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Shared Ethos, VW and MAN

New MAN dealership opened by SA’s top VW franchise

Alpine truck & Bus open MAN dealershipAlpine Truck & Bus is the latest addition to MAN’s growing dealer network in southern Africa, equipped with state-of-the- art vehicle servicing facilities and equipment.

Situated alongside South Africa’s busiest logistics corridor, 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, equipped with state-of-the-art vehicle servicing facilities and equipment.

With a history dating back to 1973, Alpine Motors has a business ethos centred on superior customer service that has made the Volkswagen/Audi franchise the top selling VW car vehicle dealership in the country for the last five years.

Based in Pinetown and owned by eight partners, including Garth La Reservee, who helped found the company with his brothers, Creston, and Kevin, Alpine Motors has been a MAN and VW Trucks and Buses service dealership since 2010, operating out of its existing commercial vehicle workshops. In 2013, the company invested over R40 million in building a new dedicated MAN/VW heavy-duty commercial vehicle sales and servicing facility in New Germany, KwaZulu-Natal.

With a history dating back to 1973, Alpine Motors has a business ethos centred on superior customer service that has made the Volkswagen/Audi franchise the top selling VW car vehicle dealership

Says Alpine Partner and Director, Bruce Dickson: “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.”

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 the facility the necessary future-proofing to handle developments in both the automotive engineering and legislative environments,” adds Dickson.

MAN parts from Alpine“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.”

Ian Seethal, Head of Network Development, MAN Truck & Bus SA, explains: “It is at the dealership where the brand has to demonstrate its power and where we have to respond to customer needs. At this very place, the foundation for long-term customer relations is being built.

This new dealership expands MAN’s current and impressive dealer footprint in South Africa and reinforces our commitment to our customers, which is to provide professional levels of customer service at strategic locations.”

“We could achieve 3 000 hours per month…to achieve the highest possible levels of service…”

With the capacity to achieve industry- leading truck and bus servicing targets, Dickson states: “Our focus here is fully on service levels – on quality rather than quantity. We could achieve 3 000 hours per month but are setting our sights on 2 500 hours per month to achieve the highest possible levels of service and therefore, benchmark customer satisfaction ratings.”

Alpine Truck & Bus will in future focus on onsite workshops at its customer depots, of which Timber Logistics Services, a leading forestry fleet, and Smart Truck operation, is the first. This service will be offered to both big and small fleets, as will the dealership’s mobile workshops and 24/7 roadside assist.

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Tristan Wiggill
Special Features Editor at Business Fleet Africa
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