2026 Foton Tunland V9-S review

Buy it nice or buy it twice. Or, if you prefer, beware the temptation of false economies. If something looks too good to be true for the money, it's right to be a little cautious. Take the Foton Tunland V9-S dual-cab as a case in point.

The V9-S sits at the apex of the reintroduced Tunland range and, as such, has to compete that bit harder against a more exacting rival set than cheaper variants in the range. In reality, that's not the issue that it might initially seem.

At $49,990, it appears to butt heads with the likes of the $52,990 (before on-road costs) MG U9 Explore and the $52,990 GWM Cannon Alpha Lux (drive-away), but what might look like a close match is anything but. Its Chinese compatriots are entry-level models, so you'd be comparing the stripped-out spec against the Foton's full suite of bells and whistles.

Yes, you'd need to pay a good deal more than $50K to even get onto the bottom step of Ranger or HiLux ownership, but the sales numbers don't lie. It's something that thousands of Australians are willing to do.

So, what do you get for your money? The Tunland 4x4 ute range starts at $42,990 for the V-7C (Core) model, the heavy-duty, leaf-sprung Ford F-150-looking workhorse.

From that point the Tunland line-up takes a bit of a jink, ditching leaf springs for coils at the back and changing the face for the unapologetic Ram tribute of the V9 models.

The $45,990 V9-L (Luxury) looks a good deal plusher, beefing up the exterior with wheelarch flares, side steps and a sports bar. Inside the V9-L gets heated and powered front seats, dual-zone climate control, a vehicle-to-load (V2L) socket, additional speakers and USB ports, and a wireless phone charger.

Your additional $4000 expenditure on the range-topping V9-S (Supreme) nets you the additional capability of a front differential lock along with gear such as a set of roof rails, a panoramic glass sunroof, cooling for the front seats, heated outboard rear seats, and rear privacy glass.

That is a feature set unequalled at that money in the entire ute sector. That said, the fundamental mechanicals of the Tunland are identical across the range, and the very mild-hybrid system and modest 120kW 2.0-litre turbo-diesel powerplant could well have people looking at the $57,900 (plus on-road costs) BYD Shark 6, with its monster 321kW power output, and feeling a bit of FOMO.

Foton claims a combined fuel economy figure of 8.1 litres per 100 kilometres for the Tunland V9-S, which is impressive for a vehicle of this size. The real-world figures we achieved weren't too far off that claim either, with the big truck averaging 9.0L/100km over a 400km mixed-route drive.

The Toyota's lower weight means that it returns a claimed figure of 7.2L/100km; a little better than the Tunland, but that must be balanced against the fact that it's sporting a more powerful 150kW 2.8-litre engine.

The eye-catching asking price might draw you in, but is there a sting in the Tunland's tail when it comes to running costs?

Buyers get a standard seven-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, and Foton backs that up with a capped-price servicing deal that helps you avoid any nasty surprises.

Over seven years, the servicing tots up to $4493, or $642 per year. The first five years average out at $693, which is a fair bit more than the $471 per year that the MG U9 will run you. For something a little more mainstream, consider that a Ford Ranger 2.0 will average $513 per annum across the first five years of servicing.

That seven-year warranty arrangement is mirrored with seven years of roadside assistance, bringing a welcome element of long-term peace of mind.

The Foton Tunland V9-S will cost $4124 to comprehensively insure based on a comparative quote for a 35-year-old male living in Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates may vary based on your location, driving history, and personal circumstances.

The latest Foton Tunland has not been rated by either ANCAP or EuroNCAP, so we have no definitive and independent assessment of the vehicle's safety credentials. If you're buying with family duties in mind, that could well be a key consideration.

The V9 isn't found wanting for safety equipment, though. Foton claims the advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) have been tuned for Australian conditions, and there are functions such as autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with both pedestrian and cyclist detection, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist, lane-centring control, and traffic sign recognition. That's on top of the usual blind-spot monitoring system, rear cross-traffic alert, trailer stability assist and adaptive cruise control.

Buyers also get eight airbags, including a front centre airbag designed to keep occupants from clashing heads in the event of a side impact. The rear bench features child seat anchor points with two ISOFIX clip-ins for compatible child seats.

Kudos to Foton for designing a spacious, good-looking and well-appointed cabin. The Tunland V9-S impresses when you climb aboard, and the materials quality is a long way above what you'd normally expect for 50 grand.

The pleather-trimmed seats feel big and boofy and the driving position is very good. The steering wheel is nicely styled too, with more physical controls, but that impression of quality is marred by incredibly cheap-feeling plastic paddles behind the wheel and the fact that the driver's seat never quite feels rock solid, with a little play in its runners that you can feel when you come to a stop.

There's a decent amount of stowage space, with central cupholders, a deep centre bin, generous door pockets and a serviceable glove box. A rubberised wireless phone charger sits tucked into the fascia, but from there it's hard to see any other ports for charging devices.

When you do locate the twin USB-A ports (remember them?), they're secreted under the wing section of the centre stack, out of sight of the driver to the extent that you physically have to get out of the vehicle to root around beneath the dash and plug a cable in. It's just one of a number of ergonomic issues in the dash that speak of a lack of attention to detail.

The grab handles on the A-pillars are a nice touch, but the design is executed with coarse plastic flashings that feel nasty to heave yourself into the car with. The illuminations on the central buttons are too dim to be seen in broad daylight.

The tailgate doesn't talk to the vehicle's central locking, and requires you to dismantle the key fob to use a physical key blade to operate the lock. The keyless proximity sensor will have you tugging at the driver's door handle repeatedly until it decides to let you in (my average was eight attempts before it unlocked).

I could go on, and we haven't yet touched on the infotainment system, but you probably get the point. This does not feel like a vehicle that has undergone an exacting validation process.

That's a shame, as there are clearly the bones of something really good here.

Sit in the back and it feels spacious and comfortable. Rear passengers get twin USB-A chargers, a decent amount of leg room and the seat cushions can flip up, giving you some handy interior storage.

Fold the rear seat squab forward and you'll find a bottle jack and the dinky 0.37kWh Bosch lithium-ion battery that powers the 48-volt system. You'd need 80 of these batteries to equal the size of the one you get in a BYD Shark 6, so forget about tooling around on electric power alone.

The tub isn't the most highly featured example of its ilk, with a tub liner and four tie-down points all there is to report on. It measures 1577mm long, 1650mm wide and 530mm high, and it's 1240mm between the wheel arches. That's closer to the Ranger/HiLux sort of dual-cab rather than the really big American-style trucks, and it makes you question exactly how space-efficient the Tunland actually is.

Consider this fact for a moment. Of the world population that own a smartphone, fully 73 per cent of them rely on the Android operating system. Here in Australia, that figure skews further towards Apple products. Nevertheless, it seems inconceivable that if you own an Android-based smartphone, you are, for the time being at least, out of luck with the Tunland V9-S.

That's right, there's no Android Auto functionality yet, wired or otherwise.

You're fine if you have an iPhone, which can speak to the vehicle wirelessly, but given that there's no native satellite navigation built into the Tunland, you'll probably spot Android users affixing some janky service-station phone holder to their windscreens as if it's 2010 all over again.

That's just not good enough, even if you are aiming at the budget end of the market. The rest of the infotainment system doesn't exactly cover itself in glory either. Frustrated by the lack of Android Auto you go for a digital radio channel, only to find that there is no DAB functionality either.

The central screen's processor is extremely slow, and you'll find yourself jabbing again and again to get a command to register. Adjusting the fan becomes an exercise in chasing the lag, as the system tries to catch up to your inputs. Even trying to turn the stereo volume down using the wheel-mounted rollers will do nothing for a moment or two, and then repeatedly flash up a message telling you that you are at minimum volume.

Listening to a podcast while driving around town is an exercise in frustration, with the vehicle flashing up a camera image as you turn a tight corner, muting the stereo in the process. You'll need to switch this off every time you start the vehicle.

The controls and functionality of the screen that comprises the dial pack ahead of the driver, on the other hand, is generally very good.

There's little doubt that the Tunland V9-S creates a striking impression. The combination of size, an aggressive front end with stacks of chrome, red-accented decals and a strident sports bar mean it's no shrinking violet. People were genuinely curious to hear what we thought of it.

If you told them that this was a rival for a Ford Ranger Raptor, chances are they'd believe you. So in that regard, the Tunland certainly punches above its price point.

Appraise it a little more dispassionately, however, and it's a bit of an odd confection. In terms of practicality it offers a little extra over the dual-cab mainstream, but not by as much as you'd think.

Perhaps that's part of its appeal, namely that it looks as if it's knocking on the door of the American-style utes, when in reality it doesn't have the numbers to come close.

Stop me if I sound like a broken record here, but the oily bits of the Tunland are fundamentally sound. They're just marred by a series of half-baked calibration decisions.

Take the steering as an example. I drove the Tunland 100km along a freeway, and when I pulled into a servo for a drink, I realised that my wrists hurt. The reason? The neurotic lane-centring system meant that my wrists were, almost imperceptibly, leaning against the torque of an electric motor for much of the journey.

The constant interruptions of the ADAS functions are extremely wearing.

Imagine you had to ask your partner not to clip their toenails in the shower, and then repeat yourself the next day because it happens again. And the day after that. After a week or so you'd probably be packing your bags.

But that's how it feels repeatedly having to switch off the Tunland's overzealous lane-departure warning, and the tedious lane-keep assist, and the idle-stop that sometimes kills the engine just when you want to pull out into traffic, then restarts the engine when you have a bootful of throttle, causing a hideous lurch. And the stereo-muting turn cameras. After a while it all gets very old.

In the Tunland's defence, it's not the most egregious interjector we've ever encountered, but the process of killing each nagging function is lengthy, often requiring you to access separate screens in the laggy infotainment system.

Foton, Ricardo and Cummins collaborated on the Aucan 2.0-litre turbo-diesel engine. Developing 117kW without the battery assistance, some might accuse it of being a bit underdone for such a large vehicle, but the modest assistance of the hybrid battery at least helps it step off the line with some semblance of verve. It's a little misleading, though, because above speeds of much over 60km/h the acceleration notably tails off.

The eight-speed ZF gearbox is a quality item, and works hard to make the most of the Tunland's power and torque. You can also take control of proceedings with the wheel-mounted paddles if you want to.

The brakes seem up to the task too, and the pedal delivers a good feeling of reassurance, with predictable response throughout its travel. It seems as if the Tunland's chassis engineering was undertaken by people who cared.

This V9-S scores a front diff lock, underscoring its off-road ability. The four-wheel-drive system is from Borg Warner and offers surprising flexibility. It's predominantly part-time, but there's an auto function that'll get you out of a pinch by quickly directing drive to the front treads when it detects low grip.

Ground clearance of 240mm is extremely good. A Ford Ranger XLT boasts 234mm, you get 220mm with an MG U9, and the almost ground-effect GWM Cannon Alpha stands a mere 210mm above terra firma.

That's offset a little by a long wheelbase, but the breakover angle of 21 degrees isn't horrible. To fill out the picture a little further, the approach angle is 28 degrees and the departure angle is 26 degrees.

The wading depth is a healthy 700mm and our test car runs on knobby Giti 4x4 AT71 tyres measuring 265/70 R18.

There's the bones of a really good vehicle evident in the Foton Tunland V9-S.

Unfortunately, something seems to have gone awry in the project plan for the development of this vehicle, such that it feels a little unfinished.

Bringing a car to market without a tailgate that can speak to the central locking or any form of Android phone integration speaks of a job half done. Foton has promised that it will fix these issues at a later point, but is that what buyers want?

Likewise, many of the detailed calibration decisions that ought to have been performed on the vehicle's idle stop and ADAS functionality appear to have been skipped. It's almost as if during the development of the Tunland, Foton ran out of time, budget or both.

It's all a bit of a shame, as they take the edge off what could easily have been a solid new entrant into a seriously tough part of the market.

In its favour, the Tunland feels tough, the cabin is spacious and looks good, the exterior has some real presence, and the 4x4 mechanicals seem robust. It's hard to argue with what you get for the money.

I'm certain this one will come good. As it stands, however, it feels like a 'nearly' contender. It'll probably hit its straps when Foton reels out the mid-life facelift which, if the current crop of Chinese cars are anything to go by, might well arrive after you've boiled the kettle and had a cuppa.

So keep checking in on this one, because there's real potential here if Foton can just iron out the annoying little niggles that make life with the Tunland V9-S so perplexing.

Andy brings almost 30 years automotive writing experience to his role at Drive. When he wasn’t showing people which way the Nürburgring went, he freelanced for outlets such as Car, Autocar, and The Times. After contributing to Top Gear Australia, Andy subsequently moved Down Under, serving as editor at MOTOR and Wheels. As Drive’s Road Test Editor, he’s at the heart of our vehicle testing, but also loves to spin a long-form yarn.

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