CHENNAI: Piaggio Vehicles Private Limited, India’s number one manufacturerer of light transportation vehicles, introduced ‘ape’ truk plus’, a state-of-the-art cargo four wheeler in the one tonne category, to the Chennai market last Friday.
Speaking on the occasion, State Transport Minister K N Nehru said Piaggio vehicles dominated the rural scene and one could find the autos manufactured by the company transporting people on the ECR-Pondicherry route day in and day out.
Stating that the smart card system for registration of vehicles and issue of licences had been introduced in three places in the first instance, the Minister said that these cards would be made available in all RTO offices in the state in another three months. Rajesh Gupta, Head - Marketing, Piaggio Vehicles Private Limited, said, “Piaggio’s latest ‘ape’ truk plus’, which is positioned a rung higher than the sub-tone ape’ truk, is a 100 kg payload vehicle that offers outstanding product benefits within a significant value for money package. The vehicle is powered by an 870 cc twin-cylinder engine that delivers extraordinary power and pick up, setting a new benchmark in its class.” Later, speaking to reporters, Rajesh Gupta said the Piaggio’s range of ape three wheelers has revo l u - tionised the light transportation business and provided a meaningful livelihood to lakhs of small and medium enterprises, besides enjoying a market share of 42 per cent in the diesel three wheeler category and a customer base of over 8 lakh.
Operating out of its headquarters in Pune and its sprawling state-of-the-art plant in Baramati, Piaggio interfaces with its customers through a network of 825 dealer touch points. As the world knows, Piaggio is the company that pioneered the iconic Vespa scooters, and later in 1947, gave the world its first three-wheeler.