Isuzu launches top selling pickup

Isuzu Philippines Corp. aims to be the country’s top seller of pickup trucks with the launch of its 2007 D-Max.

In an interview at the sidelines of Tuesday night’s launch at Sofitel Hotel, Yuki Kato vice president for dealer network division of Isuzu said that with the newly launched vehicle, pick-up sales will reach 150 to 200 units per month.

Currently, the Mitsubishi Strada is the best selling pickup truck with 30 percent to 35 percent of the market. This is followed by Toyota’s Hilux with 30 percent of the market. The Isuzu D-Max is a far third with 20 to 25 percent of the market.

“With the new model we are launching, we expect to be number one and get 35 percent of the market,” Kato said.

Although the D-Max is more expensive than the other pickup brands, Kato said consumers continue to buy the brand. In fact, he said the demand for Isuzu trucks is greater than the supply by 200 to 300 units per month.

“We have exceeded forecasts and we have also addressed the issue in terms of the number of units. The supply will be able to meet the demand either this month or the next,” he noted.

Over all, Isuzu sells 800 to 900 vehicles per month.

Pick-up sales make up 15 percent to 20 percent of the total sales of Isuzu. Kato said the biggest seller remains to be the Isuzu Crosswinds which accounts for 50 to 60 percent of Isuzu’s total sales.

When asked if Isuzu plans to introduce a new Crosswind model, Kato said they are considering it.

However, he disclosed that before the end of the year, Isuzu will launch new D-Max 4x4’s to complement the 2x4 models launched last Tuesday.

The changes and new features of the 2007 D-MAX is a new diesel engine under the hood and it is powered by a 3.0 liter 4JJ1 I-TEQ common rail direct injection diesel engine with turbo intercooler.

The pick-up is available in thee variants, the LT base model, the LX midrange model and the LS high-end model. Units are priced between P805,000 to P1.075 million.