After holding its ground in the pickup truck segment since 2013, the Isuzu D-Max was showing signs of ageing amidst stiff competition from key rivals. Although there was a limited edition Isuzu D-Max Beast early this year, the 360 limited units isn’t quite the refresher the D-Max needed.
Yesterday, Isuzu Malaysia officially unveiled the facelifted Isuzu D-Max, adding yet another choice for shoppers in the pickup truck segment who are looking for a robust yet feature-packed workhorse. How feature packed, you ask? How does ESC, VSC, touchscreen infotainment system with 8-speakers and a reverse camera, all standard across the range, sound to you?
QUICK FACTS
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Standard |
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| Name | 2.5 L 4×4 Manual – Hi-Ride | 2.5 L 4×4 Maunal | 2.5 L 4×4 Auto | 3.0 L 4×4 Auto |
| Engine | 2,499cc inline-4 DOHC VGS Turbodiesel | 2,999cc inline-4 DOHC VGS Turbodiesel | ||
| Transmission | 5-speed manual | 5-speed auto with sequential shift | ||
| Max Power | 134 hp @ 3,600 rpm | 174 hp @ 3,600 rpm | ||
| Max Torque | 320 Nm @1,800 – 2,800 rpm | 380 Nm @ 1,800 – 2,800 rpm | ||
| Price (OTR with Insurance) | RM82,978.84 | RM93,006.44 | RM107,596.28 | RM115,690.40 |
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Premium |
Z-Prestige |
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| Name | 2.5 L 4×4 Manual | 3.0 L 4×4 Manual | 2.5 L 4×4 Auto | 3.0 L 4×4 Auto |
| Engine | 2,499cc inline-4 DOHC VGS Turbodiesel | 2,999cc inline-4 DOHC VGS Turbodiesel | 2,499cc inline-4 DOHC VGS Turbodiesel | 2,999cc inline-4 DOHC VGS Turbodiesel |
| Transmission | 5-speed manual | 5-speed auto with sequential shift | ||
| Max Power | 134 hp @ 3,600 rpm | 174 hp @ 3,600 rpm | 134 hp @ 3,600 rpm | 174 hp @ 3,600 rpm |
| Max Torque | 320 Nm @1,800 – 2,800 rpm | 380 Nm @ 1,800 – 2,800 rpm | 320 Nm @1,800 – 2,800 rpm | 380 Nm @ 1,800 – 2,800 rpm |
| Price (OTR with Insurance) | RM103,405.04 | RM113,063.72 | RM120,064.00 | RM128,052.12 |
The new top of the line Z-prestige can be had in three distinct trims – Urban Premium, Street Rugged and Adventure Rugged, as denoted by their exclusive exterior colours of Silky White Pearl, Stallion Black Metallic and Velvet Red Mica. Each gets a distinct styling package to suit the fashion palette of different individuals.
EXTERIOR
At the front, the D-Max gets a newly designed front bumper and chrome grille with projector headlamps and integrated LED daytime running lights as standard. Fog lamps are equipped on all variants except on both the 2.5L manual standard variants. Isuzu has took the liberty of adding a generous amount of chrome to the D-Max. From the power folding wing mirrors, door handles, tailgate handle and rear bumper; all are finished in chrome. At the rear, the standard variants get a bulb type combination tail lamps while the premium and Z-prestige variants are of LED combination.
Starting from the standard variants, it comes with bulb type combination rear tail lamps and bee-sting antenna. Side steps are a cost option on the standard variants as well.
Moving up to the premium variants, it adds on LED combination rear tail lamps, shark-fin antenna, keyless entry and start, side steps and roof rails.
The top of the line Z-Prestige adds on wheel arches and a cargo lid cover with aero-spoiler on top of the features from the premium variants.
Standard D-Maxes ride on 16-inch alloys wrapped in 245/70 profile tyres with a full size steel wheel as spare. As for premium and Z-Prestige variants, a much larger 18-inch alloys is specified, wrapped in 255/60 profile tyres with a full-size alloy spare wheel.
INTERIOR
The trend for pickup trucks these days are heading to the direction of creating a passenger-car like experience when stepped inside. The D-Max is no different as Isuzu has splurge an arsenal of creature comfort features to their flagship pickup. The standard variants comes with a 7-inch touch screen infotainment display while premium and Z-prestige variants ups the screen size to eight inches. All variants comes with an eight speaker (two are mounted on the roof) to provide a surround sound experience.
Other than that, the standard variants come equipped with a standard information display, silver interior trim, three-spoke urethane steering wheel, manual climate control, fabric seats, speed sensing automatic door lock and centre arm rest.
Stepping up to the premium variants, the information display is upgraded to an advance multi-information display dubbed e-LUMAX, three-spoke leather wrapped multifunction steering wheel, automatic climate control, keyless start button and centre arm rest with rear cup holders.
Z-Prestige, as the name suggests, separates itself to stand out from the crowd with its unique styling package. Across the board, the interior trim is finished in piano black as opposed to silver. Urban Premium, for the ones who prefer their pickup brimming with elegance, gets a brown with black accent premium Italian leather seats. For those who seek a more confident presence, perhaps the Street Rugged with black and silver accent premium Italian leather seats might be up your alley. Lastly for the adventurer, the Adventure Rugged’s interior is contrasted with black and red accent premium Italian leather seats.
PERFORMANCE
No changes were made to the mechanics of the D-Max. The same tried and tested 2.5-litre and 3.0-litre turbodiesel make their way into the D-Max facelift. In the 2.5-litre mill, drivers will get 134 hp and 320 Nm of driving force while the 3.0-litre mill produces 174 hp and 380 Nm of torque. Power is channelled to the wheels via a five-speed manual or a five-speed automatic transmission.
Drivers can select the drivetrain to be either 2WD-High, 4WD-High or 4WD-Low via an electronic transfer rotary knob located next to the gear leaver. Having the powertrain carried forward from the pre-facelift may not be a bad thing anyway as Isuzu took four Isuzu D-Maxes and travelled 1,809km in one single tank of diesel!
SAFETY
Isuzu has always put its consumers safety as their number one priority, and it can be clearly seen in their vehicles. Standard safety features on all variants include dual front airbags, ABS, EBD with BA, hill start assist, ESC with traction control, ISOFIX mounting points for rear seat, reverse camera with parking guide and reverse sensors.
WHAT ELSE?
For standard and premium variants, customers have four different exterior colours to choose from – Stallion Black Metallic, Nautilus Blue Mica, Titan Silver Metallic and Magnum White Solid. As mentioned earlier, the Z-Prestige lineup can be had in three different exterior shades – Stallion Metallic Black, Silky White Pearl and Velvet Red Mica.
All new Isuzu D-Max customers will get an upgraded 5-Year or 150,000km (whichever comes first) warranty, up from the previous 3-Year or 100,000km package.
IMAGE GALLERY
