Introducing the JAC N90
Ever heard of the Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group Corp? Probably not. In fact, the name isn’t even particularly well known in China. Instead, it’s known as JAC and it has built up quite some reputation since being founded in 1964.
That’s because the Chinese state-owned automobile and commercial vehicle manufacturer is quite enormous. It produces a complete range of vehicles – from cars and multi-purpose vehicles (MPVs) to trucks and buses. Its annual capacity is now a whopping one million vehicles and 500 000 engines. While it’s headquartered in China, JAC also has research and development centres in Turin, Italy, and in Tokyo, Japan.
The company has 19 factories in export markets (in addition to seven commercial vehicle production facilities within China), and it exports to more than 130 countries in South America, Europe, Africa and Asia – including, of course, South Africa.
The N-Series specifically is produced in the city of Hefei, which is the capital of the Anhui province and is located about an hour and a half from Shanghai. While there are nine individual models within the N-Series range, we chose to test the N90, which is a six-tonne truck with a GVM of 9 t.
According to the chaps at JAC, there are about four million of these trucks trundling all over the planet (I’m talking about the N-Series in its entirety, not just the N90). The first N90 arrived in South Africa late last year for homologation; sales volumes are in single-digit figures, so you won’t see many of these trucks on our roads.
Exterior
The first thing that you’ll notice about the exterior of this truck is the gold badge upfront. Yes, right. It is gold. Recently, I was invited to China to judge the Chinese Truck of the Year competition and I was amazed to see gold on trucks everywhere. The Chinese love gold! I’m not so sure about local transport operators, but it certainly does differentiate the N90 from its Japanese competitors.
During the judging, I actually drove an N-Series over in China and I was somewhat amused to see that it looks quite similar to the Isuzu N-Series. Funny thing that huh? Even the lights in the front slope upwards on top, just like the Japanese truck. Speaking of the lights, I like the fact that the N90 has daytime running lamps.
There are some differences – the gold badge (versus silver on the Isuzu) and a metal grille upfront (it’s body colour on the Isuzus that I’ve driven). But basically, if you like the looks of the Isuzu (which I do), you’ll be more than happy with the exterior of the Chinese truck that shares its name.
The cab is tilted manually and there is a warning light on the instrument cluster that will inform the driver that it hasn’t been lowered properly. Fluid levels can be inspected easily (the containers are located behind the cab and they’re accessible). The windscreen washer reservoir is on the passenger’s side of the cab. It’s also easy to access.
Interior
There is one step up into the cab and it’s very easy to enter and exit the truck. There’s a small grab handle on the right-hand side of the doorway if you need something to hang onto. The interior is practical and functional and actually a bit nicer than I expected (I was really expecting a hardcore uncomfortable workhorse).
There’s a handy little slot in the dashboard for a toll card or credit card and all the controls are easy to access.
There’s a radio (sans CD player but it does have a USB and an auxiliary plug so you can listen to your own music). Air-conditioning is standard. There are quite a few storage spaces around the cab, and there are also two cupholders in the dashboard. There are storage compartments above the windscreen, and they have nets in front to prevent anything from falling out.
The mirrors are large and well-placed, and they do a more-than-adequate job. During my test drive, visibility was good.
Drivetrain
The N90 is powered by a 3.8-litre Euro 3 common rail diesel engine. Significantly the engine is produced by Cummins. This is A Seriously Good Thing because, as anyone in the commercial vehicle industry will tell you, Cummins makes brilliant engines. I drove the truck sans a load and so I cannot comment on engine performance under load. However, the motor – which produces 115 kW of power at 2600 r/min and 500 Nm of torque at 1200 to 1900 r/min – proved to be more than adequate. Rather childishly (sorry, sometimes I just cannot help myself), I decided to race a Fuso from one traffic light to the next. Guess who won? It was a case of China 1, Japan zero.
There is a 114-litre fuel tank on the left-hand side of the truck and there’s no AdBlue tank because it’s not needed. The average fuel consumption on the N90 was 16,3 litres/100 km, which is really not bad at all.
Transmission
It has a six-speed manual transmission. I battled a tiny bit with some of the gears at first (especially second) but, 15 minutes into my drive, my worries were over, and I’d become accustomed to the gearbox. The clutch (dry single plate with a diaphragm spring) has a 350 mm diameter.
Unfortunately, only a manual gearbox is available, which is a pity. I am a huge fan of the Automatic Manual Transmission on the Isuzu N-Series.
Safety
Safety features include ABS and an exhaust brake. The brakes do a good job (there are drums front and rear). Additional safety features include a reinforced door waist (minimises distortion in the shape of the cab in the event of an accident), fog lamps and multi-reflector halogen headlamps for improved visibility.
Verdict
The local JAC guys assure me that their aftersales service is good. They also guarantee that they will knock R200 000 off the price of the equivalent Isuzu. That’s quite some saving. Cummins warrants the engine on the vehicle, which is very comforting. The warranty on the entire truck is two years/unlimited km. This is identical to that of the Isuzu. Isuzu also offers a 36-month corrosion warranty.
I cannot comment on the resale value of the truck; there are simply too few in the market to comment authoritatively. So, do we recommend it or not? If you’re a transport who is battling with cashflow (and let’s face it, who isn’t?), it’s worth consideration – especially if you can save R200 000.
