Can the Grootman take on the big boys?

Chery has done exceptionally well to break into the SUV space in South Africa.

The Chery brand itself sat seventh in September for new vehicle sales, if you don’t include its sub-brands like Jetour, Omoda Jaecoo, Lepas and iCAUR.

If you combine the sales figures of the group that have been reported to the Automotive Business Council, the group’s sales figures exceed 6 500 new vehicles sold for September alone.

That will push the group into third place just behind Suzuki. But Chery has now been pushing into more spaces in South Africa.

The brand attacked the newenergy SUV space with the launch of iCAUR back in June and the recent launch of the Chery Q allowed Chery to offer South Africans a product in the budget electric vehicle segment. However, there’s one space that is far more difficult to penetrate than any other in South Africa and that is the bakkie space, especially the lifestyle bakkie space.

The Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger have long reigned as the powerhouses in that area of the automotive industry and challengers have come along, but none have truly knocked them off their perch.

When Chery announced a bakkie for South Africa earlier this year, there was slight excitement, but the actual hype began when the brand invited South Africans to actually name the bakkie.

In true South African fashion, the bakkie was named Grootman and that was something that really raised interest.

Then, in early October, the brand announced that the vehicle will also be built at Chery’s newly acquired Rosslyn Plant in Pretoria.

The chain of events meant that the Grootman was more than just a gimmick, but it’s something that Chery really wants to carve a heritage out for in South Africa.

The stats behind the bakkie are impressive too. It will feature a 2.5 litre turbo diesel plug-in hybrid system that delivers a ridiculous 350kW of power and 800Nm of torque.

It has a 3 500kg braked towing capacity and a payload capacity of 1 000kg. It also offers a full electric driving range of 100km and a combined driving range of over 800km. It’s also a proper 4×4.However, until that bakkie is here and on our roads, we will not understand if the name is just a facade.

Luckily, the Mail & Guardian was privy to a pre-test of the vehicle at the Chery International User Summit in Wuhu, China this week.

While the test track was short and sweet, it was also dirty and the Grootman was not afraid.

It handles mud and rough conditions with ease, while still managing to maintain a steady level of comfort.

We can therefore confirm that it is truly ready for the dirt and it will do it with absolute refinement.

That’s because the cabin is such a wonderful place to be in. It offers soft touch materials, a big screen and a purely aesthetically pleasing interior, but keeps some nice rugged features like grab bars that strikes a perfect balance for those who want the comfort of a SUV but the ruggedness of a 4×4.

I also loved that physical buttons were included under the central infotainment screen.

However, there are still some things that the Chery group could improve on if they really want the vehicle to compete when it comes to the market.

When the vehicle is in EV mode, the brakes felt slightly sensitive and the steering wheel just felt too light for a bakkie.

South Africans love refinement, but not too much. They still want to feel that a bakkie is well, a bakkie.

There’s still some time before the vehicle begins rolling off the line in Rosslyn for the brand to make some adjustments, but overall, the approach from the Chery group to break into the bakkie market has been brilliant.

They’ve allowed the bakkie to be born in South Africa, they are going to let it be built in South Africa. They’ve let South Africans be a part of the Grootman’s development, now it just needs to absolutely deliver on the road.

It certainly has the potential to be a disruptor and it might not be perfect at launch, but it will definitely have to be close to it to make a dent in a difficult market.