Manufacturer brings in vehicles that run on CNG to local market

Hyundai Automotive South Africa (HASA) has introduced an environment-friendly compressed natural gas (CNG) version of its H1 panel van and nine-seater bus, and plans to expand its CNG conversion technology to public transport buses to reduce emissions in metropolitan areas.

The company converted the H1 panel van to run on CNG, making it more economical. It states that tests show that customers can save up to 45% on fuel costs when using the H1 panel van.

The Hyundai Motor Com- pany, in Korea, has commuter buses available with 100%-CNG-powered engines and the South African Hyundai company is currently doing a study to determine the viability of importing CNG bus chassis and fitting locally manufactured bodies.

HASA after-sales director Michael Rohde says local fleet companies are testing the converted H1 panel van.

“For now, the H1 panel van with the CNG engine will be marketed to fleet owners and companies in areas where natural gas (NG) filling stations are planned for the future,” he says.

In addition, HASA marketing director Stanley Anderson says the company plans on bringing Korean-developed Hyundai CNG bus chassis to South Africa. He says the bodies of the buses will be built in South Africa.

The manufacturer reports that the CNG technology, which it believes is the cleanest alternative fuel option available, is safe to use as the harmless gas evaporates in the air. There are at least 13.5-million vehicles running on CNG in various countries.

Another priority is testing CNG conversions on passenger vehicles. HASA reports that the CNG conversion for passenger vehicles poses two big challenges.

The CNG conversion requires more space than a conventional fuel tank, and CNG refill infrastructure is not yet available to the general public in the country. However, gas suppliers and the South African government are committed to building NG filling stations and investing time and money in alternative fuels, the manufacturer states.

“At this stage, only fleet owners with their own CNG depots, or those with access to NG filling stations, will be able to use the CNG technology,” says Anderson.

Further, HASA is developing and testing Euro 4 gasoline direct injection (GDi) engines for passenger vehicles. Rohde says the engines are more powerful, more fuel efficient and have lower emissions than conven- tional engines.

Owing to the high sulphur content of 500 ppm in South African fuel, the vehicle manufacturer is testing Euro 4 engines rather than Euro 5 engines.

The composition of South African fuel is the biggest challenge and, even though Hyundai has Euro 5 engines available, they are not compatible with the locally available fuel.

“The Euro 4 GDi engines being tested will be sent to Hyundai Korea for approval before being incorporated into HASA’s passenger vehicle range,” says Rohde.

Training
Meanwhile, HASA has initiated its Hyundai Technical Schools Project to provide a solution to the skills shortage faced by the industry.

Rohde says the company has noticed the education and training that students are receiving in technical schools are about seven years behind new technological developments. This results in apprentices being under- qualified when applying for jobs.

He notes that the equipment required to ensure the appropriate training is outdated and that this might contribute to the negative perception held by students about the automotive industry.

Rohde adds that HASA has supplied schools, such as Primrose Technical High School, in Germiston, with up-to-date equipment, such as engines, gearboxes and electronic steering racks.

Further, the vehicle manufacturer regu- larly invites students to visit Korea’s regional Hyundai training centre, in Boksburg, where the students have the opportunity to use diagnostic systems and equipment, such as laptops that operate vehicle functions.

“Hyundai wants to show students and apprentices that the automotive industry has advanced, and that manual labour has, to a certain extent, been replaced by information technology related to diagnostics,” says Rohde.

To complement the schools project, which started three years ago, HASA has employed 25 scholars in dealerships and, each of its dealerships will adopt a school, which it will support in training.

Rohde says the top grade 12 students are chosen for the apprenticeship pro- gramme and they can achieve a complete technician qualification within two to three years of the training programme. “These students are guaranteed a job at Hyundai,” says Rohde.

Seven schools are currently involved in the project and 28 students were taken into the programme last year. HASA aims to involve 50 technical schools in the project by the end of this year.