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It looks like somebody took a little bit of lightweight tractor, a dash of Nissan Sentra and threw in some new styling for good measure. It's the Nissan NP200 and this bakkie has a very pleasing blend of light commercial vehicle and sedan characteristics.

Sharper body angles and a bigger load box quickly differentiate this from rivals like the Opel Corsa Utility and Ford Bantam.

It's the load box that could be one of the key factors in making this a tough competitor. The NP200 can lay claim to the longest load area and biggest load volume in its class. It has a rubberized surface and a lightweight, but durable, tonneau cover. It's easy to remove and snaps quickly back in place, though not apparent at first glance.

The specifics

The load box is 1.8m long and 1.2m wide at the opening, with 1.02m width between the wheel arches. There?s over one cubic metre in volume ? 1.25 cubic metres to be exact ? and an 800kg payload capacity. This compares well with rivals in the same class, which come up slightly short on load volume and have between 150 and 300 kilograms less carrying capacity.

It was with all this space that I began to envision something grand for this bakkie. Perhaps I could haul a huge load of firewood, a large fridge, or even a pony. Settling on the idea of farm animals and agricultural goods, I began making enquiries of friends and acquaintances ? some of whom own farms ? and offered to transport something for them. What a superb test of the NP200?s capabilities this will be, I thought to myself.

Then came the call. It was a friend, Jane, and she was wondering if I could transport some animals to the farm for her. I instantly agreed and set on my way to test my skills as a bakkie driver.

Splitting hares

It soon became apparent Jane and I had different ideas of what constitutes a large load. There on the lawn in front of me, were two dwarf rabbits in a small, plastic hutch.

Without any effort at all, the "bunnies" were slid into the back of the bakkie with a huge amount of space to spare. With much disappointment I can only report that Chewie and Sparkle arrived very safely on the farm, without a slip or bump in the load box.

My grand transporter dreams behind me, I began to focus on other aspects of this load hauler.

Page two ... Inside is not outside