Isuzu MU-X vs KGM Rexton

This is the page's decisive question, and the answer is clear on the rating but nuanced on the kit. ANCAP awarded the current Isuzu MU-X five stars in 2022, with 86 per cent adult occupant protection, and that rating covers the current range. The KGM Rexton has never been submitted, so this generation carries no ANCAP rating, not a low one, simply none. The Rexton counters with nine airbags to the MU-X's eight and a matching active-safety suite including autonomous emergency braking, lane-keep, adaptive cruise and blind-spot monitoring. But standard equipment is not a crash score. If an independent rating matters to you, the MU-X is the only one of the two that gives you one.

Both the MU-X and the Rexton are rated to 3,500kg braked and 750kg unbraked, on a 350kg tow-ball, so the headline number is level. The difference is combined mass. The Rexton allows a 6,460kg gross combination mass to the MU-X's 5,900kg, and carries more payload, up to 824kg against the MU-X's 605 to 715kg by grade, so it has more room to run a heavy van and a loaded car at once. Both need the genuine tow kit and a brake controller for the full rating. Tow near the limit fully loaded and the Rexton has the paper advantage; otherwise this one is a tie.

The two are quoted differently, so compare carefully. The Rexton's roughly $46,990 is a Factory Bonus run-out driveaway as of mid-2026, while the MU-X's roughly $49,900 is a before-on-road list price for the rear-drive LS-M, so the real gap is smaller than it looks and a 4x4 MU-X starts nearer $56,000. On the tail, the Rexton adds a year of warranty and drops the distance cap, unlimited against 150,000km, while the MU-X answers with two more years of roadside, seven to five, and lower fuel use, 6.7L/100km to 8.7. Capped servicing is line-ball near $2,300 over five years. Read the Rexton as cheaper to buy, the MU-X as cheaper to run.

Both are dual-range four-wheel drives with hill-descent and an auto-locking rear diff, so this comes down to the details, and the MU-X has them. It clears more ground, publishes an 800mm wading depth the Rexton does not quote, swings a steeper departure angle, and adds an upgraded Rough Terrain Mode that AU reviewers rate highly. The MU-X's cheaper grades are often the better bush tools, because the flagship X-Terrain wears 20-inch wheels and highway rubber. The Rexton is a capable tourer on gravel, sand and formed tracks, but its 20.5-degree approach and 203mm clearance are modest for hard rock-work. For technical terrain the MU-X has the edge.

The MU-X is the better hauler for gear. It holds 311 litres behind the third row and 2,138 with the rear rows folded, against the Rexton's 236 and 1,806, so it is over 300 litres clearer at full stretch despite the Rexton marketing cabin space. Both seat seven, and both third rows are kids-and-short-trips spaces rather than full-time seating. Where the Rexton hits back is fit-out: twin 12.3-inch screens, heated and ventilated front seats, dual-zone climate and keyless entry come earlier in its range than the MU-X's, whose base grades keep a single-zone setup and an 8-inch screen. More boot to the Isuzu, more cabin kit to the KGM.

The Rexton runs one 2.2-litre turbo-diesel, 148kW and 441Nm through an eight-speed auto. AU reviewers consistently call it quiet and refined for the class, more hushed than the ute-based fours it rivals. The MU-X gives you a choice instead: a newer 2.2-litre at 120kW and 400Nm with an eight-speed for daily and touring use, or the 3.0-litre at 140kW and 450Nm with a six-speed, which actually out-torques the Rexton and is the pick for heavy towing. The trade is refinement, the MU-X diesel being the more clattery, old-school unit road tests flag. Read the Rexton as the smoother single drivetrain, the MU-X as the more flexible one thanks to the second engine.

For kit per dollar the Rexton leads. Even the entry ELX brings twin 12.3-inch screens, leather-look seats, keyless entry and the full active-safety suite, and stepping up adds heated and ventilated seats, dual-zone climate, a powered tailgate, a sunroof and a 360-degree camera. The MU-X spreads that equipment further up its range, so its cheaper grades read plainer, with a single 8-inch screen and single-zone air. Both share the same gap: neither has built-in satellite navigation, and both mirror your phone rather than run native maps. If you want the most screen and comfort features for the money, the Rexton is the richer pick grade for grade.

For a family the MU-X leads on the two things that usually decide it: an independent five-star ANCAP rating and the bigger boot. It carries 2,138 litres folded to the Rexton's 1,806, plus proven durability and a wide dealer network. The Rexton counters hard on value and comfort, with a lower entry price, unlimited-kilometre warranty, and heated and ventilated seats the MU-X charges more for, but its lack of any crash rating is the compromise, and neither third row anchors a child seat well. Read the MU-X as the safer, more practical family hauler, and the Rexton as the value-and-kit buy for a family that can accept an untested car.