When is an Isuzu D-Max not quite an Isuzu D-Max? When said D-Max is all electric! Unveiled at this week’s CVShow (Commercial Vehicle Show) it was – without doubt – the highlight of the event. Isuzu had not let slip anything about the unveil, so no-one knew it was coming.
Now, we’ve been BIG fans of Isuzu for years, and one of our favourite things to do is to go green-laning in pickups, so for Isuzu to launch their fully electric one was exciting, to say the least.
On first glance, it looks exactly like the latest D-Max, and that is awesome! Granted this might not be a big deal for some, but when you think about how disconcerting it can be if you are looking to change over to an electric vehicle for the first time, the familiarity of said EV looking like it’s ICE counterpart is something that will make the transition a wee bit easier.
For many, there are disadvantages to switching over to an electric vehicle – range anxiety, towing capabilities, versatility, the list goes on…
What Isuzu have strived to do is to give people a choice without compromise, and when you think that this electric version can tow and carry in the same way the diesel one does, then things really start to become interesting.
Thing is, three years ago Ben and I saw SAIC Maxus’s T90EV steal the show, but as it could only tow half of the limit the D-Max could, it was looked down on, which is a real pity, ad the T90EV is a great pick up.
But the fact remains that if your electric version cannot perform to the same level that a diesel vehicle can, it will be looked down on. When it comes to work vehicles, there’s a long way to go to get EV’s to the same level as combustion vehicles, and they need to be able to do so at a competitive price and with a really short charging time.
This new electric D-Max is a step towards that, and we are eager to get behind the wheel. That’s gonna take a bit of time though, as the one you’re looking at is the only one in the world right now…
Thank you all, and enjoy!
Annabelle 😊