Quantum of solace – a million kilometres on!
He said he had heard of a few other cars reaching the one million mark in other dealerships, but that it was a first for his workshop.
Taxi owner Njabulo Sikhosana’s 14 year old Toyota Quantum is a vehicle of legend.
Aside from the thousands of commuters it has transported over the years, it has also clocked up an astonishing one million kilometres.
Yes, one million.
The Quantum recently had its ‘one million kilometre’ service at Halfway Toyota Shelly Beach.
Njabulo, who lives in Merlewood, has been a loyal customer of Toyota’s, as was his father before him.
The vehicle, which operates as a taxi between Port Shepstone and Murchison, was purchased in 2007.
This was when Toyota’s dealership was in Aiken street in Port Shepstone.
“As far as I know, I have never heard of any car reaching a million kilometres. I service it here at Toyota and by servicing it at its home dealership, the taxi will always stay in good condition,” said Njabulo.
Service manager Rajin Reddy has been with the company for 35 years.
He said he had heard of a few other cars reaching the one million mark in other dealerships, but that it was a first for his workshop.
“I’ve heard of this happening at other dealerships but not frequently. We are often repairing vehicles that have been in accidents or recovered from theft, or sometimes just been abused by their owners,” said Rajin.
“So when one driver has been using the same vehicle for this period of time, it means he obviously looks after it. Such maintenance is rare to see. We’d like to think our service department had a role to play in the Quantum’s longevity.”
Njabulo inherited the taxi after his father’s death and never had a doubt about changing who would service it.
The Quantum has never missed a service, never even been late for one.
“You have to take care of your vehicle in order for it to take care of you. Always service it on time and make sure everything is in order,” said Njabulo.
“It’s never been in an accident aside from a little fender bender. I have had it resprayed and changed the front to make it look more modern.”
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