South African auto dealer becomes first five-star MIWA workshop
September 22, 2015
Cordoba Motors in Phoenix Industrial, on the north coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, was recently five-star graded by the Motor Industry Workshop Association (MIWA). The recognition makes it the first truck workshop to get this rating in Kwa Zulu Natal. The task was made easier for them as most requirements are as per Tata guidelines.
Cordoba Motors was started by Denny Pillay (from the back of a bakkie with one assistant), as a mobile operator servicing and repairing customers’ vehicles on site in 1986. Denny had earlier worked with several automobile-related companies including Mercedes Benz. In 1995, he purchased a small double bay covered workshop with an office and an open yard with his sons Dino and Dersan. In the years since, the facility has been continually improved and upgraded.
Tata Automobile Corporation South Africa (TACSA), a Tata International subsidiary, appointed Cordoba as a sales and service dealer for the region in 1997. Cordoba became one of the first workshops to service and repair Tata vehicles, when they entered the truck sector in South Africa. Cordoba had also assisted TACSA with the movement and storage of vehicles, and the Tata brand played an important role in giving a feeling of belonging, which is still evident in the workshop. Going from strength to strength, Denny purchased new premises in 2004 and 2008, just before he passed away. All along the journey, TACSA has supported the dealership.
Today Dersan and Dino run the dealership, both having undergone training at the Tata training facilities for heavy trucks in India and Korea. Dersan is a qualified A Grade Diesel technician, a Cummins and Eaton accredited technician, and is currently completing the MIWA Master Technician Course. Tata’s technical division has been instrumental in keeping Cordoba technicians’ knowledge updated. They are one the few Tata dealers that are authorised to repair Cummins and Eaton.
“We have attended many training courses offered by TACSA, to our benefit, and that is then passed onto customers in the form of having their vehicles repaired according to standards,” says Dino.
All truck types are maintained and repaired at the facility. All the latest diagnostic tools and equipment are on hand to repair the vehicles to standard. The panel side attends to vehicles from the existing customer base with the use of qualified technicians. Dino adds that they currently maintain many corporate fleets and as well as smaller operator vehicles.
“With a staff of around 22 including qualified and semi skilled staff, getting things done is no problem. We have a regular stream of learners from various training centres that come in for practical training as well,” he says. Denny was aligned with the Tata philosophy of giving back to society and supported various NGOs and welfare organisations. The good work continues till this day.
It is this passion for excellence, and commitment to giving back, that has spurred on Cordoba Motors’ achievement.
