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Isuzu D-Max 2012 News

Garland returns to Dakar
By James Stanford · 14 Dec 2012
A broken back and a heart attack would be enough to put most people off racing altogether, let alone the punishing Dakar rally. But neither will stop Bruce ‘Lazarus’ Garland taking on the world’s meanest rally in his Isuzu D-Max ute from January 5 in Lima, Peru.The 54-year-old fractured a vertebra in the 2011 Dakar when he landed heavily in a sand dune. It ended the event for Garland and long-time co-driver Harry Suzuki, who was not injured. It was a big setback, but the situation worsened when Garland suffered a heart attack two months later.“At one point I didn’t think I would make it out of the hospital,” Garland says. “I got ready to die, did my will and all that stuff.” Expert care at the MonashHeart hospital meant Garland survived, but only after open-heart surgery that included five heart bypasses.Garland, who had competed in four Dakar events, was determined to make it back into the D-Max driver’s seat. “I said I had some unfinished business, so I had to get back,” he says. A Dakar campaign seemed unlikely early on. “I couldn’t walk out to the letterbox when I got home,” Garland says.With the help of his wife Celena and a personal trainer, Garland improved steadily. He worked with Isuzu to build a racing version of the all-new D-Max, but the company was going through its own problems. “This all happened around about the time of that terrible Tsunami in Japan, so Isuzu was having a hard time as well,” Garland says.His car was one of the first of the new generation models off the Thailand production line, which was soon hit by devastating floods. “That was a terrible flood, really, really bad. They actually lost track of the ute in the middle of all of that and then found it in a field with some other stock about a month later.”Despite all the setbacks, Garland, Suzuki and his team were able to get the D-Max ready for the brutal Finke desert in June. Not only was the race, known for its high speed jumps, going to test the new ute, but also Garland’s back. “If anything is going to hurt your back, it’s the Finke,” Garland says.The event went well and the team did some other testing before heading across to WA’s Australian Safari at the end of September. It went pear-shaped on day three when Garland hit a fence post. “Normally, it’s not an issue, but this one was set in concrete, so it did a lot of damage.”The team decided to withdraw and fix the damage because the ute had to be shipped overseas in order for it to join the Dakar field. Joining it in the container was an Isuzu NPS 300 crew cab, which will carry a lot of the team’s spares from stage to stage. “It’s a great little thing with room for lots of gear, there’s a fridge in the back and two seats,” Garland says.He and Suzuki are in the car class, but often race in amongst the awesome heavy trucks that compete at Dakar. “When one of those things comes past it’s like a bloody tornado they throw up that much sand and dust,” Garland says. “You look across and all you see is their wheels, which are almost as tall as our ute.”Caution is required near the big rigs. “You don’t want to get in their way,” Garland says. “They don’t move or stop for anything or anyone.” In fact, it was a truck that contributed to Garland back-crunching crash in 2011. “We were in the sand dunes next to two trucks and I didn’t want to cut across and get hit by them. I was looking across and drove right off a cliff and into the ravine,” Garland says.He is confident of a top ten finish this year, which would beat his best result of eleventh, but deep down he knows making the start will be a great achievement in itself. 
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Isuzu Ute flies into Eagle Farm
By CarsGuide team · 06 Aug 2012
From humble beginnings as a small car sales yard at Redcliffe more than 30 years ago, Brisbane Isuzu has stood the test of time in the motor industry.Today, it operates as Queensland's number one Isuzu truck dealer and has received many business achievement awards including the GE Business Achievers, Quest Business Achievers and Commerce Queensland Special Achievement awards. It is on the back of these successes that Brisbane Isuzu built the foundation for the grand opening last month of the Brisbane Isuzu Ute dealership at 208 Fison Ave, Eagle Farm.Brisbane Isuzu dealer principal Alan Newcombe was very excited with this new direction into the ute market. "Having been involved in this industry for as long as I have, I can see the potential the Isuzu Ute has and feel very strongly about the future development of this brand,'' he said. "I feel confident that we can now offer our customers a complete package for all their transport and trade needs.''Mr Newcombe was also quick to point out that with the recent opening of its parts distribution warehouse, Brisbane Isuzu has the capacity to house a large number of Isuzu Ute parts. "Combined with our night servicing, this is our point of difference when it comes to being able to look after our customers,'' he said. Major development plans are also planned for the Eagle Farm site with a state-of-the-art sales showroom and a one-stop parts and service centre set for completion in mid-late 2014.The news of this venture couldn't come at a more exciting time for both Brisbane Isuzu and Isuzu Ute with the launch of a new model. With a high-power, fuel-efficient 3.0-litre turbo diesel engine and super-strong ladder chassis, the Isuzu D-Max takes sharp inclines and heavy loads in its stride. It also has more safety features as standard than ever before, including dual front, side and curtain airbags, an anti-lock brake system and electronic brake force distribution.Also standard across the range is the added reassurance of electronic stability control and traction control systems, plus brake assist to help drivers stop more quickly and safely in an emergency. "The Isuzu D-Max ute is one of the world's most popular and well-reputed one-tonne ute and cab chassis ranges,'' Mr Newcombe said. "Powered exclusively by Isuzu's premium, high-tech, common-rail 3.0-litre turbo-diesel engine, the D-Max ute range includes single and crew cab utes or cab chassis and 4x2 and 4x4 drive trains.'' 
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Isuzu D-Max redesigned for 2012
By James Stanford · 28 Sep 2011
Until now, the Rodeo and then Colorado one-tonners were heavily based on the Isuzu ute, and therefore looked near identical, but there will be now such familiarity this time around. The next Holden Colorado and Isuzu D-Max will not only have its own unique body shells, but will also use different engines. Isuzu has its own diesel, while Holden will source its petrol and diesel powerplants from the General Motors family. Australians can expect to see the new Holden Colorado arrive late this year, while the new Isuzu D-Max is expected in the middle of next year although a final date is not locked in. General Motors sold its Isuzu shares in a fire sale during the global financial crisis, but both companies did work together on the new one-tonne ute project. “They put money into the same pot and split the responsibility,” explains Hitoshi Kono, who is in the final months of his role as Isuzu Ute Australia’s managing director. “They said this part can be common, but this part, this part and this part should be different.” Kono says he understands the two utes will be quite different as a result. “This is good news for both sides,” he says. Isuzu is not ready to talk about which engine will power the new D-Max although there is a good chance the current 3.0-litre four-cylinder, known for its excellent fuel economy, will continue on in the new vehicle. It is likely to be diesel only. Holden has already presented a concept of its Colorado at the Australian International Motor Show last July with a 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel but Working Wheels understands a petrol unit, possibly an Australian-made V6 petrol unit could also be offered. Both the Holden and Izusu utes will be produced in Thailand in separate factories as is the case with the current models.
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This year looks like a boomer in Aussie motoring
By Paul Gover · 06 Jan 2011
All the signs are positive after a strong run through 2010 on everything from new models and new technology to the price of cars and petrol and even motorsport.Last year produced a million-plus result in showrooms, only the third on record and a huge turnover in a country with a population of just over 22 million people. And the sales total for 2011 is likely to be even bigger.The fuel for the sales growth will come, as usual, from the importance of cars in Australia and the incredible number of new models that his showrooms each year. No-one can underestimate the sense of freedom that Australians tap with their cars, or the genuine needs of people who rely on cars for everything from day-to-day commuting to long-distance nomadic work.Car companies are currently doing all they can to clear their backlog of 2010 stock in readiness for the first arrivals of 2011, which means great buying for at least another month. Cars are like horses, because they all get a year older on the same day, and anything in a showroom now with a 2010 build date is out-of-date.But there is nothing out-of-date about the lineup for the first major motoring event of the year, the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. It opens next week with the unveiling of everything from a Hyundai Veloster and the next Honda Civic to a new Porsche supercar.There will be lots of news from Detroit, perhaps including Holden's plans to revive Commodore exports to the USA and the potential future of the Ford Falcon. Chrysler will show its new 300C, which will take more than a year to reach Australia, and Chinese brands are promising another new wave of technology and small cars.Chinese cars will be one of the big stories in Australia in 2011, with Chery, Geely and Great Wall all planning to start passenger car sales down under. Great Wall is already doing well with its value-priced utes and SUVs but it's Chery that is looking for the big breakthrough with baby cars that undercut the Korean price leaders.On the motorsport front, the Dakar Rally is already blazing through South America - with Bruce Garland doing his best for Australia in an Isuzu D-Max - the V8 Supercar championship will be another boomer, and Mark Webber will be looking to improve on his 2011 season in another year with Red Bull Racing.Melbourne will be motoring central again this year, not just because it is home to the three local carmakers - Holden, which has the local Cruze this year; Ford, which is about to go with the updated Territory; and Toyota, which has an all-new Camry for 2011 - but also thanks to everything from the Australian Grand Prix to the latest running of the Australian International Motor Show.The organisers of the show have confirmed this year's dates as July 1-10, with the promise of a truly world-class event. Moving the date is planning to bring more people indoors to look at the shiny new metal and, more importantly, open up a new position on the global motoring calendar to allow the Australian show to become a major Asian motoring event each year.
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