The Mitsubishi Fuso Canter (kana: 三菱ふそう・キャンター) is a line of light-duty commercial vehicle manufactured by Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation since 1963. The range is currently marketed in Japan, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Iran and a number of other Asian countries, as well as in the United States. The same range has been marketed by Mitsubishi Fuso Truck of America in North America since 1985, though it was called the FE model rather than the Canter until the 2012 model year.
The Canter is named after the English word describing the gait of a horse, emphasising the 'thoroughbred' nature of Mitsubishi trucks.
The Canter nameplate was first introduced in March 1963 for the existing T20 range of light-duty trucks. The preceding series originated with the "T710" of 1960. These early models were sold almost entirely in Asia. The Asia-Pacific was the main market for the Canter until the early 1970s. Later the series began seeing export or local manufacture in markets including Europe, the Middle-East and North America. In many markets the Canter was very expensive and was replaced by the Mitsubishi Fuso Truck when that model became available for worldwide market in the early 1980s.
Australia was another important market for the Canter - to the extent that it was manufactured there from the 1970s using many local components. European sales began in the Benelux countries in the late 1970s. About 200 of the narrow cabined fourth generation Canters were sold there by 1980, when local assembly of a wide bodied Canter in Belgium by importer Moorkens N V was begun on a trial basis. The Canter ended up being built in Tramagal, Portugal instead, since 1980. Tramagal is located 150 km north of Lisbon. The factory achieves a production capacity of 15,000 units per year and shift with approximately 430 employees (October 2004). More than 110,000 vehicles have been produced here to date. High production quality, certified with ISO-standards, combined with a rigorous test program and extensive final inspection and quality checks lead to a tough and reliable truck.
Most models of the truck are distinguishable by a front 'Canter' badge, but the common Mitsubishi badge is usually used on the rear. Canter is manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors Corporation in Japan and built in Tramagal Portugal (the shareholding and manufacturing is why it carries the Mitsubishi logo - an endorsement of quality. In the UK it is branded only as FUSO Canter)
In the United States, its principal competitors were historically Bering MS, Chevrolet W-Series, GMC W-Series, Isuzu NPR/NQR and the UD 1200/1300/1400, although Bering, and Chevrolet/GMC have ceased their production of competitive models. In Japan, competitors are Isuzu Elf, UD Atlas, Toyota Dyna, Hino Dutro.
In late 2005, a new Canter was presented, with safety being the main issue. Also a new hybrid truck, the Canter Eco Hybrid was presented commercially.
In the United Kingdom the Sales and Marketing headquarters of FUSO is located in Milton Keynes at the headquarters of Daimler, sitting within the Commercial Vehicle division alongside Mercedes-Benz. At a local level, FUSO Canter is Sold and Supported through the Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicle network.
The European market is supplied exclusively with Canter vehicles from the Mitsubishi Fuso assembly plant in Tramagal (Portugal). Currently engines by Fiat Powertrain Technologies and transmission by ZF Friedrichshafen are installed in Canter vehicles since 2009. To comply with the rules in force in Japan from 2015 stricter emission standards, now, all Canter models use the same 4-stroke, water-cooled, turbocharged, intercooled DOHC4 FPT Industrial F1C diesel engine as the Fiat Ducato and Iveco Daily, and are sold in all markets.
In Indonesia, The Mitsubishi Fuso Canter was named as Colt Diesel.
The 8th generation model had a redesign in 2017 having a Duonic 2.0 transmission and Brake Override System. In 2018, a collision avoidance system with pedestrian detection and vehicle stability control were also added.
All of models are available with Duonic dual clutch gearbox.
All models available with either manual or duonic (dual clutch AMT) transmission, unless stated otherwise.
In Indonesia, the locally assembled Mitsubishi Fuso Canter is marketed as Colt Diesel.
Mayan Foolad is the official distributor of Mitsubishi Fuso in Iran, and has started its activities since 2016. Canter models to be supplied are FEA51, FEB71CL, FEC71GL and FECX1. Units are supplied all from Tramagal factory in Europe. All units are based on European specification, and are tested and homologated based on Iranian environment, fuel and topography and are exclusively designed for the Iranian market. All units are supplied with Euro V standard and DPF filter is included in all models. Delivery to customers started in January 2016, and the Canter is to be assembled in Iran from 2017.
India:
In India The 5th Gen Canter Was Available But The 6th Gen Canter Was Discontinued Owing To Poor Sales.
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