Isuzu Enters the Marine Engine Arena

While Isuzu is a name commonly associated in this country with trucks, Isuzu Australia Limited is now muscling its way into the super-competitive marine engine market — with two fishing boats, one based in Sydney and one on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, leading the charge.

Commercial fishermen don’t take the purchase of a new engine lightly. Still, Sydney’s Paul Bagnato crunched the numbers and opted for Isuzu’s 15.6lt 6WG1 TCAA1K for his trawler, Arakiwa

. The model name mightn’t roll off the tongue, but Bagnato says the donk — also found in Isuzu’s Giga range of trucks— offers more power for around 4lt/hr less fuel.

“After four or five years the engine has paid for itself,” says Bagnato, who’s obviously quite handy with figures. “All my life I’ve dealt with CAT and Cummins and they’ve been good engines, but this Isuzu is just as good — in fact it’s better, because of the fuel I’m saving,” he adds.

Isuzu Australia Limited’s Industrial and Marine Engines Manager, Dean Whitford, says he’s certain Isuzu engines will be finding their way into many more boats in the near future.

“Isuzu Marine is currently the number one marine engine supplier in Japan for commercial applications within its range,” he says. “We’re confident that once people see what Isuzu Marine engines have to offer, more and more people will start turning to the brand to meet their needs,” he adds.

CAPTION: Saving 4lt/hr in fuel adds up to a big saving for a commercial fisherman like Paul Bagnato.