Isuzu to bring 6-speed automatic for Thai market D-Max and MU-X

The Thai market is extremely important for Isuzu, which is why it is usually the first market to receive the latest and greatest tech. Late last year they began the roll-out of their new 1.9-litre dDi engine with the facelifted MU-X and D-Max. For 2016, Isuzu has decided to swap out the 5-speed automatic unit for a newer 6-speed automatic.

The transmission will be fitted to both the 1.9-litre and 3.0-litre turbodiesel engines. It has a manual override mode called Rev-Tronic as well, much like most of the more modern pickup transmissions on the market. Rationale for this change has been centred on improving efficiency with more forward ratios to keep the rpm low at a larger range of speeds.

The updated model is expected to hit Thai showrooms by March 25^th. For now, we only have the 2.5-litre and 3.0-litre engines powering our local Isuzu models. The former powers the locally assembled D-Max and will eventually be phased out for the 1.9 litre engine. As we import our 3.0 models from Thailand, the new transmission should mirror the Thai market rollout.