The 20,000th Mahindra Pik Up bakkie has rolled off the company’s Durban assembly line.
The milestone was celebrated at a ceremony this week attended by dignitaries from South Africa and India, including the high commissioner of India to South Africa, Shri Prabhat Kumar; the consul-general of India in Durban, Dr Thelma David; Corrie Kotze, the CEO of Auto Investment Holdings Group (AIH), Mahindra SA’s production partner; and the staff of the group’s SA head office.
Mahindra marks its 20th year in SA in October and the Pik Up production milestone follows six years after the company opened its assembly facility on May 25 2018. The vehicles were previously imported.
The plant, which employs 90 people, assembles vehicle kits imported from India with the addition of some local components in a manufacturing system known as semi knocked-down (SKD).
When the facility was opened the goal was to produce 2,500 Pik Ups a year, but that has been exceeded fourfold, according to the company. At the celebrations, a special Pik Up S6 4x4, the 20,000th unit, shared the stage with the dignitaries.
Mahindra first started producing single-cab Pik Up models at the plant and later added its double-cab and special edition models. Today all Pik Up models are assembled there.
South Africa is Mahindra’s largest market outside India and the brand has seen its sales and operations grow significantly in the past six years. Mahindra increased its investment to keep pace with its growth, opening a new multistorey parts warehouse in Johannesburg, a new hi-tech training facility in Centurion and a special fitment centre in Kempton Park.
“The Mahindra assembly facility could rightfully be described as the largest and most complex of its type on the continent if one considers single-brand facilities that produce a consistent flow of vehicles every month,” Mahindra SA CEO Rajesh Gupta said.
Mahindra and AIH, which operates the assembly facility on behalf of the brand, announced they would soon start production on a new 14,000m2 assembly facility in SA to be completed by June 2025, and the current Pik-Up would continue to be produced alongside the new-generation model being launched soon.
Mahindra unveiled the new Global Pik Up double-cab concept in 2023, previewing a lifestyle-orientated bakkie that will take on the popular Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux.
Mahindra SA celebrates its 20,000th Pik Up bakkie made in Durban
Opened in 2018, the plant has exceeded Mahindra’s production expectations
Image: SUPPLIED
The 20,000th Mahindra Pik Up bakkie has rolled off the company’s Durban assembly line.
The milestone was celebrated at a ceremony this week attended by dignitaries from South Africa and India, including the high commissioner of India to South Africa, Shri Prabhat Kumar; the consul-general of India in Durban, Dr Thelma David; Corrie Kotze, the CEO of Auto Investment Holdings Group (AIH), Mahindra SA’s production partner; and the staff of the group’s SA head office.
Mahindra marks its 20th year in SA in October and the Pik Up production milestone follows six years after the company opened its assembly facility on May 25 2018. The vehicles were previously imported.
The plant, which employs 90 people, assembles vehicle kits imported from India with the addition of some local components in a manufacturing system known as semi knocked-down (SKD).
When the facility was opened the goal was to produce 2,500 Pik Ups a year, but that has been exceeded fourfold, according to the company. At the celebrations, a special Pik Up S6 4x4, the 20,000th unit, shared the stage with the dignitaries.
Mahindra first started producing single-cab Pik Up models at the plant and later added its double-cab and special edition models. Today all Pik Up models are assembled there.
South Africa is Mahindra’s largest market outside India and the brand has seen its sales and operations grow significantly in the past six years. Mahindra increased its investment to keep pace with its growth, opening a new multistorey parts warehouse in Johannesburg, a new hi-tech training facility in Centurion and a special fitment centre in Kempton Park.
“The Mahindra assembly facility could rightfully be described as the largest and most complex of its type on the continent if one considers single-brand facilities that produce a consistent flow of vehicles every month,” Mahindra SA CEO Rajesh Gupta said.
Mahindra and AIH, which operates the assembly facility on behalf of the brand, announced they would soon start production on a new 14,000m2 assembly facility in SA to be completed by June 2025, and the current Pik-Up would continue to be produced alongside the new-generation model being launched soon.
Mahindra unveiled the new Global Pik Up double-cab concept in 2023, previewing a lifestyle-orientated bakkie that will take on the popular Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux.
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