Cover story
FAW LANDS
faw trucks
KNOCKOUT BLOW FAW Vehicle Manufacturers SA has launched a new medium-weight truck range engineered for the local market, built on South African soil for Southern and Central African markets.
C
EO Yusheng Zhang explains the ration-
Local is lekker
ale behind the introduction of a new, precision-designed, medium-sized truck range.
Imported from parent plants as SKD kits, the cab, chassis, axles, and other sub-assembly components, together with the imported Cummins ISF engine and the ZF transmission, are all neatly assembled in the new Coega plant. The plant employs over 100 staff, all of whom have been trained and upskilled. As demand for the new range and the existing heavy and extra-heavy FAW trucks increases, new job opportunities will be created. “The introduction of the FAW 8.140 FL follows closely on the international introduction by our China-based parent company. “We did this so local customers can experience FAW’s latest technological advances built at international quality levels,” explains Zhang. The FAW 8.140 FL will be available in a number of body derivatives – a drop-side, a taut-liner option, a van body, a tipper, and a rollback or dry-freight insulated body. Customers may choose to buy the chassis cab and fit their own truck bodies to suit many other applications, up to a GCM of 14 tonnes.
“Our decision was based on customer demand and market opportunity. Our market analysis confirmed the need for a vehicle as durable and rugged as our heavy and extra-heavy trucks, but with smaller dimensions to handle a different working environment. “We’ve had a presence in South Africa since 1994, so this year marks our ‘rite of passage’. Throughout this period, we have demonstrated our commitment to this country and to our loyal customers.” FAW’s total local investment is now in excess of R800 million. “This includes our truck body building facility, which opened in January this year, and our manufacturing plant, commissioned in July last year.”
New player
ABOVE Faw's new 8.140 FL mediumweight truck
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FAW took a strategic decision to redesign and re-engineer the Chinese version of the truck for local demands, paying special attention to cost-efficiency, payload, and turnaround time, without forgetting its durable and reliable build standards. “The FAW 8.140 FL carries all the hallmarks for which FAW trucks are renowned, namely strength, reliability, easy operation, and, most importantly, delivering on the promise of a ‘truck built for Africa, in Africa’.”
TWA | July/Aug 2015
Feature-rich The parallel chassis frame and smooth top flange chassis construction has a distinct low-weight advantage, especially when mounting a steel sub-frame