Electric trials with SEA Electric progressing
Have no doubt, electric trucks are coming.
And, if a pilot program now being run by Isuzu Australia in concert with SEA Electric delivers the right results, the Japanese truck maker will be ready, willing and able as demand increases.
The obvious application for electric trucks is shorthaul distribution work in light and medium-duty trucks, and according to both Isuzu and SEA Electric, operator interest is slowly but surely growing.
Read about SEA Electric’s American push, here
Both companies accept there are many hurdles still to be overcome but the efficiency and environmental benefits are undeniable.
Yet while an electric test vehicle configured with a tilt-tray body was the star attraction, Isuzu’s market-leading strength remains steadfastly attached to the multitude of models which have helped keep it at the top of the Australian market for 30 years in a row.
Among many success stories are the exceptional acceptance of Isuzu’s multi-faceted ready-to-work range and higher up the scale, the extraordinary inroads made by its eight-wheeler models, particularly in concrete agitator work.
Isuzu’s presence in agitator applications has been especially damaging to Iveco’s iconic ACCO and it appears ACCO is again in Isuzu’s sights with the following the release of a dual control model targeting the waste collection industry.
Photography: Steve Brooks and Nathan Duff