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
Nobuhle Renqe is the new Department Executive for Corporate Planning, Strategy and Business Planning at Isuzu Motors South Africa (IMSAf).
She comes on board with extensive knowledge of the manufacturing industry with a strong academic background, which includes an undergraduate Mechanical Engineering qualification from Nelson Mandela University and an executive MBA from Brown University (USA) and IE Business School (Spain).
Nobuhle joins IMSAf from Toyota where she was the senior manager for External Affairs. During her tenure with Toyota, she was responsible for ensuring strategy alignment between her previous employer and key business stakeholders.
Isuzu Motors South Africa Vice President for Strategy, Business Planning and Marketing (SBPM), Celestin Ndhlovu, says: “We welcome Nobuhle to the team, and we wish her well in her new role. Nobuhle comes with great industry experience and a passion for growth into the greater African Market.
“We look forward to fresh innovative ideas that will develop our business strategy and planning division. In her role as Department Executive, she will be instrumental in bringing to life our vision of sustained growth.”
The Corporate Planning, Strategy and Business Planning Department has been established to provide a company-wide approach at the business unit and corporate level for developing strategic plans to achieve a longer-term vision.
“I am excited to have joined IMSAf at an overly exciting time. The department is fairly new but has ambitious and exciting plans to drive IMSAf’s long-term vision. I am optimistic about the future of the African continent, and there is a great potential of becoming the next powerhouse in the automotive industry,” she says.
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.
South Africa’s domestic new-vehicle market strengthened in September, recording 61 645 sales, its highest monthly total of 2026. Sales increased by 3 747 vehicles, or 6.5%, from August’s originally reported total and were 12.7% higher than in September 2025.