Namibia Wildlife Protection (NWP), a wholly-owned Namibian company providing anti-poaching security solutions to private individuals and businesses, depends on the reliability and dependability of their JAC T9 Super Lux double cab. Working in conjunction with NWP’s thermal drone flights and regular foot patrols, the company utilises the JAC T9 to cover large tracts of private Namibian territory to detect any illegal movements or activities related to poaching.
“We see ourselves as one of the industry leaders in protection innovation. Excellence in service delivery and the implementation of strategic plans are fundamental to our success,” stated NWP founder and owner, Salmon Vermaak.
Vermaak, who has been a staunch M&Z Motors’ supporter for years, said protecting Namibia’s wildlife has a direct social and economic impact. “By protecting our valuable rhinos, we contribute to stimulating tourism and our international reputation as a country that values our natural resources,” Vermaak noted.
In Namibia, all black rhinos belong to government but unfortunately, the resources required to effectively counter the poaching of black rhinos exceed available budgets. This factor renders it virtually impossible to effectively protect the priceless black rhino, particularly taking into account the vast areas needing protection.
During the mid-1990’s, government, through the environment and tourism ministry, implemented the Black Rhino Custodianship Programme. Through this programme, locals become custodians of State-owned rhinos as the animals were placed on privately-owned game farms, creating a more controlled environment where they could be protected. However, since 2014, a significant increase in poaching placed enormous strain on the programme, as private land owners received no compensation or subsidy to protect the rhinos.
In this regard, JAC’s dependable T9 enables NWP to traverse huge areas to render protection to the vulnerable rhino. Confirming that NWP travels tremendous distances with the T9, Vermaak testified to the extreme reliability and capability of the popular T9.
“Before we received the T9, we had the T8, which was just as dependable. Now, with the T9, we have had zero problems, despite pushing the vehicle to its limits on a daily basis. We use the T9 on demanding offroad conditions probably more than 90% of the time, and I can tell you it has incredible offroad capability,” said Vermaak.
The T9 is based on JAC’s third-generation international light commercial vehicle (LCV) platform, and continues to impress with steady power and consistent performance.
Asked what it is about the T9 that makes it such a showstopper, JAC Motors’ sales executive Willon du Plessis responded: “The T9 bakkie is more stylish and offers more excellent features. The T9 offers something new and something different, compared to competitors in the same class. You get much more value for your money,” said Du Plessis. Meanwhile, solid build quality, coupled with a commanding and dependable engine, is sure to spell trouble for JAC’s competitors. In an extremely competitive market segment, many of whom offer similar products, JAC is demanding a larger slice of the cake due to its affordability and constant evolution.
Meanwhile, exciting news for local motorists is the imminent arrival later this year of the much-anticipated JAC T9 PHEV that opens the doors to an alternative energy bakkie to increase performance and reduce fuel consumption. The plug-in hybrid T9 double cab’s petrol-electric powertrain comprises a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbocharged internal combustion engine (ICE) and a duo of electric motors.
This updated configuration is set to produce 385kW and 1000Nm of torque from the combined output of the internal combustion engine (ICE) coupled with the electric motors. On full electric vehicle mode, the bakkie’s range is said to be around 100km.
The ICE component of the plug-in hybrid setup churns out 160 kW and 370 N.m of torque, the latter is available from 2 000 r/min.