The new Canter and the Fighter medium-duty truck will be distributed by Mercedes-Benz Australia/Pacific, Pty Ltd (MBAuP), which is also responsible for sales of the other Fuso commercial vehicles in the country. The company has a a network of about 50 dealer locations in Australia.

“With the launch of the new generation Canter, we bring one of the world’s most advanced, efficient and powerful light-duty trucks to our valued Australian customers,” explained Kai-Uwe Seidenfuss, MFTBC Vice President of Sales & Service International. “We believe our new product portfolio offers our customers expanded possibilities and will further boost our momentum in the Australia market.”

Australia is the third major market in which the eighth generation Canter light truck has been introduced. European markets are to follow in 2011, with more than 40 new countries to get it by the end of 2012. According to the Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC) President Dr. Albert Kirchmann, the Australia launch is a strong symbol of Fuso’s commitment to the local market.

The Fuso Canter is the first commercial truck to incorporate a dual-clutch transmission, the DUONICTM (6-speed automated dual clutch-type manual transmission). It also marks the first use of the BlueTec emissions reduction system in the Australian market.

The BlueTec diesel technology optimizes combustion and treats the exhaust gas in a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system. In the SCR system, the aqueous carbamide solution AdBlue is added to transform nitrogen oxides into harmless nitrogen and water vapor.

The vehicle’s weight has been reduced by more than 150 kilograms. as compared to the predecessor models. The reductions mainly affect the chassis and allow the truck to carry a higher payload.