JMC Weilong is awarded CToY 2018

On November 4, 2017, the award ceremony of the Chinese Truck of the Year (CToY) 2018 award took place in Wuhan, Hubei Province. After a series of tests and a jury vote, the Chinese Truck of the Year (CToY) 2018 was awarded to JMC Weilong, a new Chinese heavy-duty truck model. Mr. Gianenrico Griffini, chairman of the International Truck of the Year jury, Ms. Yang Lin, vice president of Automotive Industry Committee under China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Ms. Yu Jing, the Chinese Truck of the Year Chairwoman and president of the Commercial Vehicle magazine, representatives from manufacturers, and the automotive media witnessed the presentation of this prestigious award.

(From left to right) Ms. Yang Lin, vice president of Automotive Industry Committee under China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Mr. Gianenrico Griffini, chairman of the International Truck of the Year jury, Mr. Wu Xiaojun, JMC Vice President, and JMCH General Manager, Ms. Yu Jing, the Chinese Truck of the Year Chairwoman and president of the Commercial Vehicle magazine

Following the successful first CToY 2017, the Chinese Truck of the Year 2018 was kicked off in September 2017. Thanks to its professional assessment procedures and its international influence, the award attracts commercial vehicle manufactures in China, including Auman EST-A from BFDA, T7, a bonnet truck by Dongfeng Liuzhou Motor Co., Ltd., and the heavy-duty truck JMC Weilong  applied to join the assessment.

JMC Weilong: Chinese Truck of the Year (CToY) 2018

Chinese Truck of the Year (CToY) 2018 jury, consisting of IToY jury members, representatives from the Chinese commercial vehicle media, and customer representatives, conducted road test drives and static tests according to a multi-dimensional assessment system. The assessment, following the International Truck of the Year rules and Europe's 1,000 Point Test methods and considering the Chinese market needs, covers cab aerodynamics and interior designs, driving comfort, vehicle driveability, total ownership costs, safety, and driveline performance, which are divided into 26 items. The test data include acceleration time, driving noises, and braking distance. After test drives and assessments, the jury members scored and voted on the participating truck models with all the tests having been completed. JMC Weilong eventually emerged as the winner of the Chinese Truck of the Year 2018 award. EST-A from BFDA, T7, a bonnet truck by Dongfeng Liuzhou Motor Co., Ltd. won innovation awards thanks to their great performance in the tests and the innovative designs used in the models.

As the first strategic heavy-duty truck model manufactured jointly by JMC and Ford, JMC Weilong is a result of integrating Ford’s global R&D resources and JMC’s expertise. Engineering teams from JMC, Ford Europe, Ford North America, and JMC Heavy Trucks joined together in enhancing engine, cab and chassis performance for the model. Thanks to these technological enhancements, JMC Weilong deeply impressed the jury members with its power, acceleration, driving comfort and stable vehicle driveability. In the award presentation speech, Ms. Yu Jing said: “As a product created on a new platform with new concepts, JMC Weilong redefines the styles of China’s next-generation heavy-duty trucks by making breakthroughs in pioneering designs; adopts innovative, unique interior designs while providing the driving comfort for middle to long haul journeys; introduces diesel engines developed and manufactured with Ford technologies, uses the newest materials and processes, achieves lower noises, higher performance, and outstanding low-speed high torque, exhibits great starting and acceleration performance; takes advantage of multiple advanced technologies and configurations, achieving great cost efficiency by cost optimization and reasonable matching; and provides a level of total cost of ownership (TCO) that meets the needs of the Chinese market with the model’s extra long service cycles and warranty periods.”

After accepting the Chinese Truck of the Year (CToY) 2018 award, Wu Xiaojun, JMC Vice President, and JMCH General Manager, said at the presentation: “First of all, I would like to thank the jury members for their recognition of JMC Heavy Trucks. As a new player in the industry, JMC Heavy Trucks is privileged to be the winner of the CToY 2018, an award that is objective, fair, and strict in its assessments.” “JMC Heavy Trucks proposes the idea of 'Heavy Truck Heroes' because we not only understand what trucks the modern logistics industry needs, but also have deep insights into the needs of the drivers. They shoulder both social and family responsibilities. They are the real heroes. So today’s award is actually presented to them. We look forward to working with the heroes in jointly shouldering the responsibilities and building a common future,” he added.

As a special invited guest, Mr. Gianenrico Griffini, chairman of the International Truck of the Year jury attended the awarding ceremony for the second time. He brought the best wishes from the IToY jury members, saying that “The IToY jury focuses on China for multiple reasons. First, China is the world’s largest commercial vehicle market. Second, it is also one of the largest economies in the world and will soon become the largest. And finally China is in a transition of energy sources for vehicles. The IToY jury, therefore, wants to be kept updated about what is happening in the Chinese market.”

The CToY award has always enjoyed support from Automotive Industry Committee under China Council for the Promotion of International Trade. Ms. Yang Jing, vice president of the Automotive Industry Committee said that the CToY award has been held successfully in two years and her organization hoped that the award will continue to help improve Chinese trucks with objective and fair assessments.”

About Chinese Truck of the Year 2018

Chinese Truck of the Year (CToY) was created by the Commercial Vehicle magazine in 2015 by learning from the successful experience of the International Truck of the Year (IToY) award. CToY is an innovative award that considers the commercial media and road and transportation circumstances in China. It honors Chinese trucks introduced in the past 12 month period that make the biggest contribution to road transportation efficiency, including technological innovation, comfort, safety, driveability, fuel economy, clean and environmental protection, and total cost of ownership (TCO). The award assessment, following the IToY rules, selects the benchmark Chinese truck models according to a set of objective, professional, and strict rules, highlights the real strength of Chinese trucks, and helps improve their overall quality.

About the International Truck of the Year 

The International Truck of the Year (IToY) award was originally launched in 1977 by the British journalist and editor of TRUCK magazine Pat Kennett. Today, the 25 jury members represent leading commercial  vehicle magazines throughout Europe. Moreover, in the last few years, the IToY Group has extended its sphere of influence by appointing "associate members’" in the growing truck markets of China, India, South Africa, Australia, Brazil, Japan, and Iran,. The Commercial Vehicle magazine became an associate member in April 2014. Altogether, the combined truck-operator readership of the 25 IToY full-jury members’ magazines, as well as those of its seven associate members, exceeds 950,000.