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
Springbok rugby will again be driven by Land Rover with the announcement that the premium brand will be the official vehicle partner and associate sponsor of the Rugby World Cup Champions.
Springboks like Duane Vermeulen, Sbu Nkosi, Bongi Mbonambi, Trevor Nyakane, Pieter-Steph du Toit and Frans Steyn have also been appointed official Land Rover brand ambassadors. All six were part of the Rugby World Cup 2019-winning squad which Land Rover South Africa also supported.
To kick the renewed partnership off on a positive note the new Land Rover ambassadors have donated R40 000 to the Kingsley Holgate Foundation and its efforts to support thousands of South Africans around the country with meals, masks, sanitising soap and digital thermometers.
Global Land Rover ambassadors Kingsley and Ross Holgate are currently tracking the entire land border of South Africa in two new Defenders for their Mzansi Edge Expedition, with an objective to deliver humanitarian aid to hard-hit communities near game reserves devastated by the collapse of the tourism industry.

The 70-day, 10,000km journey began just over a month ago and has recently left the Western Cape to continue up the eastern side of the country and complete a lap around the perimeter of Lesotho, where the Expedition Team will visit a number of schools and early childhood development (ECD) centres before wrapping up in Kosi Bay late in November.
Land Rover Jaguar spokesperson says they are proud to bring a trio of forces together to deliver essential supplies to those in need around the country under the recently introduced #TeamDefender initiative banner.
“By working with the Kingsley Holgate Foundation, Land Rover and our ambassadors will make a difference to the lives of thousands. Kingsley and Ross are world-renowned experts in delivering aid to hard-to-reach places, and will do so safely during the pandemic, maintaining strict COVID-19 protocols.”
Follow the Holgates along the Mzansi Edge journey, and all other Team Defender initiatives on social media using the #TeamDefender hashtag. Regular updates will be shared by Land Rover South Africa on these pages.
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.