Pietermaritzburg’s Oscar’s Real Salamis are delighted with their five-strong fleet of Powerstar FT trucks.
The company, established in 1968, currently owns four Powerstar FT5’s and one Powerstar FT8 dropside.
The versatile Powerstar FT range consists of light, medium and heavy-duty distribution trucks. They come with, among other noteworthy features, Cummins engines, ZF transmissions and two-year/unlimited mileage warranties.
Oscar’s Real Salamis bought it’s first FT back in February 2019, before making two more FT purchases in May and October of the same year. The remaining Powerstar units in the company’s fleet arrived in March and then May of this year.
The FT’s are used to service the wholesale refrigerated meat market in Kwa-Zulu Natal (KZN) and transport fresh and processed meats throughout the province daily.
Word of mouth
“We were considering upgrading our truck fleet, and Powerstar was recommended to us by a close friend of ours. He is also using Powerstar trucks for his business,” explains John Troisi, managing director of Oscar’s Real Salamis.
“He holds Powerstar in high regard, so we decided to go and see the Powerstar assembly plant (also located in PMB) and meet with their managers. We left highly impressed and so decided to buy our first FT which, in our view, represents excellent value for money. Once we were happy with the vehicle, we decided to stick with Powerstar as our leading truck brand,” he says.
Reliable and safe
Mr Troisi says reliability and safety were two critical factors at play in the company’s purchasing decisions.
“The trucks need to be reliable with minimal breakdowns, especially when it comes to long-distance travel. It is also important to us that the vehicles are safe for our drivers.”
Etienne Alberts, senior manager: product support at Powerstar SA, was instrumental in concluding the deals. Mr Troisi has high praise for him and the Powerstar team which ably serves the second-largest city in KZN with varying customer-centric transport solutions.
“They are always willing to help out, and they are friendly and enthusiastic about their brand. The service we have received from Powerstar has been of a high standard,” he continues.
“Etienne and co are forthcoming and certainly put their customers first. In saying this, the service levels have had a huge impact on our overall impression of the Powerstar brand. Not only are the trucks reliable, but the service rendered to us has been exemplary.”
Powerstar employees delivered the vehicle to the company’s door, he adds. “They went through the vehicle with us and answered any questions that we had. They were accommodating in this regard.”
Happy drivers
And it’s not just Mr Troisi who is impressed with the FT’s at Oscar’s Real Salamis.
“Our drivers enjoy driving the Powerstar vehicles, saying they are high-quality and stable out on the roads. To date, they have not reported any serious problems with the trucks.”
He explains that, due to minimal maintenance issues, the company has saved a “substantial” amount of money by choosing the FT’s for their distribution needs.
Ending on another positive note, he says the company is currently bustling despite the extraordinarily challenging times the country is facing.
