A Hino 15-258 500 Series heavy truck, dating back to 2007, which has already covered more than a million kilometres, has begun a new lease of its working life after being sold out of the KwaZulu-Natal-based CPS Seedlings fleet to a Mr Singh to use for collecting and delivering stock for his grocery business in the Midlands area.
It has already paid a visit to its previous home where the new owner expressed satisfaction with his purchase.
The truck has been trouble-free over the past 18 years having been regularly serviced and maintained by Hino Pietermaritzburg in its early days, but subsequently the CPS Seedlings account has moved to Hino Pinetown.
“This Hino has pulled a pup trailer for at least half its million kilometres in CPS Seedlings’ service,” explained Julian Chaning-Pearce, Managing Director of the Greytown branch of CPS Seedlings. (His brother, Adrian, looks after the Pongola operation.) “Average fuel consumption has been around 25 l/100km without the trailer and 31 l/100km when towing the pup.”
The CPS Seedlings fleet currently consists of 13 commercial vehicles based in Greytown, with 12 of them Hinos from 2-12 tons, while at the Pongola branch there are a further four commercial vehicles, of which two are Hinos. In addition, the fleet operates 14 Toyota light commercial vehicles.
“When asked if he would buy another Hino truck he answered: “They are on order all the time!”
“I can honestly say that transport is the least of our worries when running our business,” concludes Julian.
CPS Seedlings was founded in 1985 by Mark Chaning-Pearce, operating in Cato Ridge as a one-person business with one bakkie. The company has now reached its fourth generation of the Chaning-Pearce family. Its current delivery fleet covers a combined one million kilometres annually, while the company has produced and delivered more than 1.8 billion plants in the past 40 years.
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“South Africa’s youth are talented, hungry to learn and eager to work, but they need the opportunity to gain real-world skills that translate into jobs,” says Thembinkosi Pantsi, Vice-Chairperson of the National Automobile Dealers’ Association (NADA).
The Fleet Safety Awards for 2025 have been launched. The entry platform was opened at the South African Association for Fleet Professionals (AFP) Colloquium. Fleet managers and organisations aspiring to be crowned one of the winners for 2025, can already submit their entries.
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