Facelifted 2024 Isuzu D-MAX gets safer and more capable

The rumours were true – there’s a new Isuzu D-MAX on the way and the Japanese brand has just revealed a significant midlife facelift for the popular ute in Japan and Thailand.

Isuzu Ute Australia (IUA) is yet to confirm exactly when we’ll see the upgraded D-MAX in local showrooms, but previous timelines suggest it will arrive sometime in the next six months or so, and that a similar facelift for the closely related Isuzu MU-X will flow through roughly 12 months later.

Leading the biggest upgrade for the current D-MAX since its launch in 2019 is an all-new front-end design headlined by a bold new grille, fresh bumper and revised headlights intended to make the D-MAX look angrier and more aggressive.

The sharpened aesthetic is matched at the rear by a tweaked tailgate and redesigned tail-light clusters, and the whole package rolls on refreshed alloy wheels.

The MY24 changes extend to the interior, where you’ll find a new infotainment system sporting haptic controls, a physical volume dial and new graphics and menus, plus a new instrument cluster featuring a bigger 7.0-inch digital display, new two-tone brown and black colourway for the flagship V-Cross/X-TERRAIN and some new textures for certain trimmings.

Despite the current D-MAX already being one of the safest utes on the market, Isuzu has opted to fit the refreshed model with a new stereo camera that allows for better and faster detection of hazards like pedestrians partially obscured by parked cars at intersections.

Other additions include a new heating element for said camera to maintain its vision in cold temperatures, plus adaptive cruise control for the manual versions, traffic jam assist for the automatic’s cruise control and reverse autonomous emergency braking.

All this newfound attitude and sophistication is backed up by a drastically improved traction control system that now stays activated on the front axle when the rear differential is locked, and the MU-X’s ‘rough terrain’ drive mode which has been transplanted across from the SUV.

No changes have been made to either of the D-MAX’s established 1.9-litre or 3.0-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder engines, meaning they both retain their familiar 110kW/350Nm and 140kW/450Nm outputs and six-speed transmissions (manual and automatic).

The battery-electric D-MAX due to launch in Norway in 2025 was also directly referenced by Isuzu Ute President and COO Shinsuke Minami, who said the zero-emissions ute would be produced in Thailand and gradually evaluated for release in other markets globally.

“Isuzu will first introduce it in Europe and then examine its gradual roll out by meeting the needs of each market, including Thailand,” he said.

IUA is yet to confirm the EV for local release, but we expect it to be made available at some stage given the number of electrified and battery-electric utes coming to the Australian market in the next few years, including the Ford Ranger PHEV in 2025 and Kia ‘Tasman’ EV in 2026.

Adding a trickle of hypothetical fuel to the fire is the ‘D-MAX Blade’ trademark filed with IP Australia in May, which could end up referring to the electric pick-up, especially if it ends up featuring a BYD Blade battery…

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