2024 Isuzu D-MAX Blade revealed early

Isuzu Ute Australia (IUA) has taken everyone by surprise and debuted its new homegrown D-MAX Blade pick-up truck online several days out from its official reveal on October 25.

Taking to its social media channels overnight, IUA released a singular image of the Walkinshaw-engineered Navara Warrior and HiLux GR Sport rival, outing many of the flagship ute’s visual and mechanical enhancements, namely a suspension lift, integrated light bar, more aggressive rolling stock, extended wheelarches, heavy-duty bash plate, new side steps and full-length sports bars.

Black decals and a bold new grille round out the obvious changes to the 2024 Isuzu D-MAX Blade which is expected to go without any powertrain enhancements as per the Premcar-produced Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior.

That means power and torque should remain steady at 140kW/450Nm, still harnessed by a six-speed Aisin automatic transmission and put to the ground by a part-time 4x4 system.

Full details will be announced later in the week, however the D-MAX’s existing 3500kg braked towing capacity and 800mm wading depth are both expected to be maintained while the suspension lift should see ground clearance knocking on the door of 270mm.

Odds are the Blade is based on the current X-TERRAIN which means it’ll come loaded with goodies like leather upholstery, heated seats, a 9.0-inch infotainment system with smartphone mirroring, rough terrain mode, bi-LED headlights, sat-nav and an eight-speaker sound system.

A rear differential lock, low-range gearing and hill descent control will also be on offer, as will hill-start assist and a 7.0-inch driver’s display.

carsales was the first to uncover the existence of the Blade project (May 2023) and has followed the saga ever since, having also been the first to discover the Blade’s preliminary homologation data and even eliciting a project confirmation out of IUA.

Keep an eye on our socials and editorial page over the next week as more details (pricing, specification etc) come to light and we get behind the wheel for the first time.

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