2024 Isuzu D-MAX Blade teased

The homegrown 2024 Isuzu D-MAX Blade tough truck has been teased for the first time, previewing Isuzu’s answer to the popular Nissan Navara Warrior and Toyota HiLux GR Sport.

Locked and loaded for a November 1 reveal, the D-MAX Blade has been cooked-up by Isuzu Ute Australia (IUA) and Walkinshaw Automotive as the former’s long overdue entry into the halo ute market with the teaser showcasing a widened stance and some macho bonnet graphics.

Crank-up Photoshop’s shadow enhancer and you’ll catch a glimpse of a heavy-duty bash plate, wheel arch extensions, chunky all-terrain tyres and what looks to be some sort of light bar integrated into the front bumper.

carsales was the first outlet to learn of and report on the Blade’s development, having unearthed IUA’s original trademark application in May last year before discovering and publishing the off-roader’s preliminary homologation data this July.

IUA subsequently confirmed the project to carsales and in turn, triggered something of a media frenzy.

The ADR-sourced data revealed the Blade will stand almost 27mm higher off the ground than the D-MAX X-TERRAIN it’s based on – amounting to 266.5mm of ground clearance – on upgraded springs, wheels and tyres.

Other revelations included a sailplane rear sports bar, a high-mounted stop light (HMSL) and the now obvious wheel-arch extensions and underbody protection.

No further information has been provided by IUA in tandem with the teaser’s release, however the brand’s deputy managing director, Koichiro Yoshida, promised the Blade to be the most capable D-MAX to date seeing as it’s been “reengineered specifically for local Australian conditions”.

“For as long as I can remember, customers and the media have asked about a higher-spec, off-road ready ute to rival the competition, something extremely capable, without compromise,” he said.

“I hope they’re ready for the answer – the D-MAX Blade has been developed specifically for those Australians who like to go their own way.”

Walkinshaw Automotive is said to have done all the heavy lifting in terms of engineering and developing the new hero ute, adding the project to its ever-increasing array of remanufacturing operations catering to RAM, GMSV and Toyota, not to mention Volkswagen and Mitsubishi previously and potentially inbound Chinese brands like Dongfeng.

Pricing and specification details for the new D-MAX Blade will be announced at its global debut on November 1.

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