BT-50 a passenger car with a tray

Mazda NZ has explained background to how it set pricing for its new one-tonne ute. They’ve made it part of their passenger car family.

DETERMINATION to align the BT-50 more naturally with its passenger models was a reason Mazda NZ gave when successfully winning head office approval to site the one-tonner into a price zone that has proven significantly different to that occupied by its Isuzu doppelganger.

That impetus also explains why the Auckland-centre distributor has bypassed worksite-biased variants in the D-Max family and focused purely on double cab automatics wellsides, in three rear-drives and three four-wheel-drives, formatting in GSX, GTX and Limited. 

The BT-50 rear-drives placing respectively at $47,490 GSX, $51,490 and $53,990, with the four-wheel-drive versions adding an additional $7000, leaves them undercutting their Isuzu equivalents, most obviously at flagship level, where the Limited 4x4 sites $14,500 below the top D-Max X-Terrain. The latter has additional body styling enhancements that, when added to the BT-50, do not reduce the gap significantly.

 Isuzu Utes New Zealand, which released its range a month before the BT-50 launch yesterday, has been asked to share its thoughts about Mazda NZ’s strategy, but has not responded.

While BT-50’s pricing also leaves it looking good against the category-dominating Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux, it’s the situation that exists between it and the D-Max that is most likely to create chat as the models are essentially one and the same under different skins.

Identical chassis, drivetrain, closely linked for bulk interior architecture and built in the same factory in Thailand, on a common line. Mazda was able to implement its own exterior styling, so few panels are shared, and had responsibility for the cabin’s look, but the ute is primarily enough of an Isuzu project for Mazda NZ to refer to their brand as being a customer.

David Hodge (pictured), Mazda NZ managing director, said he could not speak to how Isuzu chose to market the D-Max, but confirmed that BT-50 negotiations were conducted solely with Mazda HQ in Hiroshima, took more than a year and were based on persuading that aligning the BT-50 as not only a workhorse but also a lifestyle alternate to the CX-designated sports utilities would bring growth.

The caveat from persuading Japan to give the green light is that the big factor that has driven the ute market, willingness to discount, will be absent from the sales process for this one.

“Traditionally the (ute) segment has been about a high recommended retail and a high discount, and it’s been that way for a very long time,” Hodge says. 

“I think most retail buyers have not had to pay the full RRP for a long time and, if they were, they were probably paying too much.

“With passenger cars, certainly Mazda passenger cars, we’ve tried to make our pricing more transparent, and having our retail price close to what the transaction price is. We’ve now followed that example with the BT-50. 

“We don’t expect there will be discounts, but we think … we will have no problem selling it to buyers wanting to pay the price we ask. We think it is a fair price and still offers bloody good value for money.”

They’re not outright selling the BT-50 as a car, or even a straight out car alternate, but the intent is to sell it in the same way they would a passenger vehicle.

Says Hodge about the type: “It was once pretty much solely the vehicle for farmers, tradies and those in the construction industry.

“While they are still a very important buying segment … we wanted to create a truck that was equally capable of being a tough workhorse and also doing the business of transporting the family in comfort to outdoor leisure activities.

“A design that shines equally in all situations, all the way from rough off-road settings to passenger car-like comfort for active weekend life-stylers and families.”

Mazda NZ is confident a fresh step of now including the BT-50 in the Mazda Car programme that has previously been for passenger models, will pay dividend. The old model was subject to a less generous process than now. Buyers of the new benefit from the same cover that has been provisioned the make’s cars: So five years, 150,000km factory warranty and a fixed priced servicing programme, also over five years, in which any scheduled workshop time will never cost more than $250.

That servicing cost cap is a big driver for building trust, Hodge says. “Some of these services can be really, really expensive. If a customer feels they are being looked after by a dealership then they are more likely to want to stay with a brand.”

There’s a third identified strength with the latest model: It’s improved safety. Hodge says it is “as safe, if not safer, than any other new car on sale today.”

As much as Mazda NZ anticipates growth, and has established sales targets, it has no intent of making these public. The outgoing BT-50 was generally languishing at fifth on the annual ute sales roster, but with the new model offering so much more, and with the Holden Colorado – which usually held at third place behind Hiliux and Ranger even after its maker announced in February it was departing from the market – now out of the picture, it’s clear every lower-placed performer will see opportunity to move up.

Hodge doesn’t disagree, but he and product and sales planning manasger Tim Nalden say BT-50’s success will not be measured by chasing share; it’s more about customer satisfaction. 

“We’ll just accept where the market puts us,” says Hodge. “WE have a really successful passenger range, so we’re not heavily reliant on the BT-50. It sits alongside our passenger range as an extra vehicle, so we have a complete range. It’s not our do-or-die model.

“We’re pretty confident we are going to do alright with our truck, but the volume is what the volume will be. We will have limited amounts that we can get from the factory. It’s not a tap we can turn on quickly. We can increase volume, but it will take a while.”

In respect to this, Mazda NZ has still not had clarity from Japan about the plant’s operational status, which has been in question since Isuzu announced that production has curtailed, and might not restart until February, due to a Germany-based supplier of a vital part having been closed by Covid-19. Isuzu has intimated the vehicle cannot be built without a component only that supplier can provide. So it has closed the factory.

Well, apparently. Hodge says as far as Mazda NZ is concerned, the BT-50 is still in production until it is emphatically advised otherwise.

 “I cannot talk for Isuzu but everything we have been told is that our December production is firm. We have not heard anything about our January production but we will assume, until we hear otherwise, that this is also unaffected.”

Mazda drops BT-50 pricing bombshell

The Mazda BT-50 is out in fighting form, with a flagship whose position allows almost a small car-sized saving over its Isuzu equivalent.

 TWINS under the skin – but the Mazda BT-50 and Isuzu D-Max have proven somewhat less closely related when it comes to price, particularly at sales hot zone flagship level, where a $14,500 difference exists.

Focused purely on double cab automatics wellsides, Mazda’s mix comprises three rear-drives and three four-wheel-drives, formatting in GSX, GTX and Limited, the rear-drives respectively at $47,490 GSX, $51,490 and $53,990 and the four-wheel-drive versions adding an additional $7000.

So, three trim levels versus Isuzu’s four, no single or space cabs as in the partner’s mix and, so, fewer choices.

The line isn’t adverse to work, yet aims at a lifestyle-valuing customer chasing a reasonable passenger experience. It’s all about lifestyle balance, suggests product spokesman Tim Nalden.

“It’s rugged, it gets the job done … but it also offers new versatility outside of nine to five.”

On current trend, pure toilers aren’t requisite for volume expansion. Diesel utes achieve one in four new vehicle sales nationally, double cabs snare 94 percent of that volume and, within that, automatic uptake is high (86 percent). Three in every five utes sold in NZ are diesel, double cab and four-wheel-drive. So, what Mazda has now tailors very well to consumer taste.

And that’s where it gets interesting. Like its sister ship, BT-50 installs a remarkably high tech loading, particularly in respect to safety and driver assist. Like Isuzu, Mazda has felt need to raise its prices to account for this, yet at showroom level, the outcomes are quite different.

All weighing in Mazda’s favour? In scenarios of best specification equivalency with Isuzu’s models, the Mazdas seem to have price advantage.

That is most apparent when flagships are compared. Whereas Isuzu asks $75,490 for the high-tech and glam D-Max X-Terrain, Mazda NZ’s equivalent, the Limited, is a $60,990 vehicle.

The top choice models’ specifications are not identical; X-Terrain standardises with roof rails, fender flares, a rollout tonneau cover, rub liner and aero sports bar Mazda buyers will have to pluck from the accessories catalogue. Even after doing so, the BT-50 buyer is likely spending comfortably less.

The BT-50 enjoys keyless entry and start, a feature only on X-Terrain, in mid as well as high-grade trim; both flagships have part-leather seats but Mazda adds seat heating; the BT-50 is sold with a spare alloy wheel, where the D-Max ships with a steel spare and Mazda is confident it has an appealing warranty and servicing package, both five years and up to 150,000km (any service capped at $250), and five years roadside assist.

On top of that, both stand equally tall due to their maker (Isuzu) having gone to town on active and passive safety equipment in an attempt to establish technology and safety benchmarks.

Buy into either range and regardless of the variant you get eight airbags (including a segment-first “far side” restraint to separate driver and front passenger in a side collision), autonomous emergency braking, stop/go adaptive cruise, blind spot detection, lane departure warning/assist, forward collision avoidance, drive attention warning, automatic high-beam lights, rain-sensing wipers and a reversing camera.

The D-Max and BT-50 are the only two utes tested under the very latest ANCAP protocols; both achieved the maximum five score and, though other rivals have this too, their returns were achieved when the test was less stringent. The Isuzu just beat the Mazda on the Vulnerable Road User score (69 per cent versus 67), so it’s officially the safest one-tonne ute on the market right now.

Mazda’s pricing strategy is also bullish when compared for those for the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger, which are the dominant two choices with ute buyers, again resonating in the same formats Mazda brings, as well as the Mitsubishi Triton.

When comparison restricts to the top spec offers, the Limited undercuts the Ranger Wildtrak – and incoming $69,990 FX4 - but places $2000 above Hilux SR5 Cruiser, though Mazda’s spec is stronger, closer overall to Ford’s highest trim provisions and, in some instances, exceeding them.

However, the situation that exists with the BT-50 and D-Max is arguably most interesting, given that they are essentially one and the same under different skins. Identical chassis, drivetrain, closely linked for bulk interior architecture and are built in the same factory line, on a common line (which has closed until February due to Covid concerns).

It is not clear if suspension tuning is different between brands, but both offer same base level of performance of 140kW/450Nm from the 3.0-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine. Quoted fuel consumption is the same for both, with an 8.0L/100km combined claim for the shared auto transmissions; so, around 20 percent more efficient than the preceding BT-50’s five-cylinder. 

Both utes have a maximum braked towing capacity of 3500kg – pretty standard for a 4x4 double-cab ute – and both have payloads of 1050 to 1080kg. 

Off-road wise, they share approach, departure and ramp-over angles of 30.5, 24.2 and 23.8 degrees, respectively and each is able to wade in depths up to 800mm.

Look inside either and the cabins are very well equipped. Each receives a 9.0-inch infotainment screen which runs wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto on top-spec models. A smaller digital read-out within the instrument cluster to provide key vehicle information. Entry-level variants in each range equip a 7.0-inch infotainment screen.

Dual-zone climate control, rear air vents, leather-appointed seats and keyless entry are other hallmarks in the higher-end models. 

 Fair to summarise that both new models are far advanced than their predecessors; all those extras unavoidably have to add to the bottom line. The old D-Max at full retail was positioned between $39,890 and $61,990, but an aggressive clearance over the last few months has delivered those editions for substantially reduced stickers. The previous BT-50, which will continue in some forms for months yet, was generally around $8000 less now.

The utes share few exterior panels because Mazda’s styling team has again worked to engender a tie to its car line; much more successfully than with the previous generation, which suffered from over-ambitious creativity and poor timing.

 Within 18 months of the last ute coming out, Mazda adopted a new styling ethos called Kodo which it still adheres to 10 years on. The old ute was right out of step; the new one not at all.

BT-50, D-Max okay for now as factory closes

Supply of the sister utes is considered strong enough to last the expected period when production of both is suspended, due to coronavirus.

MAZDA BT-50 is about to release here, following in tyre tracks of its Isuzu D-Max sister ship, which launched here in October.

 DISTRIBUTORS for the Isuzu D-Max and its Mazda BT-50 sister ship are confident they have enough stock here and en route to establish the utes in the market while the factory in Thailand making both is closed, potentially for at least three months.

However, the national sales operations for each brand have stopped short of commenting about the potential of supply of the technically-aligned models yet being affected at some juncture. 

All that is known for sure about the shutdown is that it has been caused by a third-party supplier being unable to get a vital component to Isuzu, which makes both vehicles, and that this will likely keep the plant closed until February, though that timeline is tentative.

Mazda New Zealand was today awaiting further information from head office in Japan.

At the moment, it has not been advised about whether the BT-50 is even directly impacted. It is on standby for any updates and says, for now, it’s business as usual.

Meantime, Isuzu Utes New Zealand has offered the following: “ Our understanding is there is a reduction in production due to the delay in component supply from Europe, and are therefore working with (the) factory to manage our future supply chain.” 

News of the situation comes as Mazda NZ is in the process of launching the BT-50 to dealers, with intent to publicly announce pricing and specifications when showing it to media on November 24.

A Mazda NZ spokesman expressed confidence today that even if there was to be an impact on New Zealand, it would not be felt immediately – or perhaps at all.

There is a big stockpile of vehicles in this country already because the model is of high priority “and we have forward ordered supply numbers accordingly.”

Isuzu Utes New Zealand, which released the D-Max in October, offered much the same thought.

“We have sufficient stock here in NZ with further arriving later this month, December and January,” said communications manager Kimberley Waters.

Isuzu Japan acknowledged the situation yesterday, saying had to ‘suspend’ assembly. Subsequent media reports say it stems back to a parts supplier in Europe being shut down due to Covid-19. Some outlets are suggesting the crucial item is an engine component from Germany.

The two utes were co-developed by Mazda and Isuzu and, though stylings and equipment levels appear to differ, they are identical in mechanical make-up; same 3.0-litre turbodiesel engine, same transmissions and a common platform.

Yet that doesn’t automatically mean Mazda is in the same pickle. Parts for the jointly-developed vehicles are sourced globally, so at this stage only the D-Max is absolutely known to be affected.

The D-Max line selected for New Zealand appears identical to that going to Australia, where Isuzu’s distributor has expectation of fall-out.

It has sent out statement regretting the vehicle’s production has been “temporarily put on hold” and explaining that this “unfortunate pause in vehicle production is related to one of our key component suppliers in Europe (producing unique components for our Australian-specification D-Max) has had to temporally close their manufacturing plant due to COVID-19.

“As a result we have had to suspend our D-MAX production in Thailand for up to three months, with a tentative recommencement of vehicle production of February 2021."

The models’ arrival and market impact in New Zealand is a big news story as the latest generation has been the first one-tonne utility to be accredited with a top-drawer five star safety score under a toughened test regime that independent scorer and national crash test agency, the Australasian New Car Assessment Programme, implemented in January. Other competitor utes with five star scores from ANCAP received these when the test was easier.

Max score for Mazda sister ship

What’s good for the D-Max is good for the BT-50, our crash testing agency decides.

DIFFERENT badges, same basic engineering, technology and design – and it’s paid off for Mazda’s twin to the Isuzu D-Max in crash testing. 

A month after determining Isuzu’s soon-to-release new one tonne ute was worthy of a maximum five star score from a crash test that became tougher this year, the national crash testing agency has decided the BT-50 that is a co-development of that model should achieve the same score. 

Surprised? Well, there’s potential you might be because, even though the sister utes are both on the top rung, it’s questionable the Mazda can claim utter category-first equality.

Mazda’s ute scores just slightly lower for impacts regarding pedestrians and cyclists in the vulnerable road user criteria due to the different nose design.

That in itself might seem an interesting outcome as, when it came to assessing the Mazda, the New Zealand Government-funded and NZ Automobile Association-supported Australasian New Car Assessment Programme didn’t put one into the wall, as occurred with the D-Max. 

Rather, the outcomes determined for the Mazda accrue from the agency extrapolating results from the D-Max test and also giving consideration to technical data provided by Mazda.

All this means the BT-50 carries the exact same ratings for adult occupant protection (83 percent), child occupant protection (89 percent), and safety assist (81 percent).

The safety system on the Mazda, like the Isuzu, consists of a comprehensive suite of tech such as AEB, adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning with steering assist, blind spot monitoring and advanced speed assist, and many others. 

ANCAP’s rating applies for all BT-50 models.

Isuzu will have a head start on leveraging the score, with the D-Max expected to be on sale within the fortnight; timing which gives it around four week’s head start over the Mazda, this to honour an international agreement between the makes that gives Isuzu first dibs on strength that the ute is their basic design and comes from their factory.

Current BT-50 to keep selling beside new

The old and new models will be side-by-side for at least five months.

OLD will remain selling beside new when Mazda here releases the latest BT-50.

Talk of at least some variants from the present model family remaining on sale for months beyond the new rig’s arrival has been tacitly confirmed by the national distributor.

 While Mazda New Zealand isn’t keen to discuss specifics of how and when everything will unfold, it has confirmed the two generations will sit together and also not denied this is planned to occur from November until next March. 

Conceivably, it’s a strategy that seems to be mainly to answer demand for models other than those in a dual cab configuration, which is the only format the new vehicle will initially provision in.

Thought that the distributor might also be undertaking a plan to lessen the sticker shock that has come with the new model’s sister ship, the Isuzu D-Max, seems less likely now that BT-50 pricing for Australia has been released.

Assuming – and it’s sometimes not a good idea to – that our neighbour’s positioning has some relevance to what will happen here, then the Mazda would seem to be in stronger position than the Isuzu models. 

On today’s exchange rate, the 11-strong BT-50 line starts at the equivalent of $NZ47,694, for a dual cab chassis four by two in XT automatic form, and tops at $64,889 as a dual cab pick up four-wheel-drive auto GT.

The Isuzu line runs from $49,990 to $75,490 here. 

Mazda NZ product and sales planning manager Tim Nalden has indicated that NZ market pricing is still being sorted.

“We’re still obviously working through that as it’s coming out toward the end of the year.”

He did not want to go into the details of the product strategy, beyond acknowledging the current and incoming vehicles will be together for a while.

“We just think there’s potential for the current model.”

What helps Mazda NZ with this is that the new BT-50 and the existing vehicle come from different plants in Thailand.

The one incoming built in Isuzu’s plant in Thailand, off a line that has been dedicated to making the Holden Colorado and the previous D-Max.

The present BT-50, of course, was developed with Ford, and comes from the AutoAlliance factory which will continue to make the Ranger for the next year.

One potential selling point for the D-Max is the impressive score it achieved in crash testing by an independent assessor recognised and funded by our Government and the New Zealand Automobile Association.

Ironically, that five star accreditation meted the D-Max after it flew through a tougher test than older utes faced to achieve their equivalent scores won’t be of use to Mazda.

Although the BT-50 and D-Max and identical in technical make up and are sure to be closely related in their engineering, it is understood by Nalden that the Mazda will have to undergo an entirely separate crash test so as to achieve a wholly bespoke rating.

31,000 fewer registrations in 2020 predicted

Mazda NZ’s boss disagrees with some recent assessments but also holds belief that the new vehicle market is in a rough ride.

david Hodge: Mazda is in good shape to weather tough conditions.

 NEW passenger and commercial vehicle sales in 2020 will likely be down 20 percent over last year, a drop of almost 31,000 registrations. 

 This assessment is from Mazda New Zealand’s boss, who holds that crunch time is coming.

If David Hodge’s prediction for this degree of calendar year-on-year decline is realised, it will represent the biggest drop since 2009, when new car sales plummeted 28 percent as the local economy tanked amid the global financial crisis.

Last year’s accrual of 154,479 new passenger and light commercial vehicles was already a decline, being 4.3 percent off the 2018 tally.

Regardless that the last three months has seemed rosy for registrations, the market year to date was down 24 percent at the end of August, Hodge notes.

It will remain tough though he also contends his own brand is in good shape, all things considered, to weather what’s ahead.

For one, he says, his make has steered clear of an emerging national stock shortage scenario of concern to the distributors’ representative body, the Motor Industry Association. 

In respect to the surge in registrations over the past three months that has hastened the depletion of the national new vehicle stock pile to apparent verge of exhaustion, Hodge reminds that some of this is down to orders from April and May – when the industry was frozen by the national lockdown - coming to fruition.

The BT-50 is Mazda’s next new model here and is considered a crucial vehicle.

He respects the MIA’s reasons for offering a view about the increasingly parlous state of stock availability, and doesn’t absolutely question the accuracy of figures being bandied, but says it isn’t representative of his own brand’s status.

According to the association, new vehicle distributors normally carry up to 100 days’ stock for vehicles and large parts, but this has reduced by around 50 percent, to just over 11,000 units – the lowest in at least eight years and half the tally held in April. The situation for commercial models is said to be worse, that stockpile have quartered to under 5000 vehicles by the end of last month.

“Maybe 100 days is right as an industry average, but it’s not our situation. We have a shorter pipeline (for stock) against, for instance, the European brands.

“We are comfortable with our stock levels. We are lean, yes, but our stock pipeline is full, absolutely chocka.

“We have no problem at all with the number of vehicles coming to us.”

He wondered if Mazda had advantage over many other makes, or at least those unable to source from Japan, where production was virtually back to normal, or as close as it could be with working conditions being adjusted for coronavirus safety measures.

Mazda NZ takes cars from two plants in Japan and the BT-50 is from Thailand.

“Our plants are as close to 100 percent as is possible. The Japanese plants lost a shift the other day because of a typhoon, but other than that they are at full shifts.”

Hodge says Mazda production been relatively unaffected by coronavirus so the supply pipeline is full.

The commercial sector is now of high interest to Mazda NZ, as it plans a November release for the new-generation BT-50, by and large a doppelganger for the Isuzu D-Max that goes on sale on October. 

That model comes from the Isuzu plant in Thailand where, Hodge says, the impact of Covid-19 has not been huge. Also, the local workforce was in good readiness.

“They are accustomed to wearing masks, so that wasn’t unnatural for them, and they (Thai people) are not hand-shakers, so there’s another factor that probably makes them safer.

“I think the Thai plant did shut down for a while but that was demand-driven, not health-driven.” 

Hodge says the country going into lockdown in April was a stress for the motor industry and enforced that the car business at distributor level was essentially a “big money go round, money in, money out. 

The ‘money’ in suddenly curtailed “and it was a hard stop. But the money out kept happening as we still had a pipeline of cars and a commitment to the plant for vehicles we ordered and had to pay for.

“It was an issue of liquidity and we worked hard with local banks here. We had strong backing relationships and that’s what saw us through that initial shock.” 

After that, it was a waiting game. “We carried on work from home and though we didn’t sell anything we had a launch (the CX-30) at that time.” It also maintained a parts supply, initially to emergency services but gradually to the general public as shutdown conditions eased.

“Once we got out of Level Three, then to Level Two it was rally business as usual and when we got to One it was ‘yay, everything is back to the way it was.’

“But during April and mos of May the industry basically stopped. It didn’t go in a decline or anything, it was a hard stop. Same for the entire economy.” 

The tourism, aviation and hospitality sectors had a “bloody good stomp” and were still quite sore, still, he suggested, “but the rst of the economy basically has largely carried on.” 

The apparent rush in new vehicle sales in June, July and August was more perceived that actual, he suggested. The April and May activity also had influence.

“A lot of the sales in June, July and August were people who were going to buy in April and May. That has just helped top up those months.” 

D-Max achieves ANCAP A-plus

Strong test rating makes new model the sector’s crash test champion.

HIGH praise for the new one-tonne ute co-developed by Isuzu and Mazda has come from the independent safety agency most relevant to New Zealand.

The Australasian New Car Assessment Programme, better known as ANCAP, is a New Zealand-funded crash test operation based in Australia.

The organisation has determined the Isuzu D-Max, which is about to release on sale here and will soon after provision as the Mazda BT-50, to be the one-tonne sector’s safety benchmark.

This results from it becoming the first ute to score a full five-star ANCAP rating to  2020 standards, which introduce more stringent measurements of safety than have previously applied.

The vehicle safety authority, whose primary backers on this side of the Tasman are the New Zealand Government and the Automobile Association, is satisfied the score applies to all variants of the new model.

According to ANCAP, the D-Max is the  “safety benchmark for the competitive ute segment.”

 “Our 2020 requirements again set the bar higher to promote further vehicle safety improvements and address some of the ongoing challenges on our roads,” ANCAP director of communications and advocacy, Rhianne Robson, says in a release.

The score reinforces the merit of the Isuzu Intelligent Driver Assistance System (IDAS), which is fitted across the range.

This uses a Hitachi-supplied twin-camera system mounted high on the windscreen and is critical for forward collision warning, AEB with pedestrian and cyclist detection and turn assist, adaptive cruise control and lane departure warning and automatic steering assist.

It also traffic sign recognition, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert and emergency lane keeping, among further features.

On top of technology systems, Isuzu D-Max is also the first ute in the world to fit a front-row centre airbag as standard for added occupant protection and bringing the total number of airbags to eight.

Says Robson: “With the new challenges set by ANCAP from 2020, it is extremely pleasing to see manufacturers achieve good results against these increasing standards, and take responsibility by prioritising safety to provide their customers with the safest vehicles they can.”

The make’s national distributor has welcomed the score, which Conceivably puts the model above even other other utes that have achieved five star status, as their scores were decided under less stringent circumstances.

The previous D-Max was a less satisfactory performer in ANCAP testing.

However Isuzu Utes New Zealand general manager Sam Waller believes customers can “reassuringly drive away knowing this D-Max is equipped with cutting-edge safety systems to keep them out of trouble at a moment’s notice.

“Given double cab utes are proving a popular family vehicle, receiving one of the highest scores awarded by ANCAP for Child Occupant Protection will no doubt be very comforting for families.”

The score’s release comes in the same week of the distributor releasing the new line’s pricing, which brings a steep increase over the outgoing editions’ positioning, with $8000 to $10000 added to stickers when recommended retails are compared, and the gap widening significantly more when the special runout tags attached to the old model are considered.

Isuzu Utes NZ has yet to respond to an invitation to discuss the pricing, which elevates what was previously the sector’s budget buy into the same premium sector as the popular Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger, albeit with more safety equipment than those rivals pack.

D heading for A-plus?

The D-Max utility’s release in Australia points to exciting news for Kiwi buyers of this model – and its impending Mazda sister ship.

BOUGHT a Ford Ranger or Toyota Hilux in the past few years purely on strength of these being considered well-kitted for driver assists and safety equipment? 

If so, then perhaps the replacements for those models should be two rigs that until now have been overshadowed on those ingredients.

Impression that this model and the Mazda BT-50 that derives from it are set to deliver enough advanced safety and technology to reset market expectations has been cemented by how the D-Max has just presented in Australia.

While Isuzu and Mazda in New Zealand have yet to set release dates for the new-gen one-tonners in this market – beyond saying it’ll be before year-end -  and even though the BT-50 has also yet to touch down in Australia, the D-Max’s specification for Australia, its first export market, have been fully laid out.

That act - which includes the video here today, made because the Australian media were introduced by way of a virtual launch, because of coronavirus - lends accurate insight in what’s coming here, given that the NZ market representatives of both makes have never made any secret that we can expect basically identical provisions that are being delivered across the Tasman.

If so, then ute market leader, Ford, and consistent runner-up Toyota are going have to become used to now treating the Isuzu and Mazda products more seriously as direct equals than they might have done previously. 

Isuzu essentially shocked the Australian industry in announcing every single model in the 2021 D-max range – including the basic tradie versions – will come with an advanced safety package, including class-first advances of perimeter sensing technology and a centre airbag.

It’s highly likely everything that goes into the Isuzu will transfer to the Mazda, given those model lines are already so closely aligned in every other major mechanical and design aspect.

As is, all D-Max models announced for our neighbour – and that’s four variants, from base SX to a new flagship X-Terrain fitted with plenty of flash kit - come with the new Intelligent Driver Assistance System (IDAS) with a unique twin-camera system used by independent partner Hitachi. Enabling 3D effect, the cameras substitute the usual radar sensors which mount lower in the vehicle and can be easily fouled by mud, dirt and accessories.

Yes, it might well come at a cost. The new flagship D-Max X-Terrain Crew Cab is $A58,990 ($64,648 in our money), so some $A7000 ($7676) more than its current range-topping D-Max LS-T.

However, this provision also means that what has until now been a stalwart work ute has become an especially advanced offering.

The full capabilities of the safety system include Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), AEB with turn assist, forward collision warning, post-collision warning, mis-acceleration mitigation and adaptive cruise control (but only on automatics), lane departure warning and prevention, lane keep assist (also not for manual), traffic sign recognition, speed limited, blind-spot monitoring, auto high beams, rear cross-traffic alert and driver attention assist.

This big step up in safety tech is supported by the ute having also gone new in its design: A new look, fresh – though still, of course, old-school ladder frame - chassis and an all-new engine and improved drivetrain are also likely to be appreciated. 

Three D-Max cabin types are offered to our neighbour - Single Cab, Space Cab and Crew Cab – and aside from X-Terrain there are SX, LS-M and LS-U variants. 

D-Max’s renowned robustness is still a core ingredient, Isuzu assure; it says the development programme included more than four million kilometres of “vigorous” testing to ensure it has improved in every area of ride and handling and performance yet retained that acknowledged toughness.

Though it maintains the 3.0-litre capacity associated with the current D-Max, the ‘4JJ3-TCX’ turbo diesel engine is new. It produces 140kW at 3600rpm 450Nm of torque at 1600-2600rpm, an increase of 10kW and 30Nm over the old motor.

Isuzu speaks to a quieter, more refined performance with noticeable real-world driveability improvements. Just as importantly, in the legislative world, it now complies with Euro 5 emissions regs. Be prepared for a slight change of pace in respect to fuel burn. In some variants it sits at 7.7 litres per 100km

But others are up to 8.1L.

Transmission choices are a six-speed manual or auto, the latter being a new Aisin Rev-Tronic unit with sports mode and manual shifting.

A body that has grown wider (with a 30mm longer wheelbase) provides more cabin space, yet the shape is more aerodynamically efficient. The interior fitout has been covered previously, but one turnup is that the multimedia system (seven-inch screen at base, nine-inch for the luxury provision) is capable of wireless Apple CarPlay connectivity – a first for a ute in this market. Android users need a USB cable to use the Auto service. 

The larger touchscreen has built-in sat nav and interior appointments have also been given the upmarket treatment with new finishes and soft-touch surfaces.

The flagship has electrically operated leather-accented seats, piano black trim, remote engine start, dark grey alloy wheels, aero sports bar, roller tonneau cover and tub liner.

Ride and handling have improved, with new independent double-wishbone front and the same three-leaf spring setup in the rear but with 30mm of axle travel and tuned to light or heavy load work depending on the grade of model.

It also delivers upgrade to off-road ability, with all 4×4 models now offering an electromechanical rear differential lock, improved ‘Terrain Command’ that can shift from low to high range within one second on the move at up to 100kmh.

The D-Max has an 800mm wading depth. Aussie’s LS-U and X-Terrain also have a higher 240mm ground clearance with 30.5 degrees approach, 24.2 degrees departure and 22.8 degrees ramp-over. All four-by-two and four-by-four also offer hill start assist and hill descent control as standard.

For touring and working, the payload goes up to 1320kg in the SX cab chassis, and towing capacity is 3500kg braked with a 350kg tow ball limit. GCM is 5950kg and GVM goes up to 3100kg.

Oh yeah, we need to talk about the accessories – no ute being complete without a few add-ons, right?

The Aus market is taking more than 50 accessories -  bullbars, tow bars, electronic brake systems, roof racks, cargo organisers, alloy trays and tonneau covers, as well as toolboxes and oddments. 

Take note that the Isuzu factory nudge or alloy/steel bullbars will work with the IDAS system.

Towers will be able to select a tow pack with tow ball kit rated to 350kg and meeting expectations of the 3500kg braked towing capacity, and a Redarc electric braking system. There’s also a weight-distribution hitch on the list.

And what will all that tech do for the crash test rating? Conceivably, it should go well. Isuzu itself is said to be highly confident D-Max will score a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating. However, that’s yet to be proven. crash testing has been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Ute outlook Pt 1: Mazda's new love ... Max

Our national obsession for utilities, especially family-minded dual-cabs, knows no bounds. The market is booming at the moment, and filled with plenty of strong options. Yet surely you’re also keen to know something about what’s coming up next, when and from whom? So, here’s the first instalment of a three-part analysis.

2020 D-Max

ONE of the big motoring stories over the next few months is going to be all about utes – what’s going to be new, and who is going to be building them.

It’s called platform sharing, folks.  And the art of sharing development costs. In recent times it’s seen the likes the Mazda BT-50 built on the same platform as the Ford Ranger, the Mercedes-Benz X-Class built on the same underpinnings as the Nissan Navara, and the Holden Colorado sharing the platform of the Isuzu D-Max.

Now the deckchairs have been re-arranged and the platform sharing has started all over again. But while the process itself is remaining the same,  the outcomes are a lot different.

So which new ute is being developed with which other new ute – or even utes? In this series of articles, we provide the breakdowns, starting with a pair of newly-weds.

Back in the day when Ford owned 35 percent of Mazda,  the Australian division of the blue oval company was largely responsible for development of what remains New Zealand’s biggest-selling vehicle, the Ranger.

And, thanks to the ownership scenario at the time, Mazda conceived its BT-50 version off the Ranger. Although it featured such differences as unique body styling and different suspension settings, the two utes shared the same chassis and same powertrain and were even built in the same factory in Thailand.

While the process saved a lot of money in development costs, in New Zealand  this platform sharing scenario proved to be something of a double-edged sword for Mazda.

That was because of Mazda’s 24 Kiwi dealerships, 18 of them were also Ford dealerships – and for sales staff it was easier to sell the hugely popular and masculine-looking Ranger than the BT-50, despite the fact Mazda NZ went to great lengths to differentiate between the two, particularly as regards pricing.

 End result: Ranger has a 20 per cent share of New Zealand’s ute market, while the almost identical BT-50 owns 5 per cent.

2020 D-Mx

Ford doesn’t own any stake in Mazda any more – it sold its shareholding in 2010 – and the current BT-50 is the only remaining remnant of that ownership scenario.  And now that’s about to change, thanks to a supply agreement Mazda brokered four years ago with Isuzu.

At the time, the two brands said the agreement would allow Mazda to “maintain own-brand market coverage.” In other words, get out from under the shadow of Ford.

And Isuzu? Back in 2016 it said the agreement would allow it to “enhance its product competitiveness”. In other words, rid itself of lingering claims that its D-Max ute has for all intents and purposes always been a Holden Colorado.

Actually, it’s always been the other way around.

At one stage General Motors owned 49 per cent of Isuzu,  which gave the Detroit giant access to Isuzu light trucks.  That explains why the Holden Rodeo sold in Australasia from 2002 to 2008 was in fact the original Isuzu D-Max.

But when GM began to sell down its shareholding in Isuzu, the two brands began to go their own ways. GM lost the right to the Rodeo name and changed the name of the Holden ute to Colorado, then Isuzu distribution operations were established in Australia in 2008 and New Zealand in 2010, which allowed the brand to begin to sell the D-Max.

It’s been like that ever since, with the D-Max and the Colorado essentially sharing the same platform but being increasingly their own vehicles – different engines and powertrains, different bodyshell designs (well, from the A pillar forward anyway), and built in different Thai assembly plants.

But now that’s all about to change. Instead of a BT-50 being a Ranger and a D-Max being a Colorado, the new BT-50 will be a new D-Max.

First to arrive will be the D-Max, which has already been launched in its home Thailand and was scheduled to be unveiled in New Zealand just after mid-year – in fact dealers were scheduled to be in Thailand in late April to watch the first kiwi models roll off the assembly line.

 But thanks to Covid-19 the assembly plant was shut down, and the trip had to be cancelled. Isuzu Utes NZ Ltd marketing manager Kathyrn Hayward said the company is now working with the factory to confirm a new arrival date for the D-Max.

“We will provide more information when we can,” she added.

A feature of the new ute is that it will be powered by a beefed-up version of the excellent 3.0-litre four cylinder turbo diesel that is under the bonnet of the current model. Power has gone up to 140 kilowatts and torque has risen to 450 Newton metres. It’s also going to have improved safety specification and more infotainment.

During last year’s Tokyo Motor Show, Isuzu told the attending media that the new D-Max was developed solely by Isuzu as the original equipment manufacturer, with the finished product then provided to Mazda.

A shared disclosure agreement with Isuzu means Mazda New Zealand is unable to disclose any specifics about how the brand has BT-50-ised the ute. That will become clear when the vehicle is launched here later this year.

 But Mazda NZ product and sales planning manager Tim Nalden did confirm that the current BT-50 is enjoying such a “halo” period at the moment – it’s achieving its highest monthly segment share levels since its first year on the market in 2011 – that it is leading the company to consider selling both models side-by-side for a period of time.

It’s going to be interesting how both these new models perform on the New Zealand ute market.

Last year the BT-50 was the sixth biggest selling ute here with 2325 sales, and the D-Max one place behind with 1802 sales. But in 2020/2021 a combination of the fact they are brand-new, and the imminent disappearance from the market of the volume-selling Holden Colorado,  could see a rise in registrations of both of these models.