WeeklySA_AdminJMC VIGUS: Skepticism takes a back seat to guarded optimism as local buyers warm up to the virtues of one of the most affordable double cab bakkies on the market priced below the R400k mark
By Ali Mphaki
Unless you suffer from insomnia, you should have seen the JMC badge and have been mulling over your head what does it exactly stand for.
Well, to relieve you of your misery, JMC is short for Jiangling Motors Corporation, a Chinese car maker operating in South Africa under the Salvador Caetano Group which also handles Guangzhou Automobile Group Co., Ltd. (GAC) that sells passenger vehicles, SUVs, and electric cars in South Africa like the GS3 Emzoom, CAG Emkoo, and the electric CAG Aion.
Re-entering the highly-competitive car market in South Africa late last year, JMC can easily be described as having what we call “pluck” in township parlance.
Nobody in their right frame of mind can expect bakkie-mad South Africans to ditch their legendary brands for a relatively newcomer, yet in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds JMC is flexing its muscles and enters the lion’s dean ready to capture some slice of the market segment dominated by the likes of Hilux, Ranger, and Isuzu.
It may be the Salvador Caetano Group are following some sage mantra that… if there are two ways to meet difficulties; you either alter the difficulties, or you alter yourself to meet them.
The groups seem to have made proper due diligence and to further show they are no shrinking violet and are here to compete, the importer is bold enough to even offer a five year/200 000 km warranty for their products.
But any newcomer into this segment has their work load cut out for them.
And if Math is a language, September sales figures as distributed by naamsa will show 3 769 Hilux bought while JMC could only amass a paltry 151 units though up from 130 units snatched from the growing number of showrooms during the preceding month of August.
While it may seem a miniscule sales increase of 21 extra units (about 11 percent), for JMC this suggests an upward trajectory they hope to build upon.
The goose that lays the golden egg is the JMC Vigus, a double bakkie which boast a clean no-nonsense fresh styling modern exterior design launched earlier this year and now joined by the latest Vigus available in three trims and all with the same 2.6l turbo diesel engine which churns out 123kS at 410Nm for the manual version or 430Nm.
Now available is the Vigus MT 4×2 DC at R399, 900, the Vigus AT 4×2 DC at R459,900, and the Vigus 4×4 DC at R494,900. There is no single cab yet.
The entry-level Vigus 4×2 comes with a 5-speed manual, two airbags, 17- inch alloys, a 91,5 payload, and 2, 500kg braked tow.
The mid-size Vigus AT 4×2 DC is offered with a 6-speed auto, six airbags, 12.8-inch touchscreen, Wireless CarPlay Android, reverse camera, cruise, heel assist/descent.
Top-of-the-range Vigus AT 4×4 DC called Grand Avenue, while sharing same as the midsize Vigus is further endowed with a n eight-speed auto gearbox, what is called BorgWarner 4WD plus low-range and rear diff lock and boasts a 250mm ground clearance.
Modern functionality defines the interior in an impressively wide cabin with plenty of space in the centre console for your cellphone, lipstick, drinks etc.
Comfortable enough for five adults, there is no claustrophobia with leg and headroom galore, a 12.3-inch touchscreen adds some dash to a cabin which features dirt hard plastics
When it comes to drinking manners, the Vigus is ladylike consuming a claimed 7.0L /100km from its 75L tank, frugal enough to give you more road for less. Some reviewers, however, claim 8,8L per 100km.
Niggling issues aside such as no track record, service after every 10 000km, availability of parts and limited dealerships, durability, a stiff bouncy ride especially when unladen, lower towing and payload capacity, external tie down hooks making installing a canopy a challenge, but if it’s an affordable modern new badge workhorse you aspire for, it might be worth your consideration.
It might also be helpful for buyers to look at the Vigus not from a Hilux/Isuzu prism, but purely from what it is and not what it pretends to be. After all, you can’t expect a Hilux from a Vigus.
