LISTEN: Peugeot Landtrek ‘earmarked’ to be new SA-built bakkie

Since Stellantis revealed its plans to assemble a bakkie in South Africa in the coming years, rumours have been rife over which model it could be.

The Peugeot Landtrek was a front runner right from the get-go, as its the only bakkie the group offers locally. Recent developments seem to enhance that notion, although nothing has been confirmed yet.

Listen to Pitstop podcast

In this week’s edition of The Citizen Motoring’s Pitstop podcast, we discuss the feasibility of assembling the Landtrek locally. And we look deeper into the Stellantis stable to see if there are other candidates that could possibly crack the nod.

Stellantis recently approved the Fiat Strada for the Middle East and markets in Sub-Saharan Africa. This opened the possibility to the Strada being the bakkie that will be assembled in Mzansi, but the Stellantis quickly set the record straight. It said the current Strada will remain exclusively a left-hand drive product.

However, the new Fiat Strada is due in 2026 and has been confirmed for right-hand drive production. This again opened the possibility for it to be assembled at the Coega Special Economic Zone outside Gqeberha. The plant is expected to be operational by then.

ALSO READ: Refreshed Peugeot Landtrek spied, tipped to get bigger diesel

Peugeot Landtrek it is

But now Stellantis has indicated that the Peugeot Landtrek has been “earmarked” for local assembly. This serves as the greatest hint yet that it could be the Peugeot bakkie that will be Stellantis’ locally assembled vehicle.

Peugeot has a rich history of bakkies not only in South Africa, but many parts of Africa. But the French carmaker did not offer a local bakkie for decades until the Landtrek was introduced at the end of 2021.

The Landtrek is a collaboration between Peugeot and Chinese car manufacturer Changan Automobile. It is built by Changan in China and shares a platform with the Kaicene F70.

The Landtrek bakkie is offered locally in two derivatives, Allure and 4Action.

It is only offered with one powertrain, a 1.9-litre turbodiesel engine. It produces 110 kW of power and 350 Nm of torque and is mated to six-speed automatic transmission.

ALSO READ: Peugeot Landtrek: What you need to know about South Africa’s new bakkie