With all the talk of electric vehicles these days, it is surprising that more truck manufacturers – especially in the lighter classes – are not pushing this motive form more aggressively, or at least as enthusiastically as Mitsubishi FUSO. FUSO’s e-Canter is the direct development from the long-serving Canter light truck which can trace its ancestry back in excess of 60 years. Further even, if you look at Mitsubishi’s first foray into the automotive industry. Mitsubishi FUSO has focused on brand pillars of safety in the first instance, equipping its Canter with active emergency braking, stability control, lane departure warning, reversing sensors, cameras and even tyre pressure monitoring. Add to this the second and third pillars of reliability and versatility – FUSO Canter comes in wide body, city cab and crew cab configurations with long wheelbase options, supports the choice of 4x2 and 4x4 drivetrains as well as six-speed AMT or five-speed manual transmissions. And now – with the e-Canter – class-leading environmental considerations as well and Mitsubishi FUSO Canter starts to look like a very intelligent option for a cleaner and greener trucking solution. The registration numbers still favour the ICE versions of the Canter with the e-Canters having enjoyed an enthusiastic launch last year and which will likely continue to grow as time goes on and conventional diesel fuel prices increase. In the meantime, for those who might be considering an e-Canter, while the truck was always designed to be a Class 2 truck, it can be specified for drivers with Class 1 licences. The e-Canter has a range between 100 and 150kms courtesy of its 81kWh Lithium-Ion battery which can recharge from 0 to 80 per cent in 45 minutes on a DC fast charger. Nor does the e-Canter lack the safety features and creature comforts of its long-serving ICE stablemates, incorporating Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and Bluetooth connectivity.