Here is Mobius 3, Kenya’s most promising car
At first, it built a boxy, basic, no frills entry-level SUV designed for the rugged terrains of the African continent.
Then it stepped up in the second design of Mobius 2, paying more attention to aesthetics, but kept the original look and feel of a robust space-frame, rugged suspension and bankable body durability to handle rough roads.
And now, Kenya’s homegrown automaker is back with Mobius 3, which has a modern iconic design with the look and feel of any high-end motor vehicle coming out of any other factory of a globally acclaimed manufacturer.
For car enthusiasts, the Mobius 3, being sold for Sh3.9 million, excluding VAT, promises to give imported SUVs a run for their money. This is three times the Sh1.3 million charged for the Mobius 2.
Mobius Motors Limited Chief Operating Officer Nicolas Guibert (right) makes a point to Cabinet Secretary for Industry, Trade and Enterprise Development Betty Maina about the locally manufactured Mobius vehicle on April 23, 2020.
With a four-cylinder engine, six-speed automatic transmission and five doors, the Mobius 3 has kept its iconic image intact but made it cleaner for the car owner who is keen on looks. The company is now running a pre-order campaign. One only needs a Sh50,000 deposit to fill the pre-order form and book a unit.
The new machine runs on a petrol engine, has ground clearance of 210mm, a double wishbone front suspension and a 5-link leaf spring rear suspension with a tare weight of 2,110 kg, which is one and a half times the average for current pickups in the market. The new model is also a step up from the Mobius 2, which had a tare weight of 1650 kg.
The Mobius 2 also only had three doors, compared with 5 doors for the latest version, giving it more head and legroom for a big family.
If this does not make it sell, then the engine performance might just be the big deal for the new machine. While engine output for the Mobius 2 was 98 kilowatt (KW) at 5,600 revolutions per minute (rpm), the latest version is rolling off the manufacturing line with an engine output of 160KW at 5,500 rpm.
Cabinet Secretary for Industry, Trade and Enterprise Development Betty Maina disembarks from locally manufactured Mobius vehicle in Nairobi on April 23, 2020.
The new Mobius 3 comes with an engine capacity of 2,000cc and 75 litres of fuel capacity. The old model had 1,789cc and had a fuel capacity of 55 litres.
With the new model, Mobius is targeting a piece of the growing middle class in Kenya, by providing a new car with better functionalities than imported second-hand SUVs, but at a relatively competitive price point. Most second-hand SUV’s retail at between Sh2.5 million and Sh4.5 million, while new SUVs start at above Sh6 million.
The Mobius brand is designed, manufactured and sold in Kenya. The company says the core structural element of the Mobius 2 is a robust steel space-frame mounted onto a longitudinal ladder chassis.
“Combined with a sealed solid rear axle, which lowers the centre of gravity, the construction underpins excellent vehicle handling while still maintaining high ground clearance. The space-frame architecture provides added passenger protection and supports optimal weight balancing across the vehicle,” it adds.
The company said Mobius 2 model orders had exceeded target, after the 50 first-generation units of the vehicle, which prides itself as Africa’s cheapest, had sold out, forcing it to double production to at least 100 units to meet increased demand.
Interior Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho next to the Mobius 2 vehicle with University Education Principal Secretary Professor Collette Suda at Harambee House, Nairobi on July 10, 2019.
The Mobius 3 comes as the company is facing serious financial constraints. In March, Mobius Motors sought court protection from the tax demands of the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) on the grounds that the tax bills may force it to shut down.
The High Court stopped KRA from demanding a Sh73 million tax from the firm due to its financial constraints.
Since its launch in 2014, Mobius Motors has produced less than 80 test vehicles and is among a number of African firms hoping for a slice of the continent’s largely underdeveloped market for new cars.
The taxman had moved on the firm to execute a July 30, 2020 decision of the Tax Appeals Tribunal that allowed it to demand the debt from the company, a subsidiary of Mobius Motors Ltd UK. BY DAILY NATION
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