Isuzu revamps entire truck range for 2025

Fresh off the plane from Japan, Isuzu Australia Ltd (IAL) CEO, Takeo Shindo, briefed a select group of trucking media on the 2025 roll-out of an entirely new range of trucks – the first major revamp for the Japanese brand in 17 years. 

The arrival of the new hardware is expected to dovetail with fleet replacement cycles for many existing customers, allowing buyers to step into state-of-the-art trucks at the very beginning of the range’s life cycle. 

The Australian trucking industry leader for over 30 years, Isuzu has focussed on new technology to bring improvements in safety, efficiency, environmental responsibility and driver ergonomics to the new range. This is at the heart of the company’s ‘SEE’ engineering ethos: Safety, Economy and the Environment. 

At the outset, executives warned that although the Australian trucking industry is currently in a stronger position than expected, uncertainty around US President-elect Donald Trump’s pledge to impose punitive tariffs on Chinese imports into the US may have a ripple effect in Australia. 

It is possible that in the event of tariffs being imposed, manufacturers in China and elsewhere would seek alternative markets for products in a sudden supply surplus. This could see a wave of new models and even new brands appearing on the local market in the medium term. 

Nonetheless, IAL reports that October 2024 was Isuzu’s strongest October ever, with sales up 13 per cent. 

The company’s design philosophy is shifting from Complexity to Flexibility, as customer preferences demand more safety and more intelligent vehicles. While improvements in efficiency are expected across the board, the Holy Grail of future carbon-neutral vehicles is also receiving attention. 

Company research has shown that Isuzu buyers, both individuals and fleets, appreciate a reliable transaction – not just from the vehicles, which is a given – but from the dealers and indeed the whole company. 

Customers increasingly expect a curated buying experience, from first enquiry to delivery and aftersales support, for the life of the vehicle. 

Isuzu is aware that its customers are more educated about the products they need and the costs of ownership and, as a result, Isuzu is raising the standard of information and support material available to buyers. 

The new range will be progressively revealed and rolled out across 2025, with VIP fleet customers being offered exclusive driving and evaluation days in the first quarter, and the major public showcase taking place at the Brisbane Truck show in May. Models across the N, F and FX-FY will become available and be delivered throughout 2025. 

On the drivetrain side, an all-new nine-speed automatic transmission is expected to be a very popular option with fleet specifiers. 

Isuzu trucks will continue to be wholly and solely built in Japan, while the F-series will continue to use Cummins-derived engines. 

Some of the upgrades planned for the new range are driven by upcoming legislative requirements, such as new Australian Design Rules due to take effect from February 1, 2025 concerning electronic skid control and autonomous emergency braking, and more stringent Euro 6 emissions rules effective from November 1, 2025. 

Other features are being included pre-emptively, ahead of possible future ADRs, including driver fatigue monitoring systems, distance warning and intersection alerts. 

Much of the upgraded technology will be aimed at boosting both active and passive safety to make collision avoidance a priority in the first instance, and enhance impact survivability in the second. 

Pricing hasn’t been announced, but there will inevitably be across-the-board increases to accommodate the new technology. 

IAL senior staff revealed exclusively to trucksales that Isuzu is also looking at end-of-life, whole-vehicle recycling as part of its corporate environmental responsibility mandate, although nothing is yet formalised.