JMC Vigus also vigorously priced

Another Chinese pick-up, another day on the dynometer.

JMC last month quietly slipped the Vigus into SA’s bakkie market and this week Metro Cars was not afraid to let Wheels test one.

Metro Cars is one of 24 JMC dealers in South Africa and the reason why the new Vigus is not punted more, erm, vigorously, is that JMC dealers are at the moment also running a slew of cleared-to-go discounts on all their bakkies. The single cab JMC Boarding, for example, now sells for R139 880, a discount of some R40k.

But back to the Vigus — I took the mid-level LX 4x4 diesel to the dyno at Diesel Works in Pietermaritzburg, where the previous generation Ford 2,4 Duratorq turbo-diesel engine tested 83 kW at 3 363 rpm and 286 Nm at 2 003 rpm.

This is as close to JMC’s official 88kW at 3 800 rpm and 290 Nm between 1 600 and 1 750 rpm as a hot day would allow. 

Derick Butler at Diesel Works said it is reassuring to see all that reliable componentry made by Bosch under the hood, adding the Vigus “certainly looked most appealing”. Butler would have been even more impressed with the 8th-generation Bosch ABS and EBD under wheel arches.

This brochure states this electronic stability program "adjusts the brake forces according to the adhesive forces of each tyre", so I set out to test it around some twisties on bumpy gravel road. I can report the EBD does what it sides on the side of the box, even allowing for a bit of drift around the sharper corners. Travelling with such verve over rough sections in 4x2 high mode I also especially appreciated the body hugging seats and pliant suspension. As far as my pummeled kidneys are concerned, only the Nissan Navara gives a more comfortable ride on rough dirt roads than this JMC newbie on its 16-inch wheels.

The JMC Vigus proved capable in low range 4x4. 

I then took the Vigus to my slippery 4x4 slope, still in the same sandy, deeply rutted, axle bending, root-strewn condition that proved the undoing of the Nissan Patrol.

A week ago I took a Defender up this slope and apart from scraping of some tupperware at the bottom, the Landy never noticed. With that standard in mind, I was braced for more Patrol spinning in the Vigus, but it never happened. Instead, this JMC just surged up the slope with more ease than my ageing Cruiser.

The only note to self was to engage the shift-on-the-fly, low-range 4x4 required less fly and more crawling speed, but once engaged, there was no stopping it. There is virtually no turbo lag and even without weight on the back the gear ratios put the torque where it was needed to prevent spinning. (Thank you Bosch!)

Driving back on tar, I took in the cabin. Despite being the mid-level entry, the LX has air con, electric windows, a CD/MP3/USB audio system, remote central locking, dual front airbags and ABS brakes. The SLX adds leather seats, a touch-screen DVD system and a multi-function steering wheel, wheel arch mouldings, side rails and 16-inch alloys. 

I didn't drive the LX long enough to test consumption, but that 2,4 engine was economical in the Ford and with a light right foot in the Vigus, I would expect to get very close to JMC’s claimed 8 l/100 km.

Will the JMC Vigus proves as popular as the JMC trucks?

After sales backup comes in the form of a three-year or 100 000 km warranty and a five-year or 60 000 km service plan.

The JMC Vigus is a looker and a goer, but there is a bit of bad news amid all this happiness -- its main competitors from GWM, Foton, Mahindra and Tata are a LOT cheaper.
(In the Tata Xenon's case, this discount is a whopping R100k, but then the brand still has a lot to make up for after the damage wrought by the sub-standard materials it used to build the Telcoline.)

Price and power comparison: 

- the GWM Steed 5 DC (4x4) 2 TD VGT (110kw/ 310nm); costs ZAR310K 
- the Foton Tunland costs ZAR295K and makes 360 Nm; 
- Tata Xenon DC (4x4) 2.2TDI (110kw/ 320nm) costs ZAR280K. and the 
- the Mahindra Scorpio 2,2 MHawk double cab 4x4  (88 kW/280Nm) costs ZAR267K. 

In price, the middle entre LX competes with above bakkies, but in power, the 290 Nm between 1600 and 1750 rpm from the Vigus does not place among the top five bakkies in SA. It's 286 Nm at 2003 rpm on a 22 degree Celcius day is however more than most people who buy a double cab as a family car will ever need. 

Time will tell whether South Africa's picky bakkie-for-the-family buyers will be willing to pay the premium prices JMC’s have tagged to their luxury newbie, or stick with the Hilux.

The Ford Ranger gives the most Newtons in South Africa.

How does the Vigus's power rate against SA’s strongest bakkies?

1. Nissan’s very thirsty Navara 3,0 dCi V6 leads the pack with 550 Nm,

2. Next up is Ford’s formidable Ranger 3,2-litre at 470 Nm, a spot it shares with Mazda’s BT50.

3. The Tunland 2,8 and Landy Rover Defender 130 TD Crew Cab ties at third with 360 Nm.

4. In fourth place, SA’s best-selling bakkie, the Hilux, makes 343 Nm.

5. VW’s frugal Amarok 2,0 biTDi rounds off the top five at 340 Nm.

The Foton Tunland is stronger and
cheaper than the JCM Vigus

JMC VIGO MODELS AND PRICES

(valid in South Africa in Spet 2014)

Petrol: (100 kW, 201 Nm)

2,4 LX 4x2 - R274 990

2,4 SLX 4x2 - R304 990

2,4 LX 4x4 - R355 990

2,4 SLX 4x4 - R365 990

Diesel: (88 kW/290 Nm)

2,4 LX 4x2 - R297 990

2,4 SLX 4x2 - R327 990

2,4 LX 4x4 - R355 990

2,4 SLX 4x4 - R379 990.