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Southpac makes it two in a rowNew Zealand’s Southpac Trucks Wins Kenworth Dealer of the Year 2018
For a second consecutive year and against a field of more than 25 dealers across Australasia, New Zealand’s Southpac Trucks has been awarded Kenworth Dealer of the Year.
The prestigious Kenworth Dealer of the Year accolade is hotly contested and is awarded to the dealership with the highest ranking across five main areas: truck sales, overall dealer performance, parts sales and customer support. The award was presented at PACCAR’s annual dealer event, held fittingly this year in Queenstown.
Managing Director of PACCAR Australia, Andrew Hadjikakou presented the 2018 Kenworth Dealer of the year award to Maarten Durent, CEO of Southpac Trucks. “Focussing on the most important factor in the business – the customer – Southpac Trucks has again shown the highest standards of service, professionalism and excellence,” said Andrew.
Southpac Trucks CEO, Maarten Durent, dedicated the award to his team for their hard work, dedication and passion, which Maarten commented shows through in all they do. “Our team is over the moon. We’ve got an outstanding sales, service and parts teams, and we continue to invest in facilities, equipment and training to provide exceptional customer service,” said Maarten.
Graeme Gibbons, CEO and Director, of The Colonial Motor Company, added: “We have a really good relationship with the Kenworth; a really positive, collaborative approach, and a culture of doing the right thing for the customer, whatever it takes. It’s what our business is built on. Maarten and his team have an absolute dedication to doing the right thing for the customer and it’s supported by the factory.”
Photo caption: Andrew Hadjikakou, Managing Director PACCAR Australia, Maarten Durent, CEO Southpac Trucks, Graeme Gibbons, CEO and Director of The Colonial Motor Company, Brad May, Director Sales and Marketing PACCAR Australia.
NZTA decision to fund re-certifications ‘only fair outcome’
The Road Transport Forum has welcomed the NZTA decision to cover the costs of tow bars that have to be recertified involving Auckland engineer Patrick Chu.
“I think most people would agree that it is unfair for road transport operators to cover costs of recertification of their towing equipment. There is no fault on the side of these operators and they shouldn’t have had to pay twice. We had advocated to NZTA they should fund this work and we are very pleased that they have now agreed to do so,” says RTF Chief Executive Nick Leggett.
NZTA had previously said that tow bars which were certified by Patrick Chu have to be recertified at the owners' expense. Operators have had towing equipment signed off by a registered certifier only to find out later that those certifications would be revoked. NZTA had set the precedent by funding similar recertification works in the South Island involving engineer Peter Wastney.
“We struggled to see how this was a reasonable situation in light of the agency’s earlier decisions in other areas.”
Nick Leggett said that this had likely caused significant disruption for businesses forced to remove vehicles from the road and has therefore cost them a lot of money.
“The Road Transport industry believes the outcome is fair and congratulates NZTA for their change of position.”
The Taranaki Truck Show is on the 10th of March (Taranaki Anniversary Weekend)
Southpac's stunning 900 Legends calendar will be out soon. Make sure you don't miss out.At Southpac Trucks we are just about to print a one-time only, very special, limited edition Legend T900 calendar with exclusive shots of NZ only trucks in action
Available for sale in December via parts, let us know your interest by typing interested in this post below
SAFETY ALERT! Retrofitted seatbelt
The NZ Transport Agency is urging vehicle owners who have retrofitted seatbelts to check the labels on their seatbelts following safety concerns leading to a recall.
Seatbelts imported by Business Ventures Limited (BVL) and manufactured by Changzhou BWD, China can be identified by a label located on the seatbelt strap. These seatbelts are the subject of an urgent Transport Agency safety alert following Transport Agency tests indicating they do not meet an approved safety standard.
NZ Transport Agency General Manager Customer Design and Delivery Charles Ronaldson says BVL/Changzhou BWD seatbelts have been mostly used for retrofitting into modified vehicles or as replacements for damaged original vehicle seatbelts.
BVL/Changzhou seatbelts are not OEM installed.
“After being alerted to the potential safety risk, we commissioned and attended an independent testing of the seatbelts. These test results indicated that although the belts are labelled as compliant, they actually do not meet an approved safety standard.”
The failures identified in testing were related to over-the-shoulder (sash) belts that have a ‘d-ring’ guide and retractor. Most lap belts do not have these features and are not included in this alert.
“Safety is top our priority - we are urging people that if BVL/Changzhou BWD seatbelts are fitted in their vehicle’s driver seat, that they do not use their vehicle until replacements are fitted. If fitted in other seating positions, we are urging people not to allow passengers to use those seats. We have also instructed vehicle inspectors to fail a vehicle for its Warrant of Fitness (WoF) or Certificate of Fitness (CoF) inspection if these seatbelts are identified in a vehicle,” he says.
BVL have agreed to undertake a safety recall, and will be working with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment to monitor the recall.
Full information is available at: www.nzta.govt.nz/vehicles/vehicle-safety-alerts/bvlchangzhou-bwd-retrofitted-seatbelts
It's been five years since Timaru had a truck show, now's the chance to show off your rig at the Horse Power Rally on Labour weekend Saturday. Polish them up and show of you truck at the Phar Lap Raceway. www.facebook.com/Horse-Power-Rally-2018-2392258033…/
DAVE CARR MEMORIAL RUN 2018
This years run will be on Saturday 3 November.
More details will follow.