AFTER seven years of development and €2,5 billion (R34,79 million) spent
on development, Renault trucks last week launched what they claim are the
toughest truck range in the world.
Challenged to back this claim against similar claims made by Iveco and Gaz trucks, Colin Atkinson, sales executive at Pinetown, said Renault trucks’ robustness starts with the chassis, which is thicker and more durable, and continued to the cab, in which even the plastics last longer.
Renault trucks design director Herné Bertrand said during five
million hours spent on development, the plastics panels were sunbaked for months
at Marseille airport.
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| National marketer Valentia Hobbs and Colin Atkinson from the Pinetown dealership. |
“I like to think we designed the new range to also become the best
used trucks in terms of not just durability but also resale values, and for this
the appearance of the plastics after a typical truck life of 1,5 million
kilometres are very important,” Bertrand told Witness
Wheels.
National marketing manager Valentia Hobbs added the new C and K
series of truck had been built for extreme conditions and their durability has
been tested in the world’s toughest transport arenas, ranging from Cameroon’s
muddy logging roads to Lapland’s permafrost.
Renault trucks are sold with Volvo and UD, and the group has
invested 10 million kilometres in testing the new range.
While test-driving in the K series tipper, group driving instructor
Hadley van Ster said in his opinion only the group’s Volvo trucks could beat the
Renaults for efficiency.
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| Could this gear stalk also be the in future of automatic cars? |
All the new Renault trucks have the gear selector mounted on a
stalk where most cars have an indicator. This gear-stalk may yet appear in
future cars.
Asked how Renault planned to grow its relatively small base in
South Africa, various managers explained their roles in the company’s strategy —
and driver development plays a prominent part.
Senior competence development manager Tertia Havenga said she had
her work cut out to train personnel, including drivers, in order to expand
Renault dealers to about 20 throughout the Sadec region.
General manager for Renault Trucks Herman Venter said their Opti
Fleet system was sold standard with every new Renault lorry. The system allows
real time data of the vehicle’s performance and driver management. Venter said
worksite driver training using the Opti Fuel system ensured fleet managers get
the most from all the built-in efficiencies of the new Renaults. He said parts
availability is his focus as part of his aim to capture five percent of South
Africa’s heavy and extra heavy market share. “Our commitment is to improve
availability to get in line with and hopefully a bit better than our
competitors,” Venter said.
President of Renault Trucks Bruno Blin said it was a very great
honour for him when journalists voted Renault the Truck of The Year last month.
“Our aim is to deliver the perfect tool for our customers to do their business,”
he said, adding South Africa formed an important part of Renault’s growth in
world markets.
