News

Launching into a new sector is no mean feat for any manufacturer, so when Isuzu Trucks revealed that it was expanding its range to include 11, 12, 15, and 18-tonners a few eyebrows were raised, but executive officer, international sales division No 1 Yoshifumi Komura, is confident that the European market is ripe for expansion.

"We'd been looking at the possibility for a while, and with the new weight range we saw  a gap that was available. Isuzu already has vehicles up to 25 tonnes outside of Europe, so moving up into heavier categories didn't require too much development on the engineering front."

So what does he think will be the biggest challenge in tackling such a competitive market? "Most countries on the Continent have an established manufacturer. France (Renault), Germany (Mercedes-Benz, MAN), Italy (Iveco) and Sweden (Volvo, Scania) all have their own homegrown companies, so several key markets already have a recognised rival to contend  with.

"That's one of the biggest challenges for sure. However, also in Europe you have different aspects to contend with such as emissions and safety issues. If we are entering this market, we need to abide by the different regulations, but we're confident our vehicles are more than capable of meet those demands."

As for the competition as a whole, he identifies Mercedes and Iveco as Isuzu's biggest rivals, although he warns of a potential long-term threat coming from India and China. "They are introducing products at a very cheap price. Of course, their quality is still in question and they're not established yet (in Europe), but maybe in the future, they may be a big issue for us."

As regards sales, Komura San believes that its current two leading markets hold the most potential for the new range. "At this moment, UK and Italy are good markets for us and we foresee the former being the leading country in terms of heavier vehicle sales. Our distributor in the UK is selling 1,500 trucks in a year, we're expecting more, possibly double that within two to three years."

A bold target, but he points to the work already done regarding the dealer and service network, along with its commitment to customer care that's been instrumental in selling the current range. He cites the already key recovery sector as a vital area for focusing on, and commercial success may even prompt a further expansion of the range in Europe, "up to 25-tonnes, depending on how the current top end range performs".

The new range doesn't mean, however, that Isuzu will look to be bringing in any body-building services for its customers, preferring to continue to outsource any customer demands, "We currently have very good relations with a number of body builders and will continue to support them."

And finally, and rather interestingly, Isuzu has achieved Euro-5 using EGR technology, something that may have a positive influence on sales. What was the reason for this approach?

"When deciding which way to go, we looked at the customers' needs and how they'd be best served in terms of cost and real-world durability. These issues promoted us to incorporate EGR, although, for the future [Euro-6], I can see us using a mix of technologies."

Back to the Interviews Page