Isuzu India opens its first manufacturing facility at Sri City, Andhra Pradesh
Isuzu Motors has opened its new plant in India at Sri City, Andhra Pradesh. The plant is spread across 107 acres and will manufacture the new D-Max and the V-Cross, both of which were showcased at the Expo. A total investment of Rs 3,000 crore has been made by Isuzu India for setting up this plant.
Construction of this new facility started out in 2014, with Isuzu acquiring the land in 2013. At around the same time in 2013, Isuzu had started local assembly of the MU-7 and the D-Max at Hindustan Motors' plant in Chennai which will continue. The initial production capacity of the Sri City plant is pegged at 50,000 units while production can be ramped up to 1.2 lakh units each year, should the need arise.
The Isuzu D-Max is available in India in a single cab, a single cab 4x4 and crew cab trims, the difference being in the seating arrangement, the availability of all wheel drive and a couple of features. The pickups are powered by a 4-cylinder BS4 136PS/320Nm engine which is paired to a 5-speed manual transmission. The V-Max, which was shown as a concept earlier this year, is now a production model. Commercial sales start in a few weeks. While it looks similar to the D-Max, the alloy wheels, a chunkier front end with projector lamps, use of more chrome, roof rails and a more upmarket cabin help distinguish it from its utilitarian sibling. Dual front airbags, ABS, EBD and Brake Assist are also offered exclusively in the Isuzu D-Max V-Cross trim. The V-Cross will compete with the Mahindra Scorpio Getaway and Tata Xenon while the D-Max will lock horns with the Mahindra Imperio.