BAIC’s Foton to Enter Australian Market with New 1-Tonne Truck

The Australian pickup truck market will soon welcome a new player in the 1-tonne segment, courtesy of China’s ever-growing automotive industry. Beiqi Foton Motor Co. Ltd, more commonly referred to as BFC or simply Foton, is a subsidiary of China’s more widely known BAIC and will be represented in the country by Sydney based Australian automotive distributor, WMC Group.
The WMC Group secured the rights to distribute the Foton range of 4x2 and 4x4 utility vehicles with plans for the first vehicles to go on sale in Australia early next year. The Sydney based distributor said Australian Design Rule compliance and testing is currently underway and is due to be finalized within the next two months.
Foton’s as of yet unnamed for the local market 1-tonne pickup truck model will be motivated by a Cummins ISF 2.8-liter Euro 5 common rail turbo diesel delivering up to 120kW of power and 380 Nm of torque, or a Foton manufactured 2.4-litre petrol engine matched to a Getrag five-speed manual or ZF six speed automatic.
WMC said it is planning a range of six model variants including a 4x4 dual cab diesel, a 4x2 dual cab diesel, and a 4x2 dual cab petrol as well as a 4x2 extra cab diesel and 4x2 single cab models with either diesel or petrol power.
The dual cab model has an overall length of 5,310mm (209-in.), width of 1,880mm (74-in.) and height of 1,810mm (71.2-in.) with ground clearance of 220mm (8.7-in.).
Foton’s Australian distributor said the new Foton ute will be equipped with ABS+EBD along with dual front airbags, and it expects an ANCAP safety rating of at least 4-stars.
"Foton will be a game shifter in the ute sector delivering a sedan style interior on a wide body configuration boasting a full one tonne pay load and a three tonne towing capacity with power from Cummins, the world's largest and most experienced producer of diesel engines," said Jason Pecotic, managing director of WMC.
"Apart from those impressive specs the new Foton will be priced at a level that will be between 15 and 20 percent less than comparable models from Japanese manufacturers, making it a compelling proposition for buyers whether they are tradesmen, farmers, fleet operators or private buyers," Mr. Pecotic added.

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