Wheels_4July2016

August 4, 2016

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Witness

WHEELS

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L A T I CAP ays Saturd 9­10 am

CARS WANTED Contact Ash 083 786 3377 • Tel: 033 342 4717 / 033 345 1971 Email: ashgani@telkomsa.net •www.ashcarsales.co.za

KWAZULU­NATAL’S BEST READ ON ALL THINGS WHEELED

INSIDE:

Namibians look at SUNPOWER for taxis and bicycles.

PAGE 6

Learn the BEST FORMULA to transport tourists all over Africa. PAGE 4

Win tickets to the weekend’s STATE OF STANCE at the Pavillion! PAGE 2

FUTURE TRANSPORT will be very different, like this AT Black Knight Transformer, but it will also create many new jobs. PAGE 5

There is a new BUDGET BAKKIE in town. PAGE 7

Pre-owned

Some choices are easier than others.

Visit Audi Centre Pietermaritzburg today for incredible offers on a range of Audi demo models.

Only while stocks last, terms and conditions apply.

Vote yes to economy, efficiency, and a redefined driving experience! Audi is synonymous with “advancement through technology”, promising years of style, comfort, and safe motoring, guaranteed. Visit Audi Centre Pietermaritzburg today to test drive your favourite vehicle, and ask about our affordable tailored deals.

Let us help you make your mark in an Audi.

Ref

Year

Vehicle Description

Colour

Mileage

Special Price

11410

2015

Audi A4 2.0T FSI Design S tronic

White

6 000 km

R489 995

11471

2016

Audi A6 1.8T FSI S tronic

White

10 000 km

R479 995

11474

2016

Audi A4 2.0T FSI Design S tronic

Red

1 000 km

R399 995

11486

2015

Audi A6 1.8T FSI S tronic

White

26 500 km

R539 995

11494

2015

Audi A3 Sportback 1.4T FSI

Blue

36 400 km

R299 995

11495

2014

Audi Q5 2.0 TDI Q S tronic

White

80 156 km

R399 995

11496

2010

Audi S4 Q 245kW S tronic

Silver

116 000 km

R249 995

11497

2013

Audi A3 1.4T FSI 90kW

Silver

97 130 km

R199 995

11501

2014

Audi A3 1.2T FSI 77kW

Red

50 000 km

R259 995

11504

2013

Audi A4 1.8T FSI 125kW

Grey

86 000 km

R250 000

11513

2015

Audi RS3 SB 270kW quattro

White

18 000 km

R725 000

11522

2012

Audi A4 1.8T FSI 125kW

White

87 000 km

R220 000

11524

2016

Audi A4 2.0T FSI S tronic

Silver

11 000 km

R499 995

11525

2016

Audi A4 2.0T FSI S tronic

White

3 000 km

R419 995

11526

2016

Audi A4 2.0T FSI Design S tronic

Grey

2 000 km

R449 995

11527

2016

Audi A4 2.0T FSI Sport S tronic

Red

1 000 km

R479 995

11528

2016

Audi A4 1.4T FSI Sport S tronic

Red

1 000 km

R479 995

11530

2011

Audi RS5 Coupe quattro

Black

77 620 km

R499 995

11532

2015

Audi A4 2.0 TDI SE

Grey

18 244 km

R339 995

Audi Centre Pietermaritzburg Nathi Mncube • Sharon Mpulo • Imdaad Hoosan • New Vehicle Sales Manager: Prunella Naidoo Mandla Mkhize • Mark van Rijsbergen • Anwar Charfaray • Pre-owned Manager: Riaz Mahomed

BP Advertising

9 Armitage Road, Pietermaritzburg, 3201. Tel: 033 397 8800. www.audipietermaritzburg.co.za

2

WitnessWheels MOTORING

August 4, 2016

Motoring spectacular

V WIN WITH WHEELS

Pavillion to host top bikers, stunt drivers and drifters tomorrow THE Pavillion Shopping Centre is host­ ing “A State of Stance”, billed as KZN’s biggest annual motoring and lifestyle show.

The two­day motoring spectacular brings together a collection of the world’s most exciting motoring enter­ tainment on offer, both on the track and off.

Wheelie Bikes will entertain while pushing the boundaries of what’s possi­ ble with astounding one­wheel antics.

Trick bike champion Brian Capper will take the skill of riding to a new level on custom ramps and rigs, alongside Drift Trike stunts and a meet and greet by Capper.

On four wheels the Land Rover Twin Terrapod astounds with a surreal obsta­ cle climbing display, and rolling burn­ outs from Custom Rat Rods push the octane dial even higher.

KZN’s legendary spin pioneer Reece Williamson and members of the East Coast RC Drift Club will put their cus­ tom vehicles through hair­raising turns, handbrakes locked and wheels sliding free.

Between the roar of engines the SA Strong Man challenge takes place, con­ trasting metal with muscle.

Adding to off­track entertainment a super car exhibition allows visitors to get up close to the most breathtaking vehi­ cles from all over South Africa, and the Dynos Sound Off pushes the limits of vehicle stereo sound in a fun­filled stereo versus stereo battle.

No speed festival is complete without

New models

Trick bike champion Brian Capper, seen here riding over the Moses Mabhida stadium, will take the skill of riding to a new level on custom ramps and rigs at the Pavillion on the weekend. PHOTO: REDBULL getting your hands dirty. Show organis­ ers have laid on a canvas of vehicles wait­ ing to be sprayed in a splash of vehicle graffiti. And for the little ones, face painting brings the colour home.

“We want to give the public the full motoring experience,” said event orga­ niser Prethiven Naidoo. “A State of Stance is about value for money. We

want visitors to not just watch but take part too. It’s a feast for the eyes and the heart.” said Naidoo.

“The Pavillion Shopping centre has always been focused on family,” said gen­ eral manger Nisha Kemraj.

“In this sense A State of Stance is a highlight of the year for us, and for the families that flock to experience it. We

can’t wait to welcome visitors to a truly outstanding weekend.”

The show opens on Saturday at 9 am, with the rock concert running until 2 am, and the action resumes on Sunday at 9 am and continues to 5 pm.

— Wheels Reporter.

Ticket prices: Kids under 12 enter free

Pensioners: R50 Family: reduced ticket price of R290 for four people Petrolhead ticket: R90 Saturday Motor and Concert: R180 VIP Saturday: R350 VIP Sunday: R250 Tickets are available from Computicket or at the gate on the day.

Local car sales grim, but exports are looking up for SA ALWYN VILJOEN

The facelifted Mercedes­AMG CLA 45 4MATIC Coupé is among the most powerful vehicles in its segment, with a peak performance of 280 kW and maximum torque of 475 Nm. A new diesel in the CLA range makes 100 kW and 300 Nm torque, but this 200d gives 4,4 l/100 km. CO2 emissions stand at 114 g/km. Prices for the five models in the CLA range start at R445k for the CLA 200 and go up to R833k for the AMG CLA 45 4MATIC.

One reader can win a family ticket to A State of Stance.

For a chance to win the four tickets, answer who KZN’s legendary spin pioneer is.

E­mail answers to alwyn.viljoen@ witness.co.za before tomorrow noon, when the draw will take place and the winner will be notified.

WHAT do the Ferrari 488 GTB, BMW i3, Jaguar XE and Mahin­ dra Genio have in common?

These models all sold seven units last month, according the Na­ tional Association of Automo­ bile Manufacturers (Naamsa).

The association reports July’s aggregate new vehicle sales are 17% down on those of July last year. Still, the country sold 44 883 vehicles locally and ex­ ported 29 042.

The export figure of 684 vehi­ cles is a marginal improvement of 2,4% compared to July last year. The car rental industry ac­ counted for 18,5% of new cars sold during July.

Head of Standard Bank Vehi­ cle and Asset Finance Nicholas Nkosi said even though the aver­ age price paid for a passenger last month increased from R295 976 in July 2015 to R296 500, the

The Toyota Hilux is still SA’s best selling vehicle, with 3 153 units sold locally, compared to the next best seller, the VW Polo Vivo, at 2 452 units.

PHOTO: QUICKPIC

bank is still seeing a shift towards the pre­owned/used vehicles.

Nkosi said this trend is not likely to change in the short to medium term.

Sales of bakkies, minibuses and trucks — traditionally seen

as a barometer of the economy — have also fallen, with medium commercial vehicles showing a decline of 117 units (13,9%) and heavy trucks and buses a modest decline of 95 vehicles (5,7%) compared to the corresponding

month last year. Locally the Hi­ lux outsold the Ranger by 848 units this month, with 3 153 units sold during July. That means on average 126 Hilux bakkies were sold a day in July with its extra weekend.

The Prospecton plant is cur­ rently also making good on the R6,1 billion investment on a line to build the new Hilux and For­ tuner, with 6 035 Hilux units ex­ ported last month.

Naamsa commented that the rest of the year was likely to be grim, due to double­digit new ve­ hicle price increases in response to earlier rand weakness, relative­ ly high interest rates and fragile consumer and business confi­ dence at a time of rising retrench­ ments across a number of sec­ tors.

The cloud of bad news had two silver linings — yesterday’s sig­ nificant drop in the fuel price, and more exports thanks to that weak rand.

Naamsa predicts the car facto­ ries should therefore hold steady, with 2016 export sales numbers expected to expand to around 351 000 units from the 333 802 export sales in 2015.

New nanolithia cathode battery does not ‘breathe’ oxygen Next year’s Aston Martin is called the DB11 and it will force air into the 12 pistons with twin turbos to deliver more power (447 kW and 700 Nm). It won’t burble like the DB9, but goes from zero to 100 km/h in 3,8 seconds.

A NEW battery concept, called a nanolithia cathode battery, is described in the journal Nature Energy in a paper by Ju Li, the Battelle Energy Alliance Profes­ sor of Nuclear Science and En­ gineering at MIT; postdoc Zhi Zhu; and five others at MIT, Argonne National Laboratory, and Peking University in China.

In the paper Li explains a major shortcoming of lithium­

air batteries is difference in voltages between charging and discharging, with the output voltage 1,2 or more volts lower than the charging voltage.

This means 30% of the electrical energy is lost as heat during charging, said Li. Con­ ventional lithium­air batteries draw in oxygen to drive a chemical reaction with the battery’s lithium during the

discharge cycle, and release the oxygen during the charging cycle. In the new battery, the same electrochemical reactions between lithium and oxygen take place during charging and discharging, but the oxygen stays inside the battery and transforms directly between its three redox states, while bound in the form of three different solid chemical com­

pounds, Li2O, Li2O2, and LiO2, which are mixed together in the form of a glass. Li said the new battery loses only eight percent of the electrical energy as heat. “This means faster charging for cars, as heat removal from the battery pack is less of a safety con­ cern, as well as energy effi­ ciency benefits,” Li said.

The new battery is also in­

herently protected from over­ charging, as the chemical reac­ tion is self­limiting. “With a typical battery, if you over­ charge it, it can cause irrevers­ ible structural damage or even explode,” Li said, adding they overcharged the battery for 15 days, to a hundred times its capacity, but there was no damage at all.

— Wheels Reporter.

MOTORING WitnessWheels

August 4, 2016

3

German quality and a great drive BRIAN BASSETT drives the VW Jetta 1,4TSI Comfortline Manual THE Jetta has been with us since 1979 and is produced to fill the sedan niche above the Golf Hatchback.

It uses the Volkswagen’s proven Group A platform. Now into its sixth generation, the car has grown over the years and now barely fits into the C­Segment. It does, however, remain a fine, compact, family car and nine models are currently available in South Africa. We offer our thanks to Keith Abrahams, dealer principal at Barons Pietermaritzburg, for allow­ ing us a few days with the vehicle.

STYLING The Jetta is a handsome car, although you may not be overwhelmed by its styling. However, in a world over­ done with curves, crests and ersatz chrome, it commands respect. The car’s appeal lies in its visual durability and it will still look relevant in a dec­ ade.

Updates in 2015 have kept it fresh without altering the basic design. At the front the new three­bar grille dips down into the colour­coded bumper and is met on either side by the styl­ ish headlights. Volkswagen offers bi­ xenon lights as optional and, given South African road conditions they appear a useful buy.

The entire front end is designed with air­flow management and sub­ sequent fuel saving in mind, while the rear end has large, wrap­around tail­light clusters and a new aerody­ namically friendly boot lid, with inte­ grated, trailing edge spoiler.

The overall impression is one of tasteful durability and lasting quality.

INTERIOR The cabin is as straightforward as the exterior and almost minimalist in its design. It is composed with clean lines and well­organised controls. In a hectic, traffic­filled world, it presents the driver and passengers with a clam, spacious oasis. The big, round gauges placed in front of the driver are typically Volkswagen and the gear lever is capped with an at­ tractive, metallic strip.

The driver’s seat and the new mul­ tifunction steering wheel, added in 2015 are both fully adjustable, while the other seats, covered in a heavy, apparently durable cloth, are made for comfort during both short and long journeys.

One of the most impressive interi­ or features is the fact that the car is not at all constraining. The Jetta has more room than some mid­size se­ dans I have driven. The rear seats ac­ commodate even the long­legged and large, like me, comfortably and the rear doors open wide to allow easy entrance and exit. There is a moderate amount of small­item storage and a deep, spacious glove box. The centre console contains two cup holders, which are complement­ ed by two moulded bottle holders in the front doors. Interior finishes are in textured plastics and the multi­ function steering wheel with all the usual controls is a pleasure to handle.

The centrally placed 6,5­inch

touch screen operates the radio­ AUX­CD­MP3, eight­speaker audio system and several other toys in the more expensive models. The system also features an SD card reader and Bluetooth facility.

Boot space can without exaggera­ tion be described as large and up to mid­size sedan standards. With the rear seats folded down, the boot space doubles and the car provides one of the largest storage spaces in its class. Rear­seat movement is con­ trolled from the boot and the flat­ seat folding mechanism is easy to op­ erate.

SAFETY AND SECURITY The Jetta has a Euro NCap 5­star rat­ ing, which makes it a safe car.

The safety features list is long, with the main features being the elec­ tronic stability programme, hill­hold control, a multilink independent rear suspension and six air bags.

There are seat belts for all and a front passenger air bag deactivation option, as well Isofix attachments for child seats. Then there is the usual central locking and factory­fitted alarm.

PERFORMANCE AND HANDLING The Jetta’s four­cylinder, 1 390 cc, petrol engine puts out 92 kW and 200 Nm, making it quite powerful, despite its family car image. Zero to 100 km/h comes up in around 9,7 sec­ onds and top speed is around 200 km/h. The six­speed manual gearbox is easy to operate and pro­ vides a pleasant sense of being in control, but, should you enjoy auto drive, a six­speed auto box is also an option.

I am always reluctant to quote fuel­ consumption figures because so much depends on driving style and terrain. However, driving the car hard on both good and bad roads gave us an overall figure of 6,7 litres per 100 km, which is very good for a car of this size.

The 1,4­litre power plant is sweet and the transmission is impressive and refined. The independent sus­ pension on all four wheels puts this car among the best handlers in its class. It has excellent control, even on the roughest D­roads and the electric power steering is precise, with immediate feedback.

VW also has the advantage of its Germanic background in suspension tuning. The brakes, which I used sev­ eral times on very bad roads, had a strong, confident and deep feel, which is inspirational.

The car is as excellent on good roads, as on bad and it will collect the kids and do the shopping, as well as see the relations in Johannesburg.

On the N3, the Jetta performs well, although with a 1,4­litre engine you either keep the revs up or work the gears. Passing long loads also re­ quires forward planning, but general­ ly the Jetta is a pleasure to drive.

COSTS AND THE COMPETITION The VW Jetta TSI Comfortline Man­

ual will set you back around R325 000. The auto will cost about R16 000 extra. The car comes with a factory guarantee and a five­ year/90 000 km service plan.

Also look at the Ford Focus, Maz­ da 3, Opel Astra, Toyota Corolla, and Kia Cerato.

The Jetta’s independent suspension on all wheels puts this car among the best handlers in its class.

PHOTO: QUICKPIC

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These payments are indications only and may change depending on date of first payment etc. Changes in the prime rate, currently 10.50%, will cause changes to this schedule unless calculated on a ‘Fixed Rate’ basis. Customer responsible for Balloon Payment when and if applicable. Subject to normal credit approval as per JLR FS credit criteria. Retail prices subject to change without notice. Advertised monthly payment includes initiation fee of R1197.00 and R68.40 monthly service fee. Terms and conditions apply and while stocks last. Land Rover Financial Services, a product of WesBank. WesBank is a division of FirstRand Bank Limited. An Authorised Financial Services and Credit Provider. NCRCP20.

4

WitnessWheels OFFROAD MOTORING

August 4, 2016

Adventure in a truck The Nomad tours have covered sub­Saharan Africa for 20 years

From Australia, the Off Grid camper that has it all, including a double bed and an Italian leather couch for a child (inset), but at the price of a luxury SUV. PHOTO: LOTUS

All the comforts, wherever you go C.C. WEISS LAUNCHED earlier this year, the Off Grid is one of the newest models from Australia’s Lotus Caravans, an off­road caravan specialist.

It is the company’s most compact trailer, measuring 4,3 metres in length and packs everything a city slicker needs to venture out to the most remote parts of the outback.

All the creature comforts ride on a G&S SupaGal steel chassis and Control Rider independent suspension system cushioning the 17­inch wheels wrapped up in Cooper STT Pro mud terrain tyres.

A meranti wood frame is concealed be­ hind composite panelling and checker­ plate armour.

Unlike the cramped, spartan interiors common in some off­road trailers, the Off Grid looks like a stylish, roomy mo­ tor home inside, offering space for a cou­ ple or two adults with a small child. The insulated interior also comes fully load­ ed with a variety of amenities and com­ forts.

Upfront, the inner­spring bed sleeps two across the width of the cabin. Be­ hind the bed, an Italian leather couch will accommodate that small sleeping child but is a bit too snug to fit an adult. The kitchen has a two­burner stove, 80­litre Waeco 12 volt fridge­freezer and sink.

Next to the kitchen, a corner bath­ room comes packaged with a toilet and fibreglass shower. The interior also has a wide storage unit and roof­mounted air conditioner.

A slide­out kitchen stored neatly in­ side a compartment under the bed pulls out to get you cooking on a Weber grill.

Next to the slide­out, a wide storage hatch can accommodate an optional outdoor fridge­freezer, keeping food and drink handy.

A Thule awning casts some shade over the chef and crew, and outdoor speakers provide entertainment.

A standard 24­inch TV from inside can also be mounted on the bracket in the small storage hatch outside, letting campers enjoy their favourite program­ ming under the blue skies. Exterior LED lighting keeps the fun going into the night.

The Off Grid starts at AU$70 000 (approx R735 875). The Off Grid certain­ ly isn’t cheap, but it’s an interesting package for those who don’t want to do without life’s comforts and luxuries, no matter where they’re headed.

— New Atlas.

NOMAD Africa Adventure Tours, one of the leading operators providing this service in sub­Saharan Africa, has bought 25 Hino 500­Series 1626 trucks to update its fleet of 47 vehicles.

These are Nomad’s first Hino trucks after MD and founder Alex Rutherford did a detailed comparison and studied the positive feedback from reference checks with current operators of Hino trucks in similar businesses.

“The most important requirements of a truck in the adventure tours busi­ ness are reliability and durability, backed up by good fuel consumption and excellent after­sales support.

“We believe that this is what we are getting with the new Hino trucks,” said Rutherford.

“The trucks must also be easy to maintain at comparatively low cost and need to be designed for operation in the most rugged African conditions.”

Nomad African Tours, which is now in its 20th year, operates a complex net­ work of tours throughout sub­Saharan Africa, all of which run to tight timeta­ bles, particularly in the high season from July to October. The tours vary in length from four days to 56 days, with a round trip that goes as far as Uganda and totals about 20 000 km, so vehicle breakdowns have to be kept to an abso­ lute minimum.

The fleet is expected to cover more than three million kilometres this year, made up of about 850 tours. Nomad Adventure Tours trucks have already travelled more than 30 million kilome­ tres over the past 20 years, transporting more than 95 000 travellers on about 10 000 tours.

The trucks are run for five to eight years and replaced when maintenance

The new Hino 500 series’ trucks will modernise the overlander fleet at Nomad Adventure Tours.

PHOTO: SUPPLIED costs start to rise, usually after covering more than 800 000 km. The trucks are fitted with additional 400­litre fuel tanks, dual battery systems and air bags on the leaf­spring suspension system to make the ride more comfortable for the passengers.

Nomad buys its trucks as chassis cabs and then fits its own bodies, which are manufactured in facilities at the compa­ ny’s head office in Somerset West.

These bodies have been developed over the years to provide safe and comforta­ ble transport for 24 travellers who have the option of overnighting in tents or in lodges.

Rutherford said the type of trucks has become a lot more powerful over the years. “Whereas 140 horsepower en­ gines were considered sufficiently pow­ erful in the early days, we now have 260­ horsepower engines to power the ad­

venture tour trucks, which weigh as much as 12 tons laden.”

SEFFRICAN ENTREPRENEURSHIP The 20­year history of Nomad Adven­ ture Tours is a wonderful success story.

Rutherford, who had completed a de­ gree in economics and psychology after leaving school, had no firm plans for a career but he was filled with wander­ lust.

This resulted in him travelling to London, buying a 1972 Land Rover and setting off to return to Cape Town by an overland route. The return journey took almost 11 months and proved a marvellous learning experience as Rutherford and his fellow travellers in­ teracted with other people involved in overland trips through Africa.

“That lengthy journey got me think­ ing of offering an organised African ad­

venture tour with particular appeal to Europeans keen to visit our continent,” said Rutherford.

“The result was that on returning to Cape Town, I bought a new truck and found a suitable body at a scrapyard which I modified to make it suitable for a long­distance adventure tour.”

By the end of 1998, the company had eight trucks operating and in 2003, Rutherford was able to buy out his part­ ner and the expansion continued. The number of trucks rose to 63 when he took over a competitor, but has subse­ quently been cut back to 46 trucks, which Rutherford said is the optimum for the current economic conditions.

He is also very proud of the compa­ ny’s exceptional safety record and stressed the importance of building quality bodies that are strong and safe.

The company now employs about 200 people, many of them having been with Nomad for many years. Rutherford said that the responsibilities for guides have changed over the years and now their training has to include subjects such as dispute resolution as tempers can get frayed on some of the long road journeys. He said that the customers are also changing and are generally older these days, while there is a growing switch away from overnight camping to sleeping in lodges.

Rutherford said that this year is look­ ing good for his business and the prices of the tours, in real terms, are now lower than two years ago. “Several of our com­ petitors have gone out of business in the 20 years we have been in this busi­ ness, but I am pleased to say that our formula continues to work very well and we are looking forward to a bumper 2016 and 2017.” — WR.

Jimny owners in Msunduzi rallied on a fun day with Fury Suzuki and Monteseel Adventures.

PHOTO: SUPPLIED

Fury Suzuki takes Jimny owners on a KZN adventure MONTESEEL Adventures, in collabo­ ration with Gary Stokes (dealer princi­ pal) and Des­Marie Victor (new vehicle sales manager) from Fury Suzuki — Pi­ etermaritzburg, hosted an exclusive 4x4 fun day for all Suzuki Jimny owners in KZN on June 25.

The Suzuki new vehicle sales execu­ tive, Petrie van der Merwe, also show­ cased the special Suzuki Jimny Fury Limited Edition on the day, which had to be seen to be believe.

The trail included the Sikelekehleni riverine 4x4 trail before the drivers em­ barked on some tar and dirt road to the start of the Goat Track, climbing up to the eMalangeni Mountain before de­ scending back along the ridge and into the Umgeni River basin.

Once at the base of the eMalangeni Mountain, they took a short trip along dirt roads to Mfula Store for a pit stop and toilet break.

From Mfula Store, they then took a short 2,7 km run down dirt tracks to the isolated Mqeku River picnic site, which is owned and managed by Sibusi­

They may be the smallest 4x4s in SA, but lightweights climb easier.

PHOTO: SUPPLIED so Shangase.

At the Mqeku River picnic site, the Suzuki Jimny drivers and their passen­ gers had time to relax for a lunch­time braai and discuss the events and experi­

ences of their day. Some feedback from some customers on the day: Jennette Kemp: “Hi Jaques and Es­ telle. “Thank you for a most enjoyable outing on Saturday.

“The Suzuki new vehicle sales executive, Petrie van der Merwe, also showcased the special Suzuki Jimny Fury Limited Edition on the day, which had to be seen to be believed.”

“I really enjoyed it. The weather could not have been better.”

Courtney Baird: “Estelle and Jaques, thanks for an awesome day once again!”

— WR.

MOTORING TRENDS WitnessWheels

August 4, 2016

5

Will South Africa’s taxi drivers adapt to robot taxis, like these self­linking city trains from Next?

PHOTO: NEXT­FUTURE­MOBILITY.COM

Future traffic will be way­out different

For the last stretch home, Air Wheel’s self­balancing electric unicycle. PHOTO: NOVELTY STREET

WITH future transport systems predicted to see far fewer vehicles sharing a lot more rides, workers in South Africa’s car trade are asking how this will affect their jobs.

Last year, the auto trade count­ ed 115 000 high­skill employees at factory level and 496 000 em­ ployed in retail, distribution, ser­ vicing and repair sectors.

For all these people, the hard reality is that autonomous cars will see factories and car sales scale down drastically. But the millennials will still need cars, and their unique demands and new construction techniques, in­ cluding large 3D printers, will al­ so open the door for workers to start boutique car factories.

Boutique factories Builder of the McLaren super car, the Yamaha city car and lately the new Lotus, Durban­born Gor­ don Murray is already using his iStream process to enable arti­ sans to make cars cheaply.

Explaining his revolutionary iStream process, Murray said car factories fundamentally still stamp panels from a sheet of steel, weld them together, paint

them and “put the bits on and that’s your motor car”, despite a lot more automation and effi­ ciencies being available, Murray’s modular iStream is closer to the process by which most racing cars are built, which is to start with a type of roll cage, fit a drive train and then bolt on the seats and panels.

“So this is very disruptive technology. It’s tearing up the rule book and starting again,” said Murray.

In Washington, Local Motors CEO John Rogers has not even heard of the book. Rogers wants to equip hundreds of micro­fac­ tories to 3D­print self­driving minibuses.

In Pietermaritzburg, where taxi drivers and conductors re­ cently set fire to a pilot smart­ card system, Rogers’ micro­fac­ tories may have to be fire­proof.

Such resistance from drivers will, however, not stop transport changes from happening. The biggest of these changes promis­ es to be unused parking bays.

Driving a hobby for the rich Chris Dixon, a partner at Silicon Valley investment firm Andreess­

en Horowitz, told Insider Tech that parking bays use up to a quarter of a city’s real estate, and could be used for parks and pave­ ment cafes.

As for driving a car, Dixon thinks this will become a hobby for the rich, adding that by the next decade, most cars on the road will be autonomous vehicles sharing knowledge.

“An autonomous car drops you off and picks up the next per­ son, as opposed to the model now, which is just so wasteful, to have the car sitting in a parking lot 90% of the time.”

Tesla founder Elon Musk agrees that a fleet of self­driving cars sharing rides is the future, but he thinks this future is as close as in the next five years.

Scootering about Musk is banking on people still wanting cars and Dixon is invest­ ed in drones that carry a person, but Horace Luke, co­founder and CEO at Gogoro scooters, is gam­ bling that millennials will want independent transport in mega cities without the traffic or ex­ haust fumes, i.e electric scooters.

Gogoro’s former cellphone engi­

neers looked at making a new model of transport, starting with the way people use, consume and experience energy.

Luke said the transport indus­ try has not kept up with the pace of urban life and is still stuck in the nineties.

Gogoro, instead, offers trans­ port options that move fast, with seamless connections and sus­ tainable choices.

The company consequently has a business model that sells battery banks where the Gogoro scooters can exchange flat batter­ ies for charged ones in seconds.

Sound advice for gov’t South Africa’s commuters have so far resisted the quick but frag­ ile charms of scooters in cities, but fuel­station owners and oth­ er entrepreneurs with an eye on the future would do worse than register interest on the Gogoro site.

Speaking at the third Oppor­ tunities in the Fuel Retail Sector seminar, hosted in Pietermaritz­ burg by the Department of Ener­ gy last week, Sello Madima told some 70 people that the diesel and petrol sold at stations will be

For the daily commute, a motorised unicycle built using a hub motor and self­balancing electronics from a gutted Segway.

PHOTO: KCSBIKES.COM

ALWYN VILJOEN tells workers in car factories and on sales floors how current trends in transport will affect their jobs replaced by alternative energy sources such as solar power and biofuels.

Too big to change?

It is an open question whether the South African Department and Ministry of Trade and Indus­ try, which has contributed over R28 billion to vehicle and com­ ponent manufacturers over the past four years, is aware of these predictions.

It may very well feel that it doesn’t need to care, for the bil­ lions the DTI has pumped into the sector has showed very good returns, with the broader auto­ motive industry’s contribution to South Africa’s GDP at 7,5% in 2014, while vehicle and com­ ponent production accounted for 33,5% of SA manufacturing output.

Investments to establish facto­ ries were also made by FAW, Ford, Mercedes­Benz and most recently Toyota, which paid R6,1 billion for a Hilux/Fortuner line at its plant in Prospecton.

The thinking in these circles is that they are too big to change.

But unless the big car brands manage to reshape their business

models to sell transport as a ser­ vice, instead of cars as ego ex­ tenders, Dixon predicts they will be replaced by the likes of China’s Protean, which makes hub mo­ tors that put the power of a V6 engine inside an 18­inch hub.

It boils down to software The first trick car companies will have to master to survive is to make new models fast. Dixon quoted Netscape founder Marc Andreessen, who likes to say that right now the phone is an acces­ sory to the car, but pretty soon the car is going to be an accessory to the phone.

“Phones are updated every six months to a year. Cars are updat­ ed every five years. Even if car companies got really good at software, it would be hard for them really to behave like soft­ ware companies. Unless they re­ ally lean into becoming software companies and ride­hailing net­ works much more aggressively, it’s hard for me to see how the existing car companies are more than people who manufacture power trains and chassis. Every­ thing else just seems like a soft­ ware problem,” said Dixon.

‘Bertha’ to retire to Merc museum AFTER Daimler, the parent com­ pany of Mercedes­Benz, showed the world robot cars are techni­ cally possible when “Bertha” drove itself on the historic route of the first car drive, Merc will now retire the car to a museum foyer.

Bertha, as the S 500 Intelligent drive research vehicle was known inside the company, autono­ mously drove from Mannheim to Pforzheim in autumn 2013, prov­ ing that self­driving cars are no longer something out of science fiction.

By completing the world’s first autonomous journey in everyday overland and city traffic, Bertha succeeded — like her namesake 125 years previously — in making a pioneering achievement.

That Bertha gets its rightful place of honour in the Mercedes­ Benz museum shows how fast

self­drive technology is advanc­ ing. From July 26 until Septem­ ber 25, she will be on show in the entrance hall.

Equipped with close­to­pro­ duction technology and abun­ dant computing power, she was on the road in 2013 to provide the development engineers at Mer­ cedes­Benz with valuable find­ ings based on the new E­Class, where a new milestone has been achieved. But a lot still needs to be improved before Bertha can be trusted on her own. As Merc put it: “The interconnection of the sensors requires further optimi­ sation”, mostly because they don’t work when water or snow foul the sensors.

And several sets of lights at a junction just befuddled Bertha.

But these technical limits are now being pushed back with the help of deep learning methods.

So­called deep learning comput­ ers interpret images not pixel by pixel, but in their entirety. The on­board computer need no longer be trained in every detail.

It can identify key characteristics and similarities in images, and is capable of interpreting typical street scene structures of one city and applying them to those of an­ other city. And cars share their deeply learnt knowledge on the Internet of things.

Daimler and Bosch are mean­ while testing Car2go, which may or may not be useful in a world of car sharing. As the system de­ veloped by Audi, Car2go is auto­ mated parking in a multistorey car park, which enables a driver to get out of the car and send it off to go find parking. As soon as the driver is ready to be picked up, the car returns automatically.

— WR.

Jaguar’s electrifying plans The CX75 concept, which Jaguar said it will no longer pursue, is pictured above.

Instead, the company will develop a flagship electric luxury sedan, said to be a ‘four­door coupe’, along the lines of the Audi A7 or Mercedes­Benz CLS­Class, with a rear hatch. In other words, like the Tesla Model S. Jaguar said it hopes to sell between 20 000 and 30 000 electric sedans per year.

PHOTO: SUPPLIED

WitnessWheels MOTORING TRENDS

6

August 4, 2016

‘Massive Sun­powered vehicles come out of the shade in Namibia leap’ in RTMS compliant vehicles ALWYN VIJOEN

THE Road Transport Manage­ ment System (RTMS) con­ firmed that the number of heavy vehicles that are RTMS certified has surpassed the 10 000 mark.

This increase demonstrates the commitment road trans­ port operators are putting in place in order to implement standards and comply with South Africa’s road traffic regulations to improve road safety, preserve road infra­ structure and increase pro­ ductivity.

According to Adrian van Tonder, chairperson of the RTMS national steering com­ mittee, transport operators have seen the long­term ben­ efits that RTMS compliance offers.

“Over the last few years, we have seen a massive leap in the number of trucks and buses becoming RTMS com­ pliant. In 2007, we had 74 RTMS certified heavy vehicles on the road. With our ongo­ ing commitment to road safety, we hope to reach 11 000 before the end of the year.

“Businesses tend to take a quantum leap forwards in terms of road safety and pro­ ductivity once they implement the basics of the RTMS man­ agement system. That’s why more and more transport companies are joining the ini­ tiative. They see tangible re­ sults,” he said.

The RTMS certification has grown to become an official SABS standard in the South African heavy vehicle trans­ port sector. The success of the self­regulation scheme can be attributed to the fact that companies are continu­ ously being monitored to en­ sure that they remain compli­ ant with the RTMS standard.

“RTMS certification is only valid for 12 months. Compa­ nies get audited by external auditors on an annual basis, and quarterly there is a lot of key safety data that gets up­ loaded onto the website for verification,” said Van Tonder.

Hein Jordt, MD of Ctrack Fleet Management Solutions, said that all stakeholders in the road logistics value chain are aware of the problems that affect their operations.

“Despite concerted and on­ going law enforcement opera­ tions, the sharp increase in heavy vehicle traffic continues to be a major challenge on South African roads.

“Poorly maintained trucks, badly secured loads and inad­ equately trained or exhausted drivers all pose road safety dangers that can be avoided.

“The strong membership base of the RTMS is a clear sign that stakeholders in the trucking industry are taking serious steps to address these and other challenges,” he said.

— Wheels Reporter.

THE current edition of the Etango re­ newable energies magazine reports stu­ dents from three tertiary institutions in Windhoek have developed a “solar taxi” that is attracting a lot of interest.

The size of a golf cart, the very basic cart has an open roll cage and four plastic seats under solar panels.

Students from the Namibia University of Science and Technology (Nust), the Windhoek Vocational Training College (WVTC) and the University of Namibia (Unam) developed a prototype solar taxi after being inspired by the Ilanga solar car built by students at the University of Johannesburg (UJ).

The students started work in Novem­ ber 2015 and completed their sun­pow­ ered taxi in January, using second­hand car parts supplied by Spares Centre.

The students told Etango, the aims of their multidisciplinary research project is to develop a solar vehicle that would meet Africans’ needs and budgets.

While the “solar taxi” is innovative, the solar­powered electric bicycles that were introduced to Namibia in 2015 are perhaps more realistic alternative mode of transport in a country where 90% of the two million citizens do not own a car.

THE SOLAR BIKE SunCycle said, per kilometre, the costs of a solar electric bicycle is around one­ tenth of a seat in a minibus taxi.

SunCycle said Namibia’s poor spend half of their income on transport; and a third on batteries. “The use of normal bikes is not appropriate because of the hills and the heat. Our solar­powered electric bicycles can give access to labour and good markets, as well as access to

A cheap solution to long hot roads for Namibia, a sun­powered bike from SunCycle, 25 of which are already providing cheap rides.

PHOTO: SUNCYCLES

health and education facilities,” it said.

The heavy battery of the SunCycle, 25 of which had been supplied in Namibia, can also be used to power basic electrical appliances in off­grid areas, an idea that very much appeals to Namibia’s minister of Mines and Energy Obeth Kandjoze.

He said at a recent seminar that Nami­ bia is in an untenable sitution because its people rely on imports of power for as much as 70% of demand during some

parts of the year.

“This level of dependency can pose se­ curity of supply and economic growth challenges to any country. Ideally, we want a diversified generation mix of tech­ nologies that can quickly and efficiently address the country’s energy challenges,” Kandjoze said.

AIMING FOR THE SUN The Mines and Energy Department is en­

gaged in talks with over 90 companies to generate power using concentrated sunshine. These companies include the collectors of Heliovis; heat storage using molten salts and potassium nitrate from Haldor Topsoe, BASF and EnergyNest; expertise from Saudi Oger, Engie, the North­West University and the Universi­ ty of Limerick in Ireland; glass panels from Rio Glass and Canadian Solar, as well as finance from Barclays.

Too little too late?

Mercedes­Benz Urban eTruck has thrown its hat into the electric truck market ring ALWYN VILJOEN SHORTLY after U.S. start­up Nikola Mo­ tor Company boasted last week that its as­yet­unbuilt turbine electric trucks are already getting more orders than tradi­ tional diesel lorries, Daimler Trucks pre­ sented the Mercedes­Benz Urban eTruck in Stuttgart.

Unlike the Nikola 1, which is to date just a nice image on a screen, the Urban eTruck is a functioning electric truck with an admissible total weight of up to 26 tons.

In stating theirs is the world’s first functioning, fully electric truck, Daimler is, however, ignoring the fully­electric trucks already sold by China’s BYD, America’s Via­Motors and Canada’s Novex; as well as the hybrids trucks, like Wrightspeed’s turbine electric and the pi­ oneer that predates them all, South Afri­ ca’s diesel­electric truck. Built during the Bosoorlog, this experiment saw a Man converted to test battery platforms for the hybrid Rooikat tank in the eighties, with expertise from the University of KwaZulu­Natal.

Daimler said the market launch of its Urban eTruck is only conceivable in 2020, and its electric Fuso is now being tested in Germany after a successful two­ year test in Portugal.

SPEED VERSUS RED TAPE The young upstart Nikola Motors plans to launch the first Nikola 1 in December and BYD has already introduced five ful­ ly­electric trucks to the U.S. in May. What’s more, BYD’s trucks have already clocked thousands of kilometres as street sweepers in China.

Explaining the bureaucratic delay in rolling out its electric platforms, Daimler said in a statement: “The development of electric trucks and series production maturity were fixed parts of the strategy

of Daimler Trucks to build on our techno­ logical leadership.”

While pundits say the battery technol­ ogy Daimler is using is already outdated after two years of tests, (see page two), the years of testing did give Daimler a lot of data to use.

Dr Wolfgang Bernhard, responsible for Daimler Trucks and Buses, said the Mer­ cedes­Benz Urban eTruck will electrify the heavy distribution segment up to 26 tons.

If this sounds like the 10­year plan Elon Musk of Tesla cars reminded the world of last week, it is because all transporters have to come up with zero­emission trucks for cleaner cities.

Merc’s Urban eTruck packs a lot of lithium batteries between the ladder frames to drive electric motors near the rear wheels.

PHOTO: DAIMLER

China’s fully­electric BYD trucks, like this quiet street sweeper, predates the Daimler experiment by several years.

PHOTO: SHUOKE.AUTOHOME

BATTERIES VERSUS JET TURBINES While Daimler is predicting better bat­ teries to back their vision, one U.S. com­ pany, Wrightspeed, is already ahead of the game with a jet turbine that powers battery pack to give its garbage­disposal trucks unlimited range.

Instead of jet turbines, the Mercedes­ Benz Urban eTruck has an electric motor directly adjacent to the wheel hubs — de­ rived from the electric rear axle which was developed for the Mercedes­Benz Citaro hybrid bus. The power is supplied by a battery pack consisting of three lithium­ ion battery modules, housed in a crash­ proof location inside the frame. Daimler said the batteries give the Urban eTruck a range of at most 200 km — which com­ pared favourably with older technology in BYD’s electric buses from China.

The Fuso proved its worth in the first fleet trials in Portugal with ranges of over 100 kilometres, well­above the average daily distance covered by many trucks in light­duty, short­radius distribution.

Under widely varying operating condi­ tions, the trucks covered more than 50 000 km within one year in a year­long test that ended last year.

TRANSPORT MOTORING WitnessWheels

August 4, 2016

7

Suzuki bakkie works it The little workhorse can carry some serious loads and also traverse challenging terrain ALWYN VILJOEN THE first thing people ask when I tell them about Suzuki’s bargain bakkie, the SuperCarry, is: “Suzuki has a bakkie?”

The answer is yes, very much so, as the SuperCarry is a real workhorse in the lines of the cab­over­engine Mitsubishi L300, which legendary workhorses are still delivering council workers and tools to work sites to keep Msunduzi moving.

In fact, increase the ratio of the gears a cog or two and this little rear­wheel drive bakkie could become a very nice drifter toy in the lines of the old Nissan 1400.

MADE TO LOAD Unlike a modern bakkie with load bins so high you need a ladder to pop any­ thing over the side and lengths so long you can park only in the truck bays, the new­generation Super Carry is tiny — or “ultra compact” as the brochure de­ scribes it.

Yet, its load deck has drop sides so the load bin is below hip height, and it is large enough to fit a pallet with ease.

In SA, the SuperCarry is licensed to carry 750 kg. Of course, in Seffrican­ speak, three quarters of a ton sounds just like a ton and luckily this little bakkie is licensed for this weight in India, where it is quite popular.

The brochure also said the SuperCar­ ry’s ground clearance of 175 mm allows the little workhorse “to traverse chal­ lenging terrain”.

My idea of “challenging” involves The Slope, a 30­degree sandy incline of ruts and tree roots, but the SuperCarry is not a 4x4, so I took it to the level but muddy grounds of Duzi Turf’s to load a pallet of grass.

GIVING IT STICK Then I gave it the ultimate test — a fe­ male driver who have not driven stick in two years. After adjusting the seat for­ wards to depress the clutch fully (it is the one on the left, right?), we managed (just) not to spin the rear wheels all the way to the field being harvested. In fact, increase the ratio of the gears a cog or two and this little rear­wheel drive bak­ kie could become a very nice drifter toy in the lines of the old Nissan 1400.

A turning circle of just 8,6 metres en­ sures the SuperCarry could turn be­ tween the muddy spots, but with a load on the back and soft tyres, it will go over muddy terrain.

Suzuki’s SuperCarry is a real workhorse, but is value offering has yet to be discovered by the garden service providers in Msunduzi.

PHOTO: ALWYN VILJOEN Suzuki’s proven GB12 four­cylinder petrol engine makes 54 kW at 6 000 r/ min and 101 Nm torque at 3 000 r/min.

It does not sound a lot compared to the standard for big bakkies like the Hilux or Ranger, but the overstroked pistons and ratios (1:4,43 in first) of the five­ speed manual gearbox are such that the bakkie moves at legal speeds where you want to go over dirt or tar.

A fuel tank of 30 litres should give at least 300 km with a load, or fire the driv­ er. The small 155/R13 tyres need a little care over potholes, but this size tyre is the cheapest to replace.

CREATURE, ERM, COMFORTS As for creature comforts in the cabin, the brochure calls the design “simple and straightforward”. Translated, it means the driver seat can slide and there are two sun visors. Only the driver’s door unlocks — arguably a safety feature — and a 12 V socket keeps phones charged.

What the brochure does not tell you is the cubbyhole takes a six pack of cool­ drinks and on a wintry day the 1 196 cc heater under the seats makes for cosy bums. From experience in these cab over engine bakkies, I must, however, warn those bums will also get a tad toasty on

Ten­wheeler tractor biggest yet in Oz SCANIA recently sent out its biggest truck yet for Australia, an R730 V8 8x8 converted to 10x8. (The numbers indi­ cate 10 axle ends, eight of which are driv­ en.)

The truck tractor will tow a super quad road train in Western Australia.

Scania said in a statement, the truck is configured to take advantage of any future payload regulation changes to pull a road train of up to 220 tons.

The truck was delivered to Qube Bulk that will use the new 10x8 as part of its Performance­Based Standards­ap­ proved quad road train for hauling bulk iron ore six­and­a­half days a week in Pil­ bara, Western Australia.

Fully Loaded reports with around the clock treatment and with trips close to 450 km, the truck may cover a million km over its first three years in action.

Director of Qube Bulk Todd Emmert said a standard Quad Road Train can pull 175 tons, or 200 tons and the company anticipates a raise to 220 tons soon.

“One of the benefits of the higher pay­ load is ultimately a reduction in the number of truck movements on a given piece of road. Reduced interactions be­ tween cars and trucks, and having trucks with higher levels of safety will all com­ bine to make these roads safer for all road users,” Emmert said in a statement.

The Scania 10x8 features a 4 700 mm

Ready for Australia’s heaviest loads yet, Scania’s 10x8 truck tractor.

PHOTO: SUPPLIED

‘A reduction in the number of truck movements and having trucks with higher levels of safety will all combine to make these roads safer’ axle and 1 450 mm bogie distances, while it boasts a Euro 5 engine with EEV­en­ hanced, environmentally friendly vehi­ cle specification. It can run on biodiesel.

The Scania fully automated Opti­ cruise gear change system comes with standard, power and off­road modes as well as Ecocruise. — WR.

a hot days. There are two fixed air vents, and they point at the floor.

THE COMPETITION At R129 000 with a three­year or 100 000 km warrantee on Suzuki’s proven drivetrain, and R14 000 for a high Beekman canopy, only the longer, lower Changan Star 1,3 is cheaper. But this Chinese bakkie has a shorter war­ rantee (one year or 60 000 km).

The other contender, the turbo­diesel Tata SuperAce, has more power and the same warranty as the Suzi, but it has to shake the dismal reputation of the first

Ace. Some would want to add the Dai­ hatsu Gran Max at this point, especially as its 1,5 engine makes the most power (77 kW/140 Nm) in this group.

But the joke is on them, as Daihatsu’s owner, Toyota, has quietly closed this high­revving brand in South Africa.

PRICE AND POWER Changan Star 1,3 R106 990 (60 kW/102 Nm) Suzuki SuperCarry 1,2 R129 900 (54 kW/101 Nm) Tata Super Ace 1,4TD R159 995 (52 kW/132 Nm)

Top truck brands say ‘no harm done, let’s move on’ FOUR of the five truck manufactur­ ers who were found to have been operating a cartel have responded after the European Commission (EC) handed out a record €2,9 bil­ lion fine.

The EC last week found that they had colluded for 14 years on truck prices and passing on the cost of meeting emissions stan­ dards to customers.

President and CEO at Volvo Trucks and Renault Trucks owner Volvo Group Martin Lundstedt said the events had not had any impact on its customers.

“We have taken these events very seriously from the outset and our full co­operation with the com­ mission resulted in a very substan­ tial reduction in the fine,” said Lundstedt. It received a 50% re­ duction in its fine to €670 million.

Daimler, which was hit with a €1 billion fine, received a 40% re­ duction in the amount it initially faced after co­operating with the EC’s investigation. A spokesperson for Daimler said it regretted what had happened and had taken ap­

propriate action some time ago.

The Daimler spokesperson added: “The company has strengthened its internal controls and has intensified its regular and comprehensive em­ ployee training with regard to anti­ trust law and competition law.”

A Daf spokesperson said the final fine, €752 million, was lower than expected after it received 10% re­ duction in the charge for settling the case with the EC. The spokesperson said Daf be­ lieved the exchange of factory list prices had no effect on customers.

Man avoided a fine of approxi­ mately €1,2 billion as it informed the EC about the existence of the cartel before the investigation was launched in 2011.

Man said in a statement on its website: “The Man code of conduct includes a clear belief in free and fair competition. The company does not tolerate any unfair business practices or illegal conduct.”

Iveco, fined €494 million, and Scania declined to comment. Sca­ nia’s involvement in the cartel is still being investigated. — WR.

WitnessWheels MOTORING RACING

8

August 4, 2016

SA champs light up Lichtenburg

SA champions Poulter, Howie preserve their unbeaten record CHARMAINE FORTUNE

SOUTH African champions Leeroy Poulter and Rob Howie preserved their unbeaten record this season when they cantered to victory on the Lichtenburg 450, round four of the Donaldson Cross Country Motor Racing Championship, over the weekend.

The Toyota Gazoo Racing SA pair had plenty to spare over team­mates Antho­ ny Taylor and Dennis Murphy, with both factory cars running in the FIA Class.

The results, however, are provisional with several competitors — including Poulter and Howie — competing under appeal after a number of crews were pe­ nalised for road crossing indiscretions on the 84­kilometre qualifying race to determine grid positions.

The two Gazoo Racing SA cars were again in a class of their own and the ma­ jor story of the race saw Jason Venter and Vince van Allemann (4x4 Mega World Toyota Hilux) take over the Class T leadership from Neil Woolridge Motorsport/Ford Performance Ranger pair Chris Visser and Ward Huxtable.

The Ford crew led Venter/Van Alle­ mann by a single point going into the race, but third place saw the North West crew put some daylight between them and Visser/Huxtable, who were fifth in class in a borrowed vehicle after a fire at the NWM workshop 10 days ago de­ stroyed the Ford Rangers raced by Visser/ Huxtable and Gareth Woolridge/Boyd Dreyer. Kobus van Tonder and the Uni Freight team came to the rescue and loaned out their NWM­built Ranger to allow Visser/Huxtable to compete for the rest of the season, but it was not up to pace.

Visser and Huxtable also had a prob­ lematic wheel change after a puncture on the first of the two loops and were left to try to make up positions in dry and dusty conditions.

There was some consolation for the Visser family when former national champion Jannie Visser and son Chris junior won Class S for cars under four

Jason Venter and Vince van Allemann compete in the Lichtenburg 450, round four of the Donaldson Cross Country Motor Racing Championship.

PHOTO: WALDO VAN DER WAAL

“The results, however, are provisional with several competitors — including Poulter and Howie — competing under appeal after a number of crews were penalised for road crossing indiscretions on the 84­kilometre qualifying race to determine grid positions.” litres with solid axle rear suspension.

Visser farms just up the road from Lich­ tenburg with the Toyota Hilux pair revel­ ling in the conditions.

The Vissers came in ahead of Otto Graven/Bobby Brewis and Ronald Grav­ en/Lohan Faber in a pair of Graven Mo­ torsport Toyota Hilux models. Visser and the Gravens made up ground on championship leader Heine Strumpher and Henri Hugo (4x4 Mega World To­

yota Hilux) who failed to see out the full race distance.

Venter and Van Allemann produced another workmanlike drive to finish on the podium with the pair comfortably ahead of Gary Bertholdt and Geoff Min­ nitt — standing in for regular co­driver Pierre Arries — who were fourth in the Atlas Copco VW Amarok.

Bertholdt and Minnitt lead Class T, for vehicles above four litres and with

solid axle rear suspension, after the qual­ ifying race with the Amarok showing plenty of potential.

There were also steady drives from Luke Botha/Andre Vermeulen (Red­ Lined Nissan Navara) and Hennie de Klerk/Adriaan Roets (Treasury One BMW X3) who were fifth and sixth over­ all, and third and fourth in Class T. Terence Marsh and celebrity co­driv­ er Kurt Darren, in the Red­Lined Nissan

Navara, were seventh overall and third in the FIA Class, with the pair followed across the line by Visser and Huxtable.

• The next event on the Donaldson cal­ endar is the Nkomazi 450 in Malalane, a gateway to the Kruger National Park, on August 26 and 27. The event will fea­ ture a route much changed from previ­ ous years, and will be run in conjunction with the sixth round of the Northern Re­ gions Cross Country Championship.

Daniel races his way back to the front

Crash test dummies This is what happens when a Nascar car drives into a barrier wall at 265,5 km/h. Nascar racer Brad Keselowski said his back brakes failed and the front brakes locked up during testing at Watkins Glen. He crashed full tilt into the guard rail, but thanks to the mandatory roll cage and chest straps, he tweeted that he walked away unhurt. At which point Wheels always asks, if air bags worked as advertised, why don’t race cars use them?

PHOTO: SUPPLIED

BALLITO­BASED Daniel Duminy struggled in his quest to improve his lot in the Cape Karting Championship at Killarney on Saturday, but the 15­year­ old once again showed a steely resolve to bounce back to take a fighting second in the final heat.

The day started well for Daniel, who qualified second alongside champion­ ship leader Jason Coetzee on a grid that promised the closest of racing.

Daniel is at the head of a group of eight karts that qualified within two­tenths of a second in what is likely the most com­ petitive racing class in SA at the mo­ ment. It would, however, prove a touch too close twice too often for young Dan­ iel.

“That was not the best of days,” SMD Racing Kosmic driver Daniel admitted.

“I was fast, so there’s no doubt it was going to be a good day and I qualified a good second, but that only lasted until the first corner.

“I will call that one a racing incident, but I had a coming together with my fa­ vourite sparring partner J.P. Hamman, which cost me dear as I had to fight back from the back to end up eighth.

“The second race was even more dra­ matic. I qualified fourth, but was in­ volved in a start­line incident and the race was red flagged.

Ballito’s Daniel Duminy looks forward to a podium at Zwartkops Tuesday last week.

PHOTO: MOTOR­ SPORT MEDIA “We were lucky not to damage the kart and after the restart I worked my way up to third, dicing with my friend J.P.,” Daniel explained.

“Then I found myself off the track again — that one wasn’t a racing inci­ dent but my third became ninth. I was pretty unhappy about that.

“The last race was much better though. I qualified fifth and managed to get up to second by the third lap and stayed there. I even managed to pass J.P. without incident!

“It’s a pity because I had the pace to be at least second every race, but that’s racing — we will be back!”

Daniel’s next appointment in his busy

motorsport schedule will be in the SMG Pepper Racing Polo in the fifth round of the Engen Volkswagen Polo Cup at Zwartkops in Pretoria next Tuesday, be­ fore the next Cape Karting race back at Killarney on August 27.

— Motorsport Media.

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