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THE WITNESS
NOVEMBER 26, 2020
WHEELS
www.witness.co.za
SA exports at risk Second wave lockdowns and rise of electric vehicles will force changes on SA’s car factories The first VW to be manufactured in Uitenhage was a Beetle in 1951. PHOTO: MOTORPRESS
Uitenhage marks 4 million Volkswagen Group South Africa (VWSA) has celebrated a momentous milestone with over 4 million vehicles having been manufactured at its Uitenhage plant. The first of these vehicles was manufactured 72 years ago, when the premises still belonged to South African Motor Assemblers and Distributors. The first Volkswagen vehicle to be manufactured in Uitenhage was a Volkswagen Beetle that rolled off the production line in August 1951. Since then, VWSA has manufactured a broad range of vehicles locally, including Audi
vehicles, the iconic Volkswagen Beetle and various models of the Transporter series (Kombi), Golf, Jetta and Polo. The Uitenhage plant now manufactures the Polo for local and export markets, as well as the Polo Vivo for the local market. “This production milestone is a proud moment for VWSA, and proof of the dedication of the VWSA family,” said Bernd Schaberg, acting production director at VWSA. “With this level of commitment, I am sure we can achieve many more milestones to come.” — WR.
Agya with Toyota Connect Toyota Motor Corporation, with its wholly owned subsidiary, Daihatsu Motor Company, launched the Agya (pictured) into South Africa’s highly competitive and price-sensitive A-segment for compact city cars. The Agya shares its underpinnings with the Daihatsu Ayla — a five-door urban hatchback with generous interior space complemented by compact exterior dimensions (first introduced in 2013). The name Ayla is Sanskrit for “light”, while “Agya” translates to “fast”. As a direct replacement for the Aygo, the Agya competes in a fiercely fought segment where value and Rands-perfeature matter most. “The new Agya is a no-nonsense value proposition that’s laser-focused on delivering the best value to budget-conscious customers under the umbrella of Toyota’s legendary quality, durability and reliability,” says Glenn Crompton, TSAM’s vice-president of marketing. Under the hood, a 998 cc, three-cylinder, fuel-injected petrol engine makes 49kW and 89Nm from 4400 rpm. Transmission is either a five-speed manual or a four-speed auto. The engine should milk around 687 km from the small, 33 l fuel tank. Anti-lock
brakes (ABS) with electronic brake force distribution (EBD), 14-inch alloy wheels with a full size spare wheel and driver and front passenger airbags are all standard, as are a two-service or 20 000 km service plan and a threeyear or 100 000 km warranty. Toyota sets its badge clone apart with Toyota Connect, which provides Wi-Fi connectivity to smart devices as well as a host of connected online services; and 15Gb of complimentary data. in partnership with Vodacom, is also excited to announce the introduction of a new streaming service to Toyota Connect; MyEntertainment. Packaged under MyEntertainment are Vodacom’s Videoplay (Video streaming) and MyMuze (Music streaming) services, that offer Toyota customers an improved ownership experience with enhanced connectivity and added-value. Toyota said a standout feature is the ability to use these streaming services independently of the vehicle, thereby not limiting it to in-vehicle usage. Four models are available, starting at R178 600 for the manual. The auto costs R13 900 more at R192 500 and the audio system adds another R3 800 to both models. — Witness Reporter.
South Africa’s important built-up vehicle export programme is under threat from two major fronts. This is one of the strong messages that came out of Messe Frankfurt SA’s recent Hypermobility virtual conference and it was mentioned by several speakers at this annual conference. Hypermobility was fully supported by the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa) and had AutoTrader as its headline sponsor. The event was also supported by the Retail Motor Industry organisation (RMI) and the South African Motor Body Repairers Association (Sambra). The first speaker to highlight the threat to South Africa’s vehicle exports was Neale Hill, the managing director of the Ford Motor Company of Southern and Sub-Saharan Africa and vice president of Naamsa. Hill said the immediate threat was the Covid-19 second wave that has locked down several European countries, which last year bought 74% of the 387 125 vehicles exported from SA to 151 countries. Hill estimates SA’s vehicle exports could drop by almost 40% in 2021, compared to 2019, with forecasts for a full recovery to 2019 levels varying between two and five years. So far there have been no announcements of specific stimulus packages for the local automotive industry. In fact, Hill said that an international survey had shown only six countries had, so far, provided specific help to their motor industries to alleviate some of the effects of Covid-19. The second threat to the local manufacturing industry is the swing to electric vehicles and upcoming bans on the sale of cars and vans with internal combustion engines (ICE) in many European countries. The United Kingdom,
Fury adds Fiat and Jeep to the Honda, Suzuki mix Following a few weeks of furious activity at the Fury dealership on Boom Street, Pietermaritzburg, dealer principal Duncan Parsons (right) yesterday proudly cut the ribbon to the new Fiat and Jeep side of the business with Steven Hood, (left). Also in attendance were head of Mopor SA, Neel Hariram, head of product marketing and homologation for FCA, and sales manager over East Africa. Staff at the Fury dealership have over the years won several awards for selling and servicing Honda and Suzuki cars as well as motorbikes. Parsons said he is excited and delighted to add the brands from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) to the mix. The Fury Group has 23 franchises selling car brands, eight of which are in KZN. The FCA automotive brands are Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Fiat Professional, Jeep, Lancia, Ram and Maserati. The group also owns Mopar automotive parts. Parsons said he looks forward to a long and proftable relationship with the FCA group and thanked his staff for working very hard to make the opening possible. Hood said FCA valued the partnership with the Pietermartizburg dealership and said buyers can look forward to several new models from the FCA group next year. PHOTO: MOEKETSI MAMANE last week announced a ban on the sale of new vehicles that burn fossil fuels from 2030. This kind of decision could have a big impact on the SA automotive industry if it is unable to replace ICE vehicles with electric vehicles for the export markets. Mikel Mabasa, the CEO of Naamsa, said going forward the aim is to ensure the production of EVs came to South
Africa so local manufacturers could continue to service their export customers. He explained that without EVs the value of SA’s automotive exports would drop from a figure such as 2019’s R201,7 billion to only R40,3 billion, and the contribution to GDP would fall from 6,9% to 4,6%, while employment would shrink from 110 000 jobs at the OEMs to only 55 000.
To this end Naamsa proposes that import duty on vehicles with engines larger than 1 000cc be raised to 18%, while import duty on EVs after the three-year no duty period be set at 18% instead of the current 25%. In addition, there is a plea to government to exclude the cost of EV battery packs from ad valorem duty while the OEMs are also looking for further fi-
nancial support from the various assistance programmes such as the Automotive Investment Scheme (AIS), Volume Assembly Localisation allowance (VAI) and Production Incentive (PI). This is certainly a burning topic for the local motor industry and its importance and the need for a quick resolution was highlighted at Hypermobility 2020. — Witness Reporter,
Hyundai and Ineos plan to bring the world hydrogen ALWYN VILJOEN Hyundai Motor Company and chemical producer Ineos have signed a memorandum of understanding to make and supply hydrogen as well as deploy hydrogen applications and technologies worldwide. While Tesla-builder Elon Musk pointed out current methods to make industrial quantities of hydrogen use more electricity than they generate — with a slew of toxic and greenhouse gases as by-products, hydrogen does offer electric trucks, boats and planes more range than current batteries. And engineers around the world are looking at ways to make hydrogen from green sources. Hyundai is a leader in this field, having started the world’s first mass production of fuel cell electric vehicles in 2013. Saehoon Kim, senior vice presi-
Hyundai demonstrated the clean air and water vapour pumped from hydrogen fuel cell engines by showing how a runner can breathe the exhaust ‘fumes’ in a sealed bubble without dying from having carbon dioxide and nitrogen replacing and displacing oxygen in her body. dent and head of Fuel Cell Centre at Hyundai Motor Company said in a statement Ineos’ move into the development of hydrogen ecosystems marks another milestone towards sustainable and clean transportation. “Hyundai believes this will provide an important low-carbon option across a wide range
of sectors. We also hope our decadeslong expertise in hydrogen fuel cell work in synergy with Ineos’ expertise in field of chemistry to realise the mass production of green hydrogen and fuel cells for the Grenadier.” Peter Williams, technology director at Ineos, said new production process-
es, technology and applications can meet demand for affordable, low-carbon energy sources. Ineos recently launched a new business to develop and build clean hydrogen capacity across Europe in support of the drive towards a zero-carbon future. The company currently produces 300 000 tons of hydrogen a year, mainly as a by-product from its chemical manufacturing operations using electrolysis. The group’s experience in storing the tiny hydrogen molecules also puts Ineos in a unique position to drive progress towards a carbon-free future based on hydrogen. In 2018, Hyundai Motor Group announced its mid- to long-term road map, Fuel Cell Vision 2030, to increase annual production of hydrogen fuel cell systems to 700 000 units by 2030. which is when the UK will ban the sale of new fossil-fueled cars.
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auction house’s name or claim to be ‘trading as’ to dupe you.” Previews are crucial too. “If you’re unable to view the asset yourself, send someone on your behalf to confirm its existence, it’s always wise to view the condition of the asset before bidding, too.” The South African Institute of Auctioneers (SAIA), for which Lazarus has served on the board for several years, has also issued a stern warning to the public that includes a list of known scams and fly-by-night outfits.
Lazarus added: “Auctions have always presented an ideal way to acquire quality second-hand assets at better than market rates. It would be a shame to have the industry marred by dubious players just as a new generation of buyers emerges. “That being said, once you’ve verified the legitimacy of an auction, remember that there’s a lot more to auctioneering than standing on a podium, or accepting online bids. “It [auctioneering] is an art, perfected by years’ of practice conducting an auction that’s lawful and fair
to sellers’ and buyers’ best interests.” He said the best deals might not necessarily be online. He explained that a reputable, experienced auction house will arrange either an on-site, online or webcast (real-time simultaneous on-site and online) auction depending on the nature of the sale and the applicable target market. For this reason, there may be better bargains available via an auction that accommodates those without the means to attend online (due to data or technical proficiency). He added: “The most prudent advice I can offer to anyone who wants assurance of legal compliance and a pleasant experience is: • stick with firms that had an established reputation before lockdown; • check to see if they are registered SAIA members; and • choose organisations in which auctioneering is their core function. “Furthermore, look out for auction listings on their website and in dedicated auctions pages. Then you can be sure you’re finding assets that stem from reliable sources, and you will get professional support,” he concluded.
TOP: The Toyota Motor Corporation is now making the “Shodoku Taishi”, a foot-operated sanitiser stand for dealers in Japan. Like Ford in Silverton Pretoria, staff working at Toyota vehicle plants are already making masks and face shields. Toyota’s Kamigo Parts Centre can make up to 2 500 sanitiser stands a month, which are sold or leased to dealers from December 1. BOTTOM: At Halfway Toyota in Howick, workshop foreman Devesh Saamcharan stole a march on his Japanese colleagues in May, when he made foot-operated sanitiser stands using wood, which are still seeing daily use at the busy Halfway dealership. PHOTO: MAGGIE WHEELWRIGHT
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Auctions, auctions everywhere, but not all are the same. That’s the word from Park Village Auctions’ Clive Lazarus (pictured) commenting on the flood of new players in the market. Lazarus cautioned buyers against scammers and provided tips on how to discern a worthwhile auction. “The lockdown served to accelerate the market’s adoption of online auctions by buyers and sellers alike,” said Lazarus. He added: “Unfortunately though, opportunist scammers have been quick to piggy-back on this phenomenon.” This is not the first time that PVA has spoken out about bogus auctions. The company has been campaigning actively via news and social media for months. PVA implores consumers not to pay a deposit unless they have verified the business, the banking details and the physical whereabouts of the asset in question. Lazarus said: “Don’t be afraid to scrutinise; established auctioneers will be able to prove their details without hesitation. Imposters will have a close variation of a reputable
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Wired reports that Lennert Wouters, a security researcher at Belgian university KU Leuven, on November 11 revealed the security vulnerabilities he found in both Tesla Model X cars and their keyless entry fobs. He discovered that the vulnerabilities could be exploited by a car thief who manages to read a car’s vehicle identification number, usually visible on a car’s dashboard through the windshield, and come within about 4,5 metres of the victim’s key fob. The hardware kit needed to pull off the heist cost
Wouters around $300, fits inside a backpack and is controlled from the thief’s phone. In just 90 seconds, the hardware can extract a radio code that unlocks the owner’s Model X. Once the thief is inside, a second vulnerability Wouters found would allow the thief to pair their own key fob with the victim’s vehicle after a minute’s work and drive the car away. “Basically, a combination of two vulnerabilities allows a hacker to steal a Model X in a few minutes,” said Wouters, who plans to present his findings at the Real World Crypto confer-
ence in January 2021. Wouters says he warned Tesla about his Model X keyless entry hacking in August. He says the company told him it plans to start rolling out a software update to its key fobs this week, and possibly components of its cars, to prevent at least one step in his two-part attack. Tesla told Wouters that the patch may take close to a month to roll out, so Model X owners should install any updates Tesla makes available. Wired contacted Tesla to learn more about its software fix but got no response.