Chinese auto group dips toe in SA’s diesel-taxi waters
Beijing Automotive Works South Africa (BAW SA) will test a new diesel minibus taxi in the local market through sales at four selected dealers in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban and KwaZulu-Natal’s South Coast.
Should the market accept the vehicle, availability would grow to most of the 28 BAW dealerships and service points in Southern Africa.
BAW SA currently offers a 16-seater petrol minibus on the local market. To date, more than 3 000 units have been sold since the introduction of the Chinese Sasuka minibus in South Africa in 2013, notching up a combined mileage of more than 364-million kilometres.
BAW SA assembles its minibuses from semiknockdown kits at a plant in Springs, Gauteng.
This plant is to move to completely knock-down assembly in the second half of next year, says BAW SA national after-sales manager Paul Clark.
This will be made possible by a R250-million investment from BAW and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) to expand and upgrade the facility.
The plant is a joint venture between BAW (51%), the IDC (24.5%) and James Chung’s Golden Gate Trust (24.5%).
The Clark says the diesel-powered Sasuka offers minibus operators more power, lower running costs and increased fuel efficiency.
“After conducting thorough market and field research, we concluded that there is a growing need for a diesel variant for the South African market and neighbouring countries,” notes BAW SA CEO Zhang Wei.
“To ensure that market and customer demands are met, all the necessary development and testing were conducted in China and South Africa, ensuring product quality, reliability and performance. “Just two weeks ago, the high-line diesel Sasuka completed an arduous road test on the mountainous roads of Lesotho.”
The diesel Sasuka is sold with a 2.8 ℓ turbo engine offering 92 kW of power and a maximum torque of 320 Nm.
Average fuel consumption is rated at 11.9 l/100 km.
Standard features include air conditioning, electric front windows, alloy wheels and central locking.
The vehicle is sold with a two-year/ 100 000 km warranty.
The price is R399 900.
BAW SA hopes to also find a market for the vehicle in the tourism, consumer, hospitality and leisure markets.
An entry-level version of the vehicle will go on sale at a later time. Also on the drawing board from BAW SA is a panel van, a tour bus and other commuter vehicles.
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