Kia’s Tasman bakkie arrives in South Africa
Kia has taken a bold step into one of South Africa’s most competitive automotive segments with the launch of the Tasman, its first-ever double cab bakkie.
- Product News
- 9 April 2026
Receiving this accolade is an acknowledgement of the hard work over the last five years in establishing this dealership.
It is a dealership that rules the roost in this prime farming and strategic region of the Free State, close to Gauteng and Mpumalanga.
So says a proud Willem Roberts, Dealer Principal at Mortimer Toyota Frankfort and part of MMG, after receiving the important Most Improved Performance Group Member Award at the 2021 MSX/NADA Business of the Year (BOTY) ceremony.
“To be considered for this award, the dealership is evaluated and results that cover a variety of aspects are compared to those of the previous financial year. Our success leading up to this award did not happen overnight.
“It took time to establish a substantial car parc and that led to our After Sales Department running full steam, close to a 100% capacity. Even with low stock levels, we move heaven and earth to assist clients and can draw on the assistance of all the dealerships in MMG group. The group also bought Bidvest Car Rental, which is now called Bluu Car Rental, and it is an important provider of quality used stock.
“Before 2017, Toyota did not have a presence in Frankfort, and the ‘bakkie-business’ here was dominated by another brand which chose to leave during that year.
“That business was run by me and my partner, Emile Cronjé. We struck a deal with Ryan and Rudi Seele, the owners of the Mortimer Motor Group. They also owned the Toyota dealership in Reitz.
“We became part of MMG, and the Reitz dealership was moved to Frankfort into the same premises that housed our previous business. Emile is now the Manager at our After Sales Department at Mortimer Toyota,” Willem tells us.
He says before they became part of MMG and Toyota, they won two Rural Dealer of the Year Awards and the aim is to achieve this again. “Winning this award from Nada and MSX is an important pathway to achieve more success. Winning overall Dealership of the Year awards from both Toyota and Nada/MSX is most certainly in our sights.
“And the most significant reason for our success is our team at Mortimer Frankfort and colleagues at MMG. I want to thank Rudi and Ryan Seele for the trust they had in us back in 2017 as well as a big thank you to Wynand Wessels, our boss overseeing the Toyota side of the business.
Lastly, my staff deserve huge congratulations and a thank you for everybody’s effort that you have put in to get us into this position,” Willem concludes.
Kia has taken a bold step into one of South Africa’s most competitive automotive segments with the launch of the Tasman, its first-ever double cab bakkie.
Volkswagen Group Africa (VWGA) has reached another major milestone with the production of the 500 000th unit of the current Polo for the export market.
OMODA has expanded its South African lineup with the arrival of the C5 SHS hybrid, a new addition to the C5 range.
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