New Canter Hybrid on sale in Japan

Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC) has started selling its second generation Canter Eco Hybrid in Japan.

The light-duty truck, which had its world premiere at the Tokyo Motor Show last November, will be also introduced in Europe and other international markets including Australia later this year.

While its predecessor – of which Fuso says more than 1200 units have been sold in Japan, Australia, Ireland, and Hong Kong since 2006 – is a right hand drive only model, the second generation Eco Hybrid comes in both right and left hand drive configurations which opens the door to potential sales in the massive European and US markets.

Also, according to Fuso, the new Canter Eco Hybrid is the world’s first commercial vehicle that incorporates a dual-clutch transmission in a hybrid powertrain. As a result, the vehicle achieves optimum fuel efficiency while also combining the ease of driving characteristics of an automatic transmission with the economy of a stick-shift.

“The new Fuso Canter Eco Hybrid is an innovative hybrid truck that will enable us to further extend our leading position with regard to fuel efficiency and overall economy,” said Albert Kirchmann, president of MFTBC. “We continue to invest heavily in alternative drive technologies in order to ensure that we are ideally prepared for stricter emissions regulations not only in the triad markets, but also worldwide. The Fuso Canter Eco Hybrid is one of the cleanest vehicles in its class.”

The new hybrid truck’s nitrogen oxide (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) emissions are said to be 30 percent lower than the limits set by Japan’s current emission standard (JP09), which has been in effect since 2010. Moreover, when compared to the current conventionally powered Fuso Canter the hybrid version is claimed to use at least 25 percent less fuel during a Japanese driving cycle.

Fuso is already one of the world’s leading manufacturers of commercial vehicles in terms of alternative drive systems. The hybrid variant of the Fuso Canter volume truck also proved itself during a three-year fleet test in London from 2008 to 2011. The results of these trials have contributed significantly to the further development of the second generation Eco Hybrid.

The new Canter Eco Hybrid is the latest innovation to come out of Fuso’s Global Hybrid Centre (GHC) in Kawasaki, Japan. The GHC, which serves as Daimler Trucks’ global centre of competence for the development of hybrid vehicles, manages and synchronises the hybrid related activities of all truck brands within the Daimler Group.