Mitsubishi showcases new look at Centurion

“The modern complex, the minimalist look and feel on the inside as well as the lay-out, two well-equipped waiting rooms and space for up to nine vehicles on the dealer floor, bring a new dimension to the dealership,” says Otto Lambrechts, General Manager for Mitsubishi Motors and Hyundai Centurion, part of the Motus Group.

The two dealerships are under one roof but with completely separate showrooms, entrances and looks. The workshop is in one hall but with different working areas and dedicated technical staff for each brand. Mitsubishi (established in 2014) shares a space with the used car side of Hyundai (established in 2003), the biggest Hyundai floorspace in die country, according to Otto.

The Mitsubishi dealership received the Dealer of the Year Award in the B Category in 2019 while also receiving a third place for its after-sales service division. On the Hyundai side, it was one of the top three dealerships in the country in terms of sales volumes and received a third place for its workshop and customer satisfaction.

“We are immensely proud to be the first Mitsubishi dealership with the new look and identity. Even from the outside it is hard to miss the new signage, not only because of our location but thanks to the new complex with its new signage and colour scheme.

“It creates a sense of calmness, professionalism and immediately makes new and existing customers feel welcome. The new style also hints at clean and renewable energy, particularly important with the future of motoring heading in that direction,” says Otto.

“We have a specific kind of customer, not only adventurous but extremely loyal. Proof is in the fact that Mitsubishi owners keep on using the official dealership network to service their vehicles and buy parts.

“Normally, when service or maintenance plans expire and the milage climbs, customers tend to take their vehicles elsewhere. Not in our case. It is not strange to service Mitsubishis with hundreds of thousands of kilometres on the clock.

“Our vehicle range is relatively new, and more models will be added to our line-up soon. There is more emphasis on used Mitsubishis giving good value to customers buying in this market and protecting the used value for customers doing trade-ins. We are experiencing problems around getting enough stock on both the Mitsubishi and Hyundai sides but this is currently a worldwide phenomenon as a result of the raging pandemic.”

Otto spent 15 years of his life in the military. He then joined CMH Peugeot in Menlyn, moved on to the Lazarus Motor Group looking after Volvo and Kia before becoming GM at Mitsubishi & Hyundai in Centurion.

He is an avid collector of model cars, especially Peugeot models of which he has close to 300, mostly 1:43 and 1:18 scale. He is even a member of the French and Dutch Peugeot Motor Clubs.

Then there is another 1 000 or so Hot Wheels 1:64 models. “It is difficult to say no to a beautiful model car. Fortunately, my wife is just as keen as I am about collecting the small cars. I have a lot of British cars in my Hot Wheels collection but also love the VWs and Hondas,” Otto concluded with some serious excitement in his voice.