April 1, 2021
THE WITNESS
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Fords all victorious Neil Woolridge Motorsport has six reasons to smile after a very successful Mpumalanga 400 ALWYN VILJOEN and CHARMAINE FORTUNE The all-new Ranger that was designed and built by Neil Woolridge Motorsport (NWM) to the standards set by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) had a dream debut with first and third places in the Mpumalanga 400 hosted in Dullstroom. Lance Woolridge and co-driver Elvéne Vonk (#334) powered their way to the fastest time on last Friday’s opening qualifying sprint, and then went on to secure the overall win on Saturday afternoon, giving the new Ford Castrol Cross Country Team maximum points. Gareth Woolridge and Boyd Dreyer joined their team-mates on the FIA podium in third place. In the middle was Hillcrest-based multiple SA National Rally Champion, Guy Botterill, who showed his class by finishing second in the FIA Class and third overall with navigator Brett Cummings (7:57,06) in only his second SACCS outing, following a warm-up at the Barberspan 400. Botterill agreed to stand in for Toyota Gazoo Racing team-mate Henk Lategan, who is still growing back the collar bone he snapped during a spectacular tail-over-nose roll in the Dakar. An elated Lance Woolridge said after the race: “It was a really tough event, but the car handled everything we threw at it, and I’ve been very impressed with how it performed.” Brother Gareth Woolridge was equally enthralled by the pace of the new EcoBoost-powered Ford Castrol NWM Ranger. “Having both Rangers on the podium at the first race is amazing for a brand new vehicle that is a completely new design,” Gareth said. “The entire team put in a monumental effort, working late nights and weekends to get the cars ready in time, and to back this up with first and third is a great accomplishment for everyone. “We weren’t quite on the pace on Friday, but managed to go quicker on Saturday and felt really good in the car. “We hit a tree on the first loop on Saturday morning and were worried that it would end our race, but the Ranger is tough and only picked up some minor bodywork damage, so we were pleased to finish third.” More Fords at the finish Ford had further reason to celebrate, as all four NWM-supported privateer Class T Rangers that entered the Mpumalanga 400 completed the arduous event. Malcolm and Frans Kock (#T04) finished second, ahead of Christo Rose and Arno Olivier (#T58) in third — a commendable performance considering it was the latter crew’s first outing in the Production Vehicle category aft-
LEVIES ADD TO FUEL PRICE RISE The General Fuel Levy and Road Accident Fund added 27 cents to last night’s increases in fuel prices, which raised petrol by 73 cents a litre, diesel by 39 cents a litre and 37 cents a litre for illuminating paraffin. This means ULP 95 petrol will cost some R17,32 in Gauteng, surpassing the previous high of R17,08 set in late 2018, said the Automobile Association(AA). It also means motorists are paying R5,96 per litre of fuel to the General Fuel and RAF levies, or that between 35% and 40% of every litre of petrol or diesel goes to taxes. The association said that the increases to the fuel prices would have widespread negative consequences for everyone in the country, not just for motorists. “We can only stress again the severe additional damage these increases will do to household budgets, both directly and indirectly as the increased transport costs ripple throughout the value chain. “Increased public transport fares will surely also not be far off either,” the AA said.
The Mercedes-Benz range of Vito vans sets new standards for lifestyle buyers of double cab bakkies in terms of space, luxury and frugal engines, and they are a lot easier to park at the shopping mall. PHOTO: MOTORPRESS
Facelifted Vitos trump double cabs where it counts ALWYN VILJOEN
LEFT: Lance Woolridge and Elvéne Vonk raced the all-new Ranger built in Pietermaritzburg by NWM (see above) to an overall win in the Mpumalanga 400 hosted in Dullstroom. PHOTO: QUICKPIC
er moving up from the side-by-side class for this season. Wors Prinsloo and Andre Vermeulen (#T41) brought their NWM Ford Ranger V8 home in fourth place, followed by Bernard and Minette Johnstone (#T22) in their first race in the Ranger. The recently launched Ford NWM Development Team of Wiseman Gumede and Fanifani Meyiwa used the Mpumalanga 400 as an opportunity to learn the ins and outs of cross country racing, under the guidance of team mentor Ward Huxtable, in preparation for their upcoming first race. Win in Dullstroom, sell in the world The rocky, often rain-soaked 450 km Dullstroom route is well-known for taxing cars and drivers to the breakdown
point. This year was no different, with 18 of the 41 entries either limping or being towed back to the bivouac, thanks to broken side shafts, gearboxes and electrical problems. Apart from that bounce off a tree, the FIA Fords built by NWM suffered no problems. Powered by a 3,5-litre twin-turbo V6 EcoBoost engine instead of the well-loved but thirsty V8, these were the first vehicles to compete in South Africa under the FIA’s new turbocharged petrol regulations for international cross country racing — and one of the first in the world. This makes the two podiums and four finishes in Dullstroom the best possible advertising for Woolridge, whose business in “Sleepy Hollow” builds and exports off-road cars to
teams around the world. For NWM team principal Neil Woolridge, achieving first and third place in the premier FIA-class with the all-new Ranger is nothing short of a dream result, having started designing the new vehicle in 2019. “It has been a long road, but this makes it all worth it,” Neil said. “Winning first time out with our Ranger V8 in 2013 and now with our new Ranger is a very special achievement. “We were the first team internationally to design and develop a new car based on the FIA’s new turbo petrol regulations, and although Covid-19 delayed our launch by about nine months, we have been working exceptionally hard behind the scenes to produce a package that is capable of winning,” Neil added. “What’s really exciting for me is that there is still a lot more to come, and this has set the groundwork for our next development steps with this car.” The only sad news is that the fans will not be able to line the bends when the cross country racers come to the
Beaumont Eston Farmers’ Club in the KZN Midlands for the Sugarbelt 400 on May 21 to 22. But the action can be followed on the Rallystage app and The Witness will be covering the event. Mpumalanga 400 overall results FIA class Lance Woolridge/Elvéne Vonk (Ford Ranger) 7:51,12 Guy Botterill/Brett Cummings (Toyota Hilux) 7:57,06 Gareth Woolridge/Boyd Dreyer (Ford Ranger) 7:58,38 Class T Johan and Werner Horn (Toyota Hilux) 7:54,58 Malcolm and Frans Kock (Ford Ranger) 8:13,47 Christo Rose/Anro Olivier (Ford Ranger) 8:45,30 Specials (Class A and Class G) Lance Trethewey/Adriaan Roets (Bat Venom) 7:54,50 Dean Bradbury/Timmy Botes (Can-Am Maverick) 8:20,58 Werner and Leon Mostert, (Can-Am Maverick) 8:32,15
Fleet management now available for all Hino trucks Hino South Africa announced that a full fleet management system, HinoConnect, will be installed as a standard fitment on all Hino trucks sold in South Africa from today. This includes the popular Dyna, 300, 500 and 700 models. The telematic system is provided in a joint venture with Cartrack, an international mobility solutions provider, that has a 17-year history with its roots in South Africa before expanding to 23 other countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the United States. “This comprehensive telematics
solution includes a three-year subscription from date of fitment and will be an important, additional tool to ensure we continue to provide the highest levels of customer satisfaction,” said Ernie Trautmann, vice president of Hino South Africa. He said Hino-Connect will provide three sets of data: • Positional data for tracking and recovery as well as distances travelled. • Vehicle performance data including fuel consumption, oil and water temperatures and speed. • Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC)
fault reporting direct to Hino SA and the dealer concerned, who will know what is wrong before getting to the vehicle, thereby enabling quicker reaction time to get the vehicle back on the road. All data is stored for five years, with the last six months’ data available immediately. “Hino-Connect means we can monitor a truck’s operating life before preparing it for resale, and in view of the high resale value of a Hino truck we will be able to offer favourable buyback rates,” added Trautmann.
Harry Louw, Cartrack’s CEO, says that his company is the only mobility solutions provider in South Africa which has everything it offers inhouse, from installation and after sales service through over 600 mobile workshops, field training, specialist onboarding teams, its own exclusive stolen vehicle recovery infrastructure, and the engineering skills to access and deliver the data required by Hino. He said the technology has proven its robustness and reliability in over 1,3 million vehicles across 23 countries. — WR.
In my bakkie-driving family, I am the odd one out, what with my mantra that panel vans are the best bakkies. I learned this lesson lugging loads in a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter. In a van, one does not need to crawl to reach things under the cramped canopy, or struggle to heave boxes onto the high load bed. And because the truth will out, more family men are now starting to see sense in a van instead of a double cab. If you have to have a vehicle that fits into no known parking bay this side of Sedna, it may as well be one with ergonomics that have been refined by over 1,6 million professional van drivers in Europe, as is the case with Merc’s range of Vito vans. Merc recently gave the range a facelift, with a new grill — with or without the chrome option — new seat material; a shiny piano lacquer finish that looks lekker on the dash; and on the floor, a heavyduty, waterproof covering makes light of muddy shoes. The biggest update, however, is not on the eye, but the ear, as the infotainment systems now boasts a digital radio, ensuring interference-free radio reception even on the N1 past De Aar. The Audio 10 system also has a Bluetooth interface with hands-free functionality or for streaming music. The new Audio 30 and Audio 40 infotainment systems meet many customer requirements, with a 7-inch touchscreen with Smartphone Integration via Apple CarPlay™ and Android Auto. A smartphone can be charged via the USB interface. Eleven models to choose from The Vito range is sold in three variants — three panel vans, two Mixto vans and six Tourers. The panel vans start at R574 041 and go up R677 085, and all come standard with air bags and seat belt reminders for both the driver and co-driver. Also standard are Merc’s assist programmes to handle crosswinds and monitor the driv-
Engines Two frugal 4-cylinder diesel burners drive the vans, a 1598 cc that makes 84 kW and 270 Nm; and a 2143 cc tuned to deliver either 100 kW/330 Nm; 120 kW/380 Nm or 140 kW/440 Nm. All-new Mercedes-Benz Vito facelift vehicles come standard with a five-year or 100 000 km Service Care Best Basic contract. The contract includes the following. • The labour to perform the service. • The cost of all oils and lubricants for the engine, gearbox and axles. • The cost of air and fuel filters. Mercedes-Benz Service Care offerings are designed to give operators and drivers peace of mind and ensure that their Vito continues to deliver outstanding performance. Service Care Complete The Mercedes-Benz Service Care Complete is an all-inclusive maintenance package that offers additional comprehensive protection for the Vito facelift, resulting in increased certainty, mobility, muchneeded predictability and flexibility. The package covers all items that are included in the Service Care Best Basic plan, as well as wear-and-tear repairs (e.g. brakes, battery, clutch, suspension, oil), for a fixed cost. In addition, the Complete Care offering adds value by including the warranty of nearly all parts and assemblies (e.g. engine, transmission, electrical components, axles and air-conditioning) and roadside assistance. The contracts cover any repairs required during the routine operation of the vehicle, but does not cater for any components damaged due to external influences or acts of nature. The Service Care packages cover all items as prescribed by the manufacturer’s service schedule for the stipulated kilometres and/or period of the contract.
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Volkswagen’s future is electric in U.S. Volkswagen Group of America has officially changed the name of its U.S. brand from Volkswagen of America to Voltswagen of America. Scott Keogh, president and CEO of Voltswagen of America said in a statement the new branding is more than just a name change, but that the name Voltswagen is a public declaration of the company’s long-term commitment to e-mobility. ‘Volts are the derived units for the electric potential between two points. The new name and branding represent the turbocharged forward momentum Voltswagen has created in pursuit of its goal of moving all people point-to-point with EVs [electric vehicles],’ said Keogh. ‘We might be changing out our K for a T, but what we aren’t changing is this brand’s commitment to making best-in-class vehicles for drivers and people everywhere,’ said Keogh. ‘The idea of a ‘people’s car’ is the very fabric of our being. We have said, from the beginning of our shift to an electric future, that we will build EVs for the millions, not just millionaires. This name change signifies a nod to our past as the peoples’ car and our firm belief that our future is in being the peoples’ electric car.’ — WR.
er’s attention. The Mixto models sell from R688 489 and the Tourers start at R621 283 for the base 111, and go up to R1 109 788 for the Tourer 119 Select.
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Virtual Simola’s first round winners The Virtual Knysna Simola Hillclimb completed its first round of action with Lorenzo Gualtieri emerging from a fierce battle as the winner by a narrow 0,041 of a second over former Group N racing champion Charl Wilken. The opening round of the series emulated the Classic Car Friday (CCF) element of the real event with participants having to drive the iconic Lotus 49. Adriaan Nel took the early lead of round one with a time of 38,500 seconds, but from Wednesday the competition intensified
with the leading SIM racers starting to break the 37-second barrier. Early leader Nel, Wilken and Gaultieri swapped the lead multiple times over the remaining days. Wilken was heading towards the win until the final day when Gaultieri set a very quick 36,694 seconds to clinch victory. Gaultieri and Wilken were the only two competitors to break the 36-second barrier, but it was all extremely close with the top seven racers finishing within one second of each other. Over 100 competitors joined the
opening round, with Monarch Events having set up 10 online Assetto Corsa Servers, enabling 50 competitors to play online at any one time. Round two started on March 29 and ends on Sunday, with the drivers in a Tatuus FA01 single seater. Round three will run from April 5 to 11, and Round Four — the final qualifying round — from April 12 to 18. The scores from all four rounds will produce the Top 10 competitors to qualify for the finals on May 8 and 9. — Witness Reporter.
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