In 2013, the company invested over R40m in building a new dedicated MAN/VW heavy duty commercial vehicle sales and servicing facility in New Germany, KwaZulu-Natal.
Situated alongside the N3 highway and the strategic connection to the N2 via the M19, Alpine Truck & Bus is the latest addition to MAN's growing dealer network in Southern Africa and is equipped with state-of-the-art vehicle servicing facilities and equipment.
Officially opened on 29 October 2015, the new dealership welcomed MAN executive board members from Germany, Markus Geyer, senior vice-president for the Middle East, India and Africa, Bjorn Loose, global head of Marketing, and Geoff du Plessis, managing director and chairman of MAN Truck & Bus SA.
"Alpine Motors Group has spared no expense in building what is a world-class heavy commercial vehicle servicing facility and this new dealership, Alpine Truck & Bus, is geared to meet the demands of a growing heavy commercial vehicle market in the region," said Alpine partner and director, Bruce Dickson.
The facility boasts nine service bays, a wash bay with a pit, a full parts department, state-of-the-art equipment including a hi-tech brake-roller tester and a computerised oil dispensing system.
"All of these features give this facility the necessary future-proofing to handle developments in both the automotive engineering and legislative environments," added Dickson. "The facility also has a very well appointed driver hospitality suite, which amplifies Alpine's commitment to service quality, driver comfort and road safety. While this new facility will help build Alpine's MAN service capacity, it will also add muscle to our sales and support offering for VW trucks and buses."
"It is at the dealership where the brand has to demonstrate its power and where we have to respond to customer needs," said Ian Seethal, head of Network Development at MAN Truck & Bus SA. "At this very place, the foundation for long-term customer relations is being built. This new dealership expands MAN's current dealer footprint in South Africa and reinforces our commitment to our customers which is to provide professional levels of customer service at strategic locations."
Alpine has been in the vanguard of VW truck and bus sales in South Africa, adopting creative measures to make VW derivatives from Brazil more suitable for local conditions, with recent pilot 4x2 to 6x2 truck-tractor/rigid conversions being a prime example.
"We are also looking forward to introducing the latest VW models from Brazil when our local emissions standards demand Euro 5 compliance. These new derivatives are setting fuel efficiency benchmarks in tough operating conditions in Latin America and will be ideal for several African truck and bus applications in the near future," Dickson said.
MAN products are the foundation of the organisation's success, as they are to the success of its customers, Geyer said. "But excellent service is equally important and this is achieved by the people who work at our dealerships. It's all about the brand; the products, the people and how they present themselves. Alpine Truck & Bus' customer focus is a very good example of how a world-class dealership and workshop should be run and I am convinced it will be successful and create an enormous advantage for our VW and MAN customers."
