Chery names its first bakkie Grootman
Chery has named its first bakkie for South Africa Grootman, a name chosen by South Africans. The model is planned to make its local debut in the first quarter of 2027.
- Product News
- 2 October 2026
The excitement of buying a new car is short-lived when the realities of owning, driving and maintaining take over.
Stellantis understands that responsibility but doesn’t want the excitement to end. WePledge is the answer for peace-of-mind and ownership satisfaction for the duration of all warranties on Stellantis vehicles, says the Group.
“Whilst customers are at the heart of Stellantis, their satisfaction with their vehicles should be at the heart of their experience with us and our brands,” says Stellantis Managing Director, Mike Whitfield. “As such, we’re committing ourselves to making that experience the very best in the industry.”
WePledge puts the customer at the very centre of the ownership experience, delivering service commitments aimed at benchmarking the greatest customer satisfaction in the industry.
The customer-care promise extends across passenger cars for all seven brands, namely Alfa Romeo, FIAT, Abarth, the Jeep® brand, PEUGEOT, Citroën and OPEL and goes beyond the comprehensive 5-year/100 000 km manufacturer warranty – the first promise. Three additional promises underscore the company’s dedication to quality assurance and customer satisfaction.
The first of these guarantees mobility in a courtesy or rental vehicle for a customer whose vehicle is forced to remain at a Stellantis dealer workshop if the Original Equipment (OE) parts or diagnostics are delayed beyond 48 hours.
If a collision or major repairs are being undertaken by an approved body repairer within the warranty period, Stellantis also guarantees the customer’s mobility should the repairer be waiting for OE parts or technical assistance beyond 30 days. Any repaired vehicle will also receive a Quality Check Certificate to ensure that manufacturer standards are met.
The final promise from Stellantis is to dispatch a security detail on request for any roadside assistance situation to keep customers safe. Roadside assistance is part of the warranty on passenger vehicles 24/7.
Netcare Diagnostics (a Netcare Group business) is introducing its first fully electric vehicles to its transport fleet, starting with shorter urban routes for collecting patient pathology specimens.
South Africa’s new vehicle market recorded aggregate domestic sales of 61 645 units in September 2026, an increase of 12.7% compared with the 54 706 units sold during September 2025.
SA Auto Week 2026 is scheduled to take place in eThekwini, KwaZulu-Natal, from 13 to 16 October, with the event marking five years of SA Auto Week.