JAC Motors PH has one more surprise in store for MIAS 2024

Astara Philippines, the official distributor of Peugeot, GAC, JMC, and now JAC Motors Philippines, recently invited us to a roundtable event to get to know its newest brand better. We got to know the new executives and got a quick idea of what to expect from the relaunched brand and what it has to offer in terms of its products and after sales services.

JAC Motor Philippines brings with it 60 years of experience under its belt as the company was founded in 1964. Since then it has steadily increased its sales becoming a strong player in its home market. Each new vehicle developed by the brand undergoes stress testing for 12 up to 18 months clocking in around 1.5-million kilometers to ensure that each part of the car is up to par and will last long. 

As for the 2024 Manila International Auto Show (MIAS), JAC will be bringing in five cars to display which it will officially start selling in August. First on the list are its three crossover SUVs starting with the JS4 as its entry level model, the JS6 as its premium flagship variant, and finally the JS8 Pro. Next up are its pickup trucks which include the JAC T8 Pro and the JAC T9 which are set to take on the segment with both striking a balance between functionality and a more lifestyle oriented design. The T8 will take on the likes of the Hilux, Navara, D-MAX, and Ranger, while the T9 is a slightly bigger and more aggressive vehicle which looks to take on the Ranger Raptor and GR-S Hilux with its looks and size.

The 6th car JAC will tease

Aside from its lineup of crossovers and pickup trucks, the brand will also be previewing the JAC Ytterby, its fully electric vehicle. Local specifications haven’t been released to us, but according to some of the executives at the event, there might be two variants of the EV available with a third being eyed for a launch at a later date.

In terms of range, the Ytterby will come with a variant that has 400 km and a higher tier variant that will supposedly have 500 km of range. As for the third variant, if there is demand for it a more affordable model may be released that will come with around 330 km worth of range. It also has a turning radius of about 4.9 meters and has a battery pack that will last 4,000 charging cycles. The Ytterby also has a five-star China NCAP rating making it one of the safest EVs available in its home market. It even comes with special battery cell protection with a material that turns into ceramic that can easily prevent a fire spreading inside the sealed battery pack. 

Building the brand on strong after sales support

As Astara now has distributorship of JAC, it will now focus on expanding the brand by building more dealerships and ensuring each one is prepared to handle any after sales needs that customers may encounter. The distributor already has a several months supply for fast moving parts such as for those PMS and for medium moving parts such as those needed to fix any collision damage. For parts that need to be shipped Astara says it will take about seven days to source them for China provided that no other factors interfere such as government requirements and the like. 

As for making sure that each dealer is equipped to handle any situation, Astara is in the process of building a training center and is already finalizing it. To ensure that each dealership is prepared, at minimum it must have a scanner present and at least one train technician. However, the distributor is already training a new batch of technicians to meet the upcoming demand of the new JAC dealerships.

Future Plans

We were also able to confirm with a couple of JAC executives the brand’s tentative plans in the future. According to them the automaker plans to launch more PHEVs in the Philippines. As to when these vehicles will enter the market has yet to be determined but they are eying 2025 as a possible launch year. These new PHEVs will include an SUV, MPV, and a new pickup truck. Details of each vehicle are still unknown, but they did hint that the MPV PHEV will have a 3.1 meter wheelbase. 

Things are looking to be interesting for the upcoming brand so make sure to catch them at the World Trade Center and at the SMX Convention center for the 2024 Manila International Auto Show to see the brand’s latest lineup of vehicles in the metal.