Coscharis Motors has launched factory-fitted Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Joylong buses in Nigeria.
As made known during the launch at the company’s Awoyaya-Lagos head Office on Tuesday, plans are underway to, in the near future; assemble the buses at its Lagos-based assembly plant.
According to the company’s General Manager, Marketing Communications, Abiona Babarinde, Coscharis is equally planning to, in future, offer an electric version of the buses.
Powered by 2.7 litre engine, the bus comes with a 15-litre petrol tank and 220-litre CNG capacity. To this end, with dual fueling capacity, the bus is conveniently switchable from Petrol to Gas by a push of a button on the dashboard.
Uniquely, the Joylong CNG buses have their CNG cylinders well protected and hidden away from the boot, unlike many other converted CNG vehicles across the country.
Powered by a cleaner-burning fuel, producing fewer greenhouse gas emissions and air pollutants compared to petrol, Joylong CNG comes with a quieter engine operation, which reduces noise pollution and enhances smoother driving experience
“Our company’s decision to add Joylong CNG buses to its vehicle brands portfolio,” Babarinde explained, “was motivated by a need to create viable ownership solutions for fleet and individual customers both in public and private sectors towards reducing cost of fuelling and general maintenance within the vehicles’ warranty period and beyond.
“For us in Coscharis, this is the opportune moment to invest in CNG, given the expansion of more refueling CNG stations across Nigeria and the high cost of petrol makes it a more viable option for Nigerians.
“Coming into the fray as an established brand in the automobile sector gives the CNG auto sector more credibility that will attract Nigerians who have been reluctant towards this idea so far.
“In addition, the need to align with global and local eco-friendly drive is an impetus with specific reference to the push by the Federal and Lagos State Governments.”
Regarding aftersales, Babarinde assured his company’s readiness to, as usual, deliver a seamless peace of mind beyond the purchase of the Joylong buses.
“We are committed to training and retraining of our staff in order to position them adequately for the maintenance and repairs of these CNG models,” he added.
Also speaking at the event, the company’s National Sales Manager (Joylong), Anthony Efe said: ‘’One of the benefits of the CNG bus is that you save up to 50% of the cost of fueling. The bus comes with low engine noise and a low cost maintenance. The engine last longer since it is a CNG bus.
“Since the bus comes with dual fuel option, to start the engine, you switch to CNG at the press of a button before driving. The bus comes with two years warranty or 60,000 km whichever comes first.
‘’For aftersales service, we have our workshops in the six geo-political zones of the country, including Abuja , Kano Porthacourt, Enugu, Ibadan and others.
As revealed by Ife, Coscharis Motors is currently launching inter-state buses with target sales of 1,000 units a year.
“In the future, we will bring bigger buses based on demand,’’ he added.
Other highlights of the event include a motoring media test-drive across a rough terrain within the assembly plant’s premises.
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