Wheels_6April2017

Page 1

April 6, 2017

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A DEAL MADE FOR REAL.

WitnessÂ

WHEELS

104 FM  L A T I P CA ays d r u t a S  9­10 am

*22' &$56 %(67 9$/8(

ADVERTISING:Â AVIRÂ THULSIRAMÂ ONÂ 084Â 278Â 3447Â

GET TO KEY PIETERMARITZBURG FOR LEGENDARY DEALS.

6276/51437 ADMAKERS.COM

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*On-the-Road and Registration Fees Excluded. Terms and Conditions Apply. Model/s shown may differ. Errors and Omissions Excepted.

033 345 2542

‌ NOW YOU’RE MOTORING

Weak rand not all gloom

YOURÂ CARÂ QUESTIONSÂ ANSWERED

 ... but higher fuel prices and more expensive cars will hit us all hard enough

WITNESS Wheels and Capital 104 fm’s popular Nqola  show on cars on Saturday expands to include two au­ to technicians in studio to answer your car questions.  Tune in from 9 am to 10 am to hear how the new dagga ruling doesn’t mean you can use it to make the daily commute bearable, and what it means if your car really does blow out clouds of white smoke. Our two techies are not just diagnosticians either, but have several years’ ex­ perience between them in cheaply fixing skorokoros in the back yard and can tell listeners what to look out for before they buy that un­ believable bargain. Using Mead and Mcgrou­ ther’s collated prices for used cars, we can also adi­ vise what is fair and what is asking too much. All this only on 104 fm.

ALWYN VILJOEN AFTER a good start to the year, with sales of both private and commercial vehicles on the rise, that midnight Zuma shuffle has crashed all plans in the auto trade. Ahead lies a weaker rand, which means all the imported cars  will cost even more, driving sales lower again. While this is bad news for new car sellers, the used car dealers can expect more sales as people seek affordable transport, or a taxi. Already, domestic sales of in­ dustry new light commercial ve­ hicles, which includes mini­bus­ es, saw  a gain of 1,1% in March, according to the latest data from the National Association of Au­ tomobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa). A weaker rand will also lead to

more car pooling, because a litre of fuel will cost even more and when the crude oil price rise in tandem with increased demand during winter in the northern hemisphere from June, we are go­ ing to feel the pain down south, paying well over a rand a kilome­ tre to drive. And with increased fuel prices comes increased ev­ erything else, as Transnet’s dys­ function still means everything we buy gets transported in trucks. There are some silver linings though. Anyone who bought a new car in the last year will see its value holding steadily, if not actually increasing. A weaker rand will also be a boon for tourism, despite the damage done to the industry by the Zupta’s new finance lackey Malusi Gigaba, who dented tour­ ism numbers with his irrational

Staff at Toyota’s plant in Prospecton can thank President Jacob Zuma for weakening the rand to make the thousands of exported Hilux bakkies more profitable. PHOTO: FILE demand for unabridged birth certificates while he was minister of home affairs. And of course South Africa’s mines will be mak­ ing handstands all the way to the bank and back, because they sell in dollars per ounce and then convert to rand­based revenue.

Wealthy mines means truck agencies can look forward to more orders for locally assem­ bled trucks. Among the extra heavy commercial vehicles, the Volvo Group, which includes UD trucks, leads with 279 local and exported sales reported last

month, with the Volvo FH lead­ ing sales with a 117 units sold. (UD’s success was in part due to the efforts of two KZN dealers, more on them on page 3.) Scania is currently SA’s second best­selling truck brand, with 189 units sold locally and eight ex­ ported. Among the private cars, the Polo Vivo remains the top selling passenger vehicle, with 2 383 units sold in March. The Polo is not SA’s best­selling vehicle overall, however, as that title is still held by the Hilux, of which Toyota dealers sold 3 447 units locally while the Prospecton plant export 3 463 Hilux units during March. Toyota will also see a silver lin­ ing in a weaker rand, which helps to make each exported Hilux that much more profitable. â€˘Â alwyn.viljoen@witness.co.za

Ford Ranger Raptor Kit @ LOW SALE PRICE

Mazda vehicles have always been designed and built to the highest standard of performance and reliability and now for complete peace of mind motoring; Mazda Southern Africa has introduced the Mazda Lifetime Parts Warranty which will be effective on new and existing models from January 2017.

Keep your Mazda in tip top condition by taking advantage of low service costs

Mazda 2 from Mazda 3 from Mazda 6 from 2.2 BT-50 from 3.0 Tdci from

R1727.31* R1800.00* R1800.00* R2370.31* R2050.00*

* All prices include VAT

15% discount on parts and labour on all additional repairs done in workshop. Offer ends 30/06/2017

Continuing to defy convention, MazdaSA will repair or replace any part that fails to perform its normal function without any charge to the vehicle owner for the lifetime of ownership. Claims under this warranty will exclude repair or replacement of parts required due to an accident, misuse, lack of proper maintenance, improperly performed repairs or environmental conditions damage. Incorrectly installed parts, non-approved parts and YHKLFOH PRGL¿FDWLRQV DV ZHOO DV SDUWV LQVWDOOHG WR YHKLFOHV WKDW DUH XVHG IRU FRPSHWLWLRQ UDFLQJ RU HPHUJHQF\ ZLOO DOVR EH H[FOXGHG Serviceable parts; parts replaced under the provisions of the Manufacturer’s warranty; batteries, additives, oils, seals, gaskets, trim items and glass or any parts replaced at the owners request that were deemed inappropriate or unnecessary by the Mazda dealer will also not be included under this warranty. 7KH 0D]GD /LIHWLPH 3DUWV ZDUUDQW\ DSSOLHV WR WKRVH UHSODFHPHQW SDUWV ¿WWHG E\ D 0D]GD DXWKRULVHG GHDOHU DQG IXOO\ SDLG IRU E\ WKH vehicle owner; so the vehicle owner will be required to produce the original repair invoice when returning to the dealer for repairs under this warranty. Terms and Conditions apply.

Barloworld Mazda Pietermaritzburg | Chatterton Road | Pietermaritzburg

Tel: 033 392 4444

www.mazdapietermaritzburg.co.za

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2

April 6, 2017

FORD RANGERS SUPPORT CAPE LEOPARDS AND WEST COAST DOLPHINS PRETORIA — The Ford Wildlife Foundation has handed over new Ford Rangers to two conserva­ tion projects in southern Africa. The Cape Leopard Trust in the Western Cape, and the Sea Search Research and Conserva­ tion group in Namibia each re­ ceived a new Ford Ranger to use as a support vehicle for their con­ servation teams. Established in 2004, the Cape Leopard Trust is an active preda­ tor conservation group using sci­ entific research as a tool to facili­ tate conservation, particularly in finding solutions to human­ wildlife conflict and inspiring a greater interest in the environ­ ment through an interactive en­ vironmental education legacy programme. “We are thrilled that the Ford Ranger bakkie will be joining our Cedarberg project, where it will be a wonderful asset for the re­ search team at the coal face of leopard conservation,” said Hel­ en Turnbull, Cape Leopard Trust CEO. The Ford Ranger will initially assist the project with imple­ menting a large­scale camera survey that extends over 320 000 ha as part of a five­year leopard monitoring plan. The survey will see 150 field cameras deployed and moni­ tored by a team of researchers and research volunteers to pro­ duce a robust scientific study of leopard populations across the area, as well as taking into consid­ eration monitoring of leopard prey species density and poten­ tial threats to leopard survival. The aim is to inform leopard management policy and contrib­ ute to national leopard monitor­ ing protocol. In Namibia, Sea Search will use their new Ford Ranger as a sup­ port vehicle for two major mari­ time conservation projects —the Namibian Dolphin Project in Walvis Bay and a study of the ef­ fects of climate change on cetace­ ans along the west coast of southern Africa. Sea Search is a scientific orga­ nisation that aims to conduct high quality, internationally rec­ ognised research in the marine realm, with a focused research output, education and student training, and advice to managers with the overarching aim of pro­ moting conservation. Dr Simon Elwen, founder and principal scientist at Sea Search, said the Ford Ranger is essential equipment for the marine mam­ mal research group in order to al­ low the team to tow and launch the team’s six­metre research boat, move equipment, travel to meetings and education events and respond to marine mammal strandings. The team racks up thousands of kilometres a year in South Afri­ ca. — Supplied.

To advertise your company in

THE FABLED UNICORNS OF MOUNT AUX SOURCES

A fish­eye view of the Jurgens Penta caravan’s interior, which sleeps four in comfort. PHOTO: SUPPLIED

Camping for sissies Alwyn Viljoen learns why winning games in camp is important THE Hlalanathi Drakensberg Resort in the northern part of the Berg is only the second place in South Africa to install an AirBnB Caravan, after a resort in the Western Cape. I thought that was a bit of all right for KZN, but when Jurgens invited us to test how many bits of all right the experience offers, I had sudden doubts. For those who don’t know, AirBnB is a digital noticeboard where people who are looking for holiday accommodation connect with people who are looking to rent their homes. I have no problem there. In fact, when The Redhead allows, I invite strangers from around the world to visit my house, be they couchsurfers or bikers. But this is not a home. It is a caravan and a tent, right? And I know from drip­ ping experience that Dave Barry, the Pulitzer Prize­winning American author, was right when he stated: “It always rains on tents. Rainstorms will travel thousands of miles — against prevailing winds — for the op­ portunity to rain on a tent.” Doubly so in the Berg, a place that can — and mostly does — make up its own weather on the spot to require exactly the oppo­ site of whatever you are wearing.

With the first AirBnB caravan parked and ready at the Hlalanathi Resort in the northern part of the Berg, you don’t need a tow hook. PHOTO: ALWYN VILJOEN Value for money But priced at R1 600 for two nights for four people — or R200 per person per night — I could not refuse the deal. For comparison, only the nearby backpacker lodge is slightly cheaper — at R195 per person for a twin room. The Hlalanathi Resort adds to the price the best views over the Tugela river and it has the Am­ phitheatre Golf Course. This challenging nine­holer sets the standard for using indig­ enous vegetation on the fair­ ways, and their natural­looking water features attract enough local bird life to make golf a sec­ ondary pursuit on the course for any twitcher.

I’m told some hard­core hik­ ing trails also lead to waterfalls and such, but I was much more interested in the sensible 30­ minute walk to the deservedly well­known Tower of Pizza. For those who don’t want to go out, the resort’s restaurant has a made­like­mom’s chicken pie that can sate the hunger of even two teenage boys, and gui­ tarist players get discount. I am proud to say they now also know how to make Grog — a mix of hot chocolate, rum and cream that I hope to be remem­ bered by on cold and rainy nights. In retrospect, I should have used the Penta caravan’s neat little kitchen to make my own Grog, using the nifty but

small metal wine glasses Jurgens caravans come with these days. But I did not and hence lost the games, earning myself one of the two camp beds in the tent. Sleeping in a deluge To give credit where it is due, I was totally impressed with how dry it was inside the tent, con­ sidering the sky outside was not so much raining as parading up­ right farm dams over and around our little camp. But achieving sleep while a mini­monsoon was being drummed out on the tight can­ vas was beyond even the power of Grog. Still, dawn finally ar­ rived bright and clear, with the Berg showing off her ample Am­ phitheatre in such an inviting way I was almost persuaded to go hiking, and was it not for the happy placing of the play area for children next to the gate, I might still have been perambu­ lating in them thar mountains — it was that pretty. So would I do it again? You bet. This AirBnB cara­ vaning is the best thing yet for camping sissies like my­ self and where else can you have a new caravan parked and ready for your arrival for R200 a head? Find out more on www.hlalanathi.co.za.

GOING back to the mid 18th century, people living near Mount Aux Sources told of a one­horned antelope about the size of a Blesbok and brown in colour. The tales of these unicorns were recorded in the Sir John Robinson’s autobiography, A Life­time in South Africa, pub­ lished in 1900. Robinson recounts how a lo­ cal Zulu had told a Natal set­ tler, a Mr A. Osborn, of the one­horned antelope that they had found in a swamp about a day’s hike from the summit of Mount Aux Sources. Osborn heard how the buck were so ferocious, they at­ tacked the party of brave Zulu warriors upon spotting them, killing five on the spot. The sixth reportedly only escaped by scrambling onto a rock. The existence of these “uni­ corns” were later corroborated by a Mosotho near Bethlehem, who said the buck were so fierce it would attack its own shadow. Some settlers believed the story to the extent that they wanted to register the Natal Unicorn Company Ltd to organise trophy hunts of the animal. Discover these and oth­ er even wilder bits of KZN’s history by going out to meet the locals and hear their sto­ ries, as Fikile Hlatshwayo did with Blacks DO Caravan. WIN! For a chance to win this book, answer how much does Hlalanathi Resort charge for a week­ end’s AirBnB in a caravan. E­mail answers to alwyn.viljoen@witness.co.za

Over a third more mileage from new SUV tyres GOODYEAR has introduced a tyre aimed at making it possible for SUV owners to drive on tar to an off­road spot and then take on the rocks. In 2016, more than 40% of new vehicles registered in South Africa were SUV/4x4s. Goodyear said in a statement the Wrangler All­Terrain Ad­ venture meets the demands of SUV/4x4 drivers wanting to en­ joy both off­road and on­road

driving pleasure, thanks to an ultra­strong, Kevlar fibre over­ lay that re­enforces the tread, offering the rugged strength needed to prevent punctures and cuts for a confident off­road driving experience. The Kevlar overlay is rein­ forced by the DurawallT Tech­ nology, which improves resist­ ance against punctures and cuts in the sidewall area. The new open shoulder

Call Avir Thulsiram on 084 278 3447 OR 033 355 1152 email: Avir@witness.co.za

blocks help to evacuate mud from the tread, allowing for im­ proved off­road traction. The biting edges of the Wran­ gler All­Terrain Adventure cre­ ate more traction between the tyre and the road surface, ensur­ ing the grip needed for confi­ dent braking and handling. Goodyear said its engineers also optimised the tread design for an even pressure distribu­ tion across the footprint, result­

ing in excellent mileage and great on­road performance. Using Dekra testing in France on a new Toyota Hilux 2.4­ 4x4, in December 2016, the new tyres showed 49% better mileage on rear axle and 25% more on the front axles than the average of competing tyres, giving Good­ year the boast that its new tyres perform 37% better mileage, on average, than its tested competi­ tors.

“Our heritage in the 4x4 seg­ ment and our proven track record in developing award­ winning 4x4 and SUV­tyres en­ abled us to develop the Good­ year Wrangler All­Terrain Ad­ venture, a tyre that allows drivers to stay in control of the journey and go on­road or off­ road at a moment’s notice,” said Wayne Nicholson, consumer PBU director, Goodyear South Africa.

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MOTORING WitnessWheels

April 6, 2017

ZUMA WILL AFFECT CAR SALES THE National Association of Automotive Manufacturers in SA (Naamsa) has suspended its projections for domestic vehicle sales while current political events continue. “Once the situation and conditions have settled down and greater clarity is forth­ coming as to the impact of

the political events on the di­ rection of the economy, the association will resume and offer guidance on expected new vehicle sales trends. “Both in the short­ and medium­term scenarios, the risk of lower vehicle sales is significantly on the downside,” Naamsa warned. — WR.

3

It steals the eye

The capacious handsome CX5 SUV. PHOTO: ROB RATHGEBER ROB RATHGEBER UD Trucks Dealer of the Year, CMH Commercial Pinetown’s dealer principal Ron Byng, celebrates with (from left) Sanjay Naipal, UD aftermarket director, Gert Swanepoel, MD of UD Trucks and Marle Visage, GM of retail development at UD Trucks Southern Africa. PHOTOS: SUPPLIED

KZN dealers top UD Trucks’ award night

AFTER driving the Mazda CX5 2,5 petrol sport utility vehicle, I really looked forward to driving the Mazda 4x4 Alkera — named after a sea hare and as fast and agile too. For that was the only niggle I had in the CX5, being old­fash­ ioned, I thought it could do with the power of a turbocharged en­ gine. In this, I am not alone. Mazda North American Oper­ ations (MNAO) also thought so and in mid­December last year received a 2017 Wards 10 Best Engines award for the turbo­ charged Skyactiv­G 2.5T engine, which made its debut in the sec­

KWAZULU­NATAL dealers support for our customers,” topped the UD Trucks South­ said Swanepoel. ern Africa awards to the compa­ He said that UD dealers’ pro­ ny’s independent regional net­ fessionalism, passion and de­ work at its annual dealer awards pendability are what set them ceremony last week. apart in a competitive market. Top honours in the Dealer of Year category went to CMH Commercial Pinetown. During his acceptance speech, dealer principal Ron Byng commended his entire team for “their hard work and 7RS 4XDOLW\ XVHG ORZ WE OFFER Brand New mileage engines and commitment to DELIVERY INTO Turbos gearboxes for most delivering the best DURBAN AND PMB ON makes and models of for most support and service at ENGINE AND cars and light delivery makes of GEARBOX every opportunity”. vehicles vehicles PURCHASES The Medium Dealer +HDGV of the Year award was 7XUERV 'LIIV presented to UD FOR THE LEXUS V8 ENTHUSIASTS WE OFFER /H[XV VSDUHV Trucks Magnis 1HZ DQG 6HFRQG Zululand from hand Richards Bay. The :H VWRFN ORFDO VWRFN winner of the as well Developing Markets Dealer of the Year category was NTT Botswana from Gaborone. Gert Swanepoel, managing director of UD Trucks Southern Africa, also presented awards to winners in 24 categories, ranging from technicians to driver trainers, parts, service and sales executives, and finance and administration specialists. He said the various winners set new benchmarks in all the various disciplines within a dealership; from administration, training to sales and after­market care. “To us it is all about providing quality products, quality parts and quality service. Our friendly sales team is equipped to deal with all enquiries and have a ZHDOWK RI NQRZOHGJH LQ WKH PRWRULQJ ¿HOG :H SULGH RXUVHOYHV LQ GHOLYHULQJ Most importantly, UD exceptional service and products to our clients and therefore have a stringent Trucks is all about quality check process in place to make sure that every product complies with quality people who RXU UHTXLUHPHQWV DQG LV LQ WRS RUGHU have reached a level of Tel: 035 789 0464 53 Bullion Boulevard excellence that sets 035 789 0754 Richards Bay CBD them apart from the Cell: 084 357 1082 Richards Bay rest. All of this adds up eastcoastengines@gmail.com to providing quality

EAST COAST

ond­generation Mazda CX­9 midsize crossover SUV on sale in the U.S. Locally, Mazda’s SkyActiv en­ gines’ claim to fame is that they do not use turbos to make power, instead they deploy finely tuned combustion technology to lift the Mazda’s performance to the next level, as shown by a 0­100 km/h sprint in about 10 seconds. Thus, while it felt like I was sedately accelerating, the CX5 actually shifted its 2 011 kg quite nimbly. Most of this is down to the SkyActiv’s higher compression ratio, but the lightweight, rigid chassis, upgraded transmission system and a lighter, stronger body all help to “add lightness”,

as legendary race car builder Co­ lin Chapman always preached. All this breathes life into the motorcar, moving to Mazda’s ad­ vertising line of the vehicle being more like a living creature that creates a bond with the driver, much like the relationship be­ tween horse and rider. It also helps with the fuel consumption. If you have a light right foot, Mazda claims consumption of 6,9 l/100 km on a combined cy­ cle. Driving only in the city I man­ aged 8,3 l/100 km. The 225/55 tyres on 19­inch rims also soak up undulations and can handle unseen potholes. As for looks, it is styling to a fault, even catching the eye over an aircraft, and inside the high­

class interior hides a raft of elec­ tronics. But I still wonder about bolting on a turbo ... • When not being a petrolhead, Dr Rob Rathgeber is Senior Desig­ nated Aviation Medical Examin­ er (DAME) based in Durban North. Mazda CX5 2,5 statistics Price: R468 300 Engine: 4­cylinder, 2 488 cc petrol Torque: 256 Nm at 3 250 rpm Workrate: 141 kW. Transmission: Six­speed auto­ matic. Airbags: six. Fuel tank: 56 litres. Boot size: 326/1 208 dm. Service plan: three years, unlimit­ ed kilometres.

ENGINE IMPORTS

QUALITY USED LOW MILEAGE ENGINES AND GEABOXES

DID YOU KNOW?

* The new Toyota Dyna (DG1) can now be driven with a code B (O8) licence * We offer preferential workshop: hourly rates to all customers who purchase new and used HINO and DYNA products from us

2017 DYNA DG1

TEST DRIVE ONE TODAY

Contact Mike Hoffman 071 613 4239 • Vaughan Hauptfleisch 083 732 8631

McCarthy - Member 0f the Bidvest Group

118 C.B. Downes Road, Mkondeni Pietermaritzburg Tel: 033 386 9241 Fax: 033 386 5098 www.mccarthytoyota.co.za

WitnessWheels MOTORING RACING

4

April 6, 2017

BACKDRAFT COBRA TO BE BUILT AT EASTER SHOW STUART JOHNSTON

Lance Woolridge and Ward Huxtable driving cautiously on the rocky sections to get to the finish without any punctures. PHOTOS: QUICKPIC

Off to a solid start Two made­in­Maritzburg Fords ended on the podium in the Lichtenburg 400 LICHTENBURG — The Ford Neil Woolridge Motorsport (NWM) Puma Lubricants team got their SA Cross Country Se­ ries (SACCS) campaign off to a solid start at the Lichtenburg 400, the opening round of the 2017 season last weekend in the North West province. Leeroy Poulter and Rob Howie were back to their winning ways when the pair dominated Friday’s qualifying race and went on to place their Toyota Gazoo Racing SA Hilux, powered by Total Quartz, on the top step of the Class T podium. The off­road race took place in extremely dusty and rocky condi­ tions that covered a total race dis­ tance of over 400 km and saw a high attrition rate and numerous punctures. In the Ford camp, Gareth Woolridge and co­driver Boyd Dreyer (T77) piloted their brand­ new Puma Lubricants­liveried Ford Ranger to second place in the Class T category. New team­mates Henk Lateg­ an and Barry White (T17) showed impressive pace in their debut cross country outing after making the switch from rallying, and were rewarded with third place. The experienced combination of Lance Woolridge and Ward Huxtable (T34) showed superb speed and tenacity throughout the weekend, but a series of punc­ tures set them back, eventually ending sixth. The Friday qualifying format for 2017 introduced a much shorter route than previous

years, with the season­opener re­ lying on a fast and smooth 49 km prologue to determine the start­ ing positions for the main race on Saturday. The sprint­style qualifying was dominated by the Ford Ran­ gers, with Lance Woolridge and Ward Huxtable emerging fastest in Class T, with a time of 30min: 39sec. Younger brother Gareth and co­driver Boyd Dreyer fol­ lowed four seconds later and the Ford V8­powered VW Amarok of Hennie de Klerk and Rodney Burke was third fastest. Former rally stars Henk Lateg­ an and Barry White were right on the pace from the start, matching the time of De Klerk and Burke, despite this being their first offi­ cial outing in the Ford NWM Pu­ ma Lubricants Ranger. The route director had warned the competitors that the 178­km main race loop would be treach­ erous and rocky, and so it proved, with most of the top teams suf­ fering a series of punctures. The driving conditions were made even more challenging with day’s ambient temperature reaching around 35°C by mid­ morning, while a lack of wind saw heavy dust hugging the race route, which made the going ex­ tremely tricky for the crews. Lance and Ward were the first Class T competitors to set off, and were the first of the Ford Ran­ gers to pick up a puncture, just 60 km into the first loop when they caught up to the faster FIA­ category Toyota Hilux of Giniel de Villiers/Dennis Murphy. This allowed the VW Amarok

crew past, and once back on the road again, they quickly made up time, but landed up in the thick dust of the crew ahead before De Klerk and Burke too encountered a puncture later in the stage. Gareth and Boyd also picked up a flat tyre around 40 km into loop one, giving Henk and Barry the opportunity to gain a place and take the effective lead, with all three Ford Rangers running line astern and covered by mere seconds for the return section of the route. A second puncture just 10 km from the end of the loop brought Lance and Ward to a halt, and they were further frus­ trated when the jack failed, drop­ ping them further down the run­ ning order leading into the man­ datory 20­minute service at the Lichtenburg showgrounds. Having enjoyed a clean run on loop one, Henk and Barry also succumbed to the rocky condi­ tions and incurred a puncture in the first half of loop two, giving Gareth and Boyd the chance to gain a place, with the latter duo enjoying a hassle­free run to the finish. They crossed the line sec­ ond in Class T behind the Mala­ lane Toyota crew of Johan and Werner Horn who, remarkably, completed the race without a sin­ gle tyre failure. Meanwhile, Henk and Barry suffered another setback just five kilometres from the end when the left front tyre was destroyed by a pole knocked into the road by another competitor. Never­ theless, they earned an impress­ ive third in Class T, which is an exceptional result in their first­

ever cross country race. Although they didn’t have any punctures on the second loop, Lance and Ward’s frustrations continued when one of the wheels starting coming loose. After stopping to tighten the wheel nuts, they adopted a cau­ tious approach for the remainder of the race and crossed the finish line sixth overall. Team principal Neil Wool­ ridge said while it was not a bad start, the team were hoping to win. “This year we are deter­ mined to win the championship, and we’ve put a huge effort into this season, including running three cars and doing a lot of work on preparation. “It’s good that all three crews banked points for the first race, which is crucial considering there are only six events this year, so every race counts. But I have to remind myself that it’s not about the battle, but rather the war. Overall I think we can be pleased with the results. It’s great to see the youngsters doing so well, and all three of them are al­ ready on the pace, which is very promising for the coming races. “The Ford Rangers were also brilliant and, other than the punctures, we didn’t have any is­ sues with them at all, which is fantastic after having built two brand­new cars. “There’s great enthusiasm and team spirit this year, and I think it’s going to be a really ex­ citing season.” Driving T77, Gareth Wool­ ridge said the exceptionally rough route allowed absolutely

no room for error. “We were kept busy in the car the whole race.” In the T17, Henk Lategan said he was quite surprised to end his first race in third place, adding the race was a lot rougher and quicker than he was used to in ral­ lying. “The Ford Ranger is amaz­ ingly strong, and there were nu­ merous times when we hit some­ thing and I thought we may have damaged the car, but there were no troubles. The car is quicker than I thought, and the handling is really impressive.” In the T34 Ranger, Lance Woolridge said it was “a bit dis­ appointing” when they suffered their first puncture. “When we had the second puncture the car fell off the jack twice and then sprung a leak, so we lost a lot of time. It was all going fine at the start of the sec­ ond loop, and then I heard a noise so we stopped and found the nuts had come loose on a wheel that we didn’t have a puncture on. Aft­ er that we didn’t want to lose more time with any punctures, so we were cautious on the rocky sections to get to the finish with­ out any more hassles. “It was very rough out there. On the first lap, I thought it was great as this felt like a proper off­ road race, but the second loop was much rougher after the whole field had been through the course, with sharp rocks every­ where. This isn’t the result we wanted, but we’ll try again at the next one.” The next event is the Battle­ fields Dundee race in KZN on May 12 and 13. — Supplied­WR.

Lichtenburg hard on riders CHARMAINE FORTUNE THE Lichtenburg 400 was also the opening round of the 2017 South African Cross Country Championship for motorcycles and quads (SACC Moto). The defending OR1 (Open) motorcycle champion, Ross Branch (Brother Leader Tread KTM) opened his scorecard with a perfect result when he claimed

his first victory of the season. He beat Tim Young (Sherco Liqui Moly Racing) who made a comeback to cross country rac­ ing after winning the OR2 cham­ pionship in 2013. Motocross ace Tristan Purdon (Bidvest Blu Cru Yamaha Rac­ ing) rounded off the OR1 podi­ um. There was some bad luck for two former champions, Kenny

Gilbert (Husqvarna) and Louw Schmidt (Brother Leader Tread KTM), who both had to retire due to injuries after they crashed. The defending OR3 champion, Dartagnan Lobjoit (Yamaha) fin­ ished fourth with Ruan Potgieter (KTM) fifth. The 2015 OR3 champion, Brett Swanepoel (Pepson Plas­ tics Husqvarna) also bagged maximum points with a victory

in OR2 (250cc). Only two minutes and 19 sec­ onds separated him from Marius Venter (KTM) who was again only 12 seconds in total faster than Ruan Smith (KTM Centuri­ on Liqui Moly Racing). In the Senior Class rivalry has been brewing for a few years now and it seems that it will continue in the 2017 season. Juan ‘Bollie’ van Rooyen

(Brother Leader Tread KTM) has his eye on a fourth consecutive championship title and took the first victory with Bruce Viljoen (Doorzone Bikers Warehouse Husqvarna) second and Wynand Kleynhans (Sherco Liqui Moly Racing) If the results are anything to go by, some exciting racing and serious battles can be expected for the rest of the season.

MEMBERS of the Cobra Club of South Africa, in conjunction with Gaut­ eng’s foremost Cobra spe­ cialist, The Snake Pit, will be doing a complete Co­ bra rebuild, starting with a bare chassis at this year’s Route 66 motoring ex­ travaganza at the Rand Show’s Hall 5. Prospecton­based Backdraft will supply the Cobra that will be built up by The Snake Pit and the Cobra Club. Backdraft makes one of the world’s finest replica Cobra mod­ els and exports these SA­ built cars to the U.S. and Europe. “Interest in Cobras has never been higher, and this is really going to blow Rand Show visitors’ minds,” says CEO of The Snake Pit, Paul de Klerk, who has been involved in rebuilding and maintain­ ing Cobra replicas for well over a decade. “We will arrive with a freshly painted chassis and body, all the suspension and interior bits and, of course, an engine,” he ex­ plains. And from there, the magic will begin, with Rand Show visitors get­ ting a front­row seat. The car that De Klerk and the Cobra Club will be assembling is an earlier model Backdraft that has undergone a body­off res­ toration. The chassis and suspension components have been powder­coated in black, while the body colour is expected to be a dark metallic silver. The car uses BMW sus­ pension, steering and braking components. “We have a special motor for our Route 66 project,” says De Klerk. “It’s a Ford 351 V8, stretched to 408 cubic inches of displace­ ment, which means it comes in at just a little un­ der 7,0­litres.” In addition to the build­ up project, The Snake Pit will be showing off many new Backdraft Cobras in Hall 5.

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