UD Trucks launches Euro 5 Quester and Croner

Introducing UD Trucks

UD Trucks, which was formed in 1935 and is now owned by Isuzu, is a leading Japanese commercial vehicle manufacturer that is active in more than 60 countries and on all continents. The company – previously known as Nissan Diesel – has been present in South Africa since 1962, when the first trucks from Nissan Diesel were imported into the country by Stanley Motors in Johannesburg.

Today the company offers a full range of heavy-duty trucks (the Quon and Quester), medium-duty trucks (the Croner), and the light to medium-duty Kuzer.

Exceeding standards

The Euro 5 Quester and Croner actually exceed South Africa’s emission standards; rather remarkably, the country is still a Euro 2 market. Why then has UD Trucks gone the more costly Euro 5 route?

According to Filip Van den Heede, Managing Director of UD Trucks Southern Africa, the company has gone this route because sustainability is more important than ever. “Covid-19 is also placing more emphasis on a more sustainable approach to driving a post-pandemic recovery. Modern and efficient logistics are vital to keep the world moving in these fast-evolving times, and our latest launch will ensure greater resilience for businesses while ensuring environmental impacts are minimized.

“In South Africa, in particular, we see a wider customer base opting for a more sustainable and at the same time more fuel-efficient logistics solution. UD Trucks being the market leader in the Euro 5 market with Quon is now expanding the offering with Quester and Croner, in line with being a challenger in the industry,” he notes.

Addressing a big problem

In launching the new vehicles, UD Trucks is aiming to counter what is a significant global problem. According to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), air pollution is now considered to be the world’s largest environmental health threat, accounting for 7 million deaths around the world every year. “Air pollution causes and exacerbates a number of diseases, ranging from asthma to cancer, pulmonary illnesses and heart disease. Outdoor air pollution and particulate matter, one of its major components, have been classified as carcinogenic to humans by the International Agency for Research on Cancer,” it explains.

In accordance with recent estimates by the , exposure to air pollution is thus a more important risk factor for major non-communicable diseases than previously thought. Air pollution is the largest contributor to the burden of disease from the environment.

“The main substances affecting health are nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulphur oxides (SOx), ozone and particulate matter with the latter – especially particulate matter below 2.5 microns (PM 2.5) – being of greatest concern, as these tiny particles penetrate deep into the lungs, affecting both the respiratory and vascular systems. Both extent and duration of the exposure influence health outcomes,” UNECE warns.

As we all know, trucks – and indeed other vehicles too – contribute to pollution. Accordingly, moving towards cleaner fleets is imperative. Euro 5 reduces NOx emissions by about 43% compared to Euro 4 and it also significantly reduces the carbon footprint of the vehicle through cleaner emissions.

A legacy of innovation

The Euro 5 Quester and Croner models are certainly not the first UD Trucks vehicles to help save the planet. All the way back in 2004, the company became the first truck manufacturer in the world to introduce Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR).

It was a feature of the then-new heavy-duty Quon, which was developed as the flagship vehicle for UD Trucks. While integrating engine technologies, electronic technologies and eco-friendly technologies accumulated by the company, it also significantly boosted environmental performance and fuel economy via the world’s first SCR system called FLENDS (Final Low Emission New Diesel System). 

Although many around the world believed meeting the rigorous long-term emission regulations set to go into effect in Japan in 2005 was an impossible task, the company succeeded one year ahead of schedule, introducing FLENDS in the exhaust gas after-treatment system.

Any other benefits?

So, the new Euro 5 Quester and Croner trucks are undoubtedly good news for the planet. Do they have any other benefits? Indeed. The company reports that the trucks have also been upgraded and they boast a bundle of enhanced features that will improve uptime, enhance efficiency, and optimize Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), all while lowering the vehicle’s environmental impact and retaining benefits from previous models.

The new range of Quester and Croner also features a new instrument cluster with real-time fuel coaching. This enhancement provides drivers with immediate and specific feedback on driving techniques that are more fuel efficient.

So, there you have it: trucks that will smile on the environment and on operators’ bottom lines too. Sounds like a real win on all fronts.