it does seem to be easily confused by sunglasses. So overall I am a tad picky and still adjusting to modern vehicles with cutting edge technology.
Driver’s seat
Keeping up with the no-nonsense theme, JAC has just the one spec level – full spec! Outside it’s the Gucci alloys and sports bar but inside is where the magic really happens. The JAC T9 has ample legroom, multiple storage compartments and climate control to compliment the faux leather seats, coupled with ample padding to offer a spacious and comfortable driving experience even for those, like me, who are considered bigger than the average bear.
On the long journey with the float, I stopped only to get fuel and after the eight-hour journey into the small hours of the morning, honestly I can say, I wasn’t stiff or sore, nor felt overly fatigued and felt the JAC genuinely shined during my long, towing roady.
Carrying and towing
As mentioned, one of the standout features of the JAC T9 is its impressive towing capacity of 3.2 tonnes, making it perfect for rural duties. An equally impressive 1045kg tray capacity with the width between the wheel arches able to fit a pallet means there is plenty more boxes ticked in the JACs favour.
Warranty and Servicing
There’s a lot to like here too folks, not only is it 5-star ANCAP safety rated, but it also comes complete with warranty coverage of five years/200,000km (whichever comes first), ensuring peace of mind for owners. Regular service intervals are set at every 10,000km and roadside assist also included for the Kiwi punters.
Summary
The JAC T9 ute is a versatile vehicle that has plenty to offer for the New Zealand rural market. Its powerful engine, smooth transmission, advanced technology and spacious cab, combined with the impressive towing and tray capacities further enhance its practicality for rural duties. When you look at the price of just shy of $50k (plus ORC) combined with the length of the warranty, it makes for a compelling argument and one I suggest you notch onto the ‘must consider’ side of the pros/cons page.