OLD DOG,
WeputtheLDVT60throughits
pacestoseewhetheritoffersa
change we’re willing to take
on board.
WORDSDAN EVERETTPICSSUPPLIED
NEW TRICKS
F
rom our snack recipes to our songs, our
public holidays, and even the suspension
set ups in our 4x4s, it’s become clear
Australia isn’t big on change. Year after
year manufacturers have butted their heads
against the wall trying to convince us of the
virtues of whatever new product they’ve devised.
Sometimes we’re right, and hold fast until the
manufacturer buckles and gives us what we want.
Other times, the changes stand the test of time
until we eventually all accept they were for the
best and move on with our lives.
We’ve seen it with the rise of independent
suspension and common-rail diesels, as even new
and unproven brands like Isuzu enter the market,
only to be accepted as one of the pack a few short
years later. It’s this big upset we get every few
years with Chinese manufactured 4x4s trying to
gain a foothold on Aussie soil. In almost all cases
the public has been proven right. The products
are inferior, the prices not cheap enough, and the
reliability simply not up to the task of punishing
Australian conditions. The end result is the
manufacturer ends up slinking off with their
tail between their legs. But there’s a catch. The
Australian new car market is worth around $41
billion a year, there’s a lot of manufacturers keen
to take a slice of the pie, and they’re going to keep
trying till they get it right.LDV are one of the longest running
manufacturers of commercial vehicles
in manufacturing history