However, the brand is well-established in the commercial sector with models in the truck and bakkie segments. Dealers are also waiting for a replacement of its panel van.

Across the country, Hyundai’s H100 bakkie is the backbone of many small businesses and even larger companies with the larger 4-ton-EX8 truck in a bigger league. And do not forget about the small converted semi-panel vans in the guise of the Atos Cargo and Grand i10 Cargo.

It is finding a niche, especially for the 4-ton-EX8 truck and the smaller H100 bakkie, which allowed Hyundai in Mbombela (Nelspruit) to walk away with the title as the manufacturer’s top commercial vehicle dealership in South Africa.

“It was a surprise, although not totally unexpected, as our dedicated sales and service teams really put in a serious effort to achieve this,” says Chris Jones, Dealer Principal at Nelspruit Multi-franchise, part of the Motus Group, with Hyundai, Kia and Renault all part of the dealership.

“Over the years, we have won many individual awards with the various brands, and this is our first dealership-winning title. In terms of Hyundai, we are working hard to add our passenger car part of the dealership to the winning list in its category in the near future.

“Within all our brands and different departments at the multi-franchise dealership, we know where to improve, not only to win awards, but to give our customers the best experience and to cement our reputation as a premium dealership in Mbombela and the whole of the Mpumalanga province as well,” Chris tells Dealerfloor.

“Our larger truck has found favour with entrepreneurs in the region with a wide range of businesses converting them into water trucks selling water in the rural areas. More and more construction companies are also using the truck, and we now have a demonstration model at the dealership to show potential customers what it is capable of.

“Our smaller H100 bakkie’s reputation speaks for itself. There are such a variety of businesses using it, and as a transporter of goods, especially fruit and other crops in our area, it is second to none. We also have a demonstration model and as with our 4-ton-truck, we believe more fleet owners are interested in this vehicle.

“Its low maintenance and running costs and being dependable and practical make it immensely popular. We have some H100 bakkies during servicing times at our workshop with between 400 000 and 500 000 kilometres on the clock. We also sell completely new engines at an incredibly competitive price for re-fitting in the H100,” he says.

Chris says Nelspruit’s economy is growing and their clientele consist of different sectors from the provincial government as Mbombela is the capital of the province, local government and the large agriculture sector. The tourism industry is also bouncing back with the emphasis on places like the Kruger National Park and other SANParks, private game reserves, and they even have customers from neighbouring countries like Eswatini and Mozambique.

He tells Dealerfloor that although all his sales executives can cross-sell different models, each brand has its own showroom floor and staff with its own Sales Manager taking charge. Hyundai has its own pre-owned stand while the rest of the used vehicles are sold under the Motus Select banner.

“I am optimistic about the future although some constraint still persists. We are in a better space now than a year ago, and the market is buoyant. Stock supply is improving, and our team has been around for a long time and delivers a first class-service of which I am proud,” he says.

“I was appointed DP here in January 2020 and you can imagine it was quite a difficult time at that stage. My career started in 1995 as a Sales Executive, and I have been at various motor retail groups in different capacities over the years. I’m now part of the Motus Group for almost four years,” Chris says.