October 28, 2021
THE WITNESS
AA cries foul at RTMC
Prashant Shukla, head of sales and marketing, Tata International Africa (left) and Logan Pillay, Deputy Director of the Department of Transport, Mechanical for Durban and Empangeni regions.
The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport recently took delivery of a specialised fleet of 28 vehicles from Tata International Africa. This brings the total number of Tata trucks supplied to the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport (DoT) this year, to 65 units. In line with the National Department of Transport’s policy of encouraging local procurement, the trucks were built at the Tata Motors plant in Rosslyn, Tshwane, while the truck bodies were manufactured and supplied to meet the Department’s specifications by Kholeka Engineering, a subsidiary of Isipho Capital Holdings, located in Westmead, Pinetown. Logan Pillay, Deputy Director, Mechanical, for Durban and Empangeni regions, said wo different types of trucks were handed over. “These specialised units will greatly improve and accelerate service delivery across the province of KwaZuluNatal,” Pillay said. The Tata LPT 1623 model fitted with a 6 000-litre water tank for use in road-building projects as well as for supplying drinking water to communities in the region. Tata LPT 1518 dual purpose model has an air-conditioned crew cab that includes toolboxes for each worker, as well as a separate toilet and small dropside section at the rear for carrying equipment. Pillay said more females are entered the road working industry and furnishing of ablution facilities out in the field is a first in the sector. Thami Khumalo, Department of Transport Chief Director (Durban), also present at the handover, said by giving women comfort in the Tata trucks, innovation was being carried to the fore, to ensure gender parity. Pillay said based on the all-round performance of the initial fleet of trucks from Tata, another 40 trucks will be delivered in the new financial year. Prashant Shukla, Head of Sales and Marketing for Tata International Africa in South Africa said the contract includes a dedicated field technician with a fully equipped service van based in KwaZulu-Natal, as well as a dedicated support team, all backed by a fully-stocked parts warehouse, as well as free training for the drivers and technicians. “The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport can rest assured that it will enjoy excellent service, backed by our commitment to maximum uptime, ensuring the vehicles are on the road doing what they are supposed to do,” said Shukla. — WR.
NEW MODELS
Chery South Africa yesterday hosted a series of first-round test drives of its newly homologated Chery Tiggo 4 Pro at Gerotek outside Pretoria. The Tiggo 4 Pro will be the first model to launch in SA, with deliveries to customers scheduled for late-November, shortly after the opening of the first 30 dealerships. Tony Liu, executive deputy general manager for Chery South Africa said the Tiggo 4 Pro will be one of the most advanced SUVs in the compact urban SUV class when it is launched to the public in November. “At the same time, it will be one of the most competitively priced models in its class. It is only fitting that it will be launched first in South Africa, which incidentally is the first country on the globe to launch the right-hand drive version. — WR.
Team Kock aim for more low flying at Vryburg 400 The various Production Vehicle Championship title chases will reach boiling point at the upcoming Vryburg 400, the sixth and penultimate round of the 2021 South African National Cross Country Series (SACCS) from tomorrow to Saturday. Class T leaders, Malcolm and Frans Kock, (pictured) will aim to use their home turf advantage to reach a third win in their class this season. With four different winners after five events so far this season, it will be risky to bet on a winner for the Vryburg event, where desert-like conditions mean anything can happen. Racing starts at 1 pm tomorrow, and fans can follow the action on the RallySafe App, free on App Store and Google PlayStore. PHOTO: QUICKPIC
Innovative Planet42 passes 5 000-car milestone ALWYN VILJOEN Vehicle subscriptions company Planet42 has passed the milestone of buying 5 000 cars. Co-founded by Marten Orgna and Eerik Oja, Planet42, launched in 2017 as CarGet but soon changed the name to Planet42. The founders told Witness Wheels last year the name pays homage to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by author Douglas Adams in which 42 is the answer to everything. The founders aim to answer many people’s transport needs with their aim to buy a million cars for its customers worldwide by 2025, with plans to expand its business from Africa to Latin America. Describing itself as “a vehicle rental company offering rent-to-buy service for private clients” Planet42’s model has proprietary software on which it relies to weed out non-payers from people who “are unfairly ignored by banks”. The company explains it buys cars local dealers to promote financial and social inclusion in regions where the rent-to-buy model can have the greatest impact on the cycle of transport inequality. “We buy the car from the dealer and rent it to you. You drive the car and make monthly payments to Planet42. “You have the option to buy out the car at any time for the buy-out price, which decreases every month. After 5 years the buy-out price
Planet42 Chief Operating Officer Grant Wing.
is R5000,” the company website states. To date, Planet42 has bought new and used cars from over 700 partner dealerships who find that normal banks turn down up to nine in 10 applications from buyers. Planet42 COO Grant Wing said in a statement the company’s willingness to finance black-listed clients has translated into a 26% average increase in sales for dealers partners, and Planet42 is continually looking to expand its list of partner dealers to meet its ambitious goal of democratising access to mobility by providing affordable vehicle subscriptions to people unfairly overlooked by banks. “Of the 5 000 customers served so far, 93% would not have a car without the support of Planet42 because traditional vehicle finance is overly restrictive. “While these individuals can afford the
monthly payments, banks and vehicle finance businesses would have turned them down either due to a lack of a credit record or very minor past infringements. “We are extremely proud to have bought over 5 000 cars for South Africans so far who otherwise wouldn’t have vehicles, and we expect to keep growing at this pace or faster. “By 2025, we want to have bought 200 000 cars in South Africa alone,” Wing said. He told the Thrive Global website that competing car financiers in South Africa are not driven by data but by people. Wing said without reliable transport to provide an escape route, people can become trapped in a poverty cycle, which is the trap the Planet42 wants to free them from. He said Planet42 instead uses algorithms to make consistent credit analyses and return reliable, fair decisions on over 25 000 applications per month. “Eliminating inconsistent decision making is the source of a large part of our profit margin. “Our approval rating takes around 59 seconds — a speed no human can match. Further, our algorithms are constantly reviewed by data scientists, and we are constantly improving our core technologies. We’ve changed the algorithms significantly around six times in the last two years — I don’t think traditional credit analysis firms have this kind of agility,” Wing said.
Right to repair – four things you need to know By this stage most South Africans would have heard something about the new Guidelines to Competition in the South African Automotive Aftermarket (“the Guidelines”) or the consumer’s right to repair, a term most commonly used. But there is still a lot of uncertainty out there in terms of what this really means for the general motorist. Kate Elliott, (pictured) Chief Executive Officer of Right to Repair South Africa (R2RSA), an organisation especially formed to help drive compliance and protect consumer interests says, “At the end of the day the Guidelines are there to support consumer choice, fair competition and competitive pricing. There are about 12,7 million vehicles on the road in South Africa and all of these will need to be serviced and repaired during their lifetimes. And now you as the consumer, have the power to select where you want to take your car for servicing.” Here are the four main things consumers need to know: You have the right to choose your service provider Independent service providers can now service
and perform maintenance on cars both during the in-warranty period and after. “You may choose to service your vehicle at the dealer from whom you purchased your vehicle or you can elect to shop around for the best possible price and service quality,” says Elliott. Your warranty is protected no matter which service provider you choose. Elliott said previously, motor manufacturers would void the warranty if a vehicle was not serviced at the dealership. The Commission has now declared this practice as incompatible with the Competition Act. You are entitled to use non-original spare parts With cost always being an issue, the good news is that consumers can now shop around and are entitled to use non-original spare parts (for example oil filters) in your vehicle during your vehicle’s in-warranty period and manufacturers are not entitled to void your warranty. Unbundling of service/maintenance plans from the price of a vehicle When you buy a car, vehicle retailers are now
obliged to provide you with separate prices for your vehicle and for any value-added products that they might have on offer such as service and maintenance plans. Car retailers are also obliged to sell you a new vehicle without a service or maintenance plan if you do not wish to purchase one. “You do the maths,” she says, “and you may be pleasantly surprised at just how much you can knock off the purchase price of your car.” A win for the consumer, but do your homework The removal of previous barriers is definitely in the consumer interest. “What is absolutely key however, is that motorists do their homework. We strongly advise motorist to make use of reputable independent service providers and make sure they have sufficient defective workmanship and liability insurance in place, something which, in terms of the Guidelines, all independent workshops are required to tell you. The manufacturers are entitled to void the warranty on a part which has been damaged as a result of the use of inferior parts, incorrect service procedures and/or faulty workmanship. “This is where an independent workshop’s insurance will kick in and cover you,” said Elliott. More on www.compcom.co.za. — WR.
Road Traffic chair needs to account to Parliament for statements, says AA The Automobile Association (AA) says an urgent inquiry by Parliament into the operational and financial affairs of the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) is necessary and overdue. The association says the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Transport should also summon the chairperson of the RTMC, Zola Majavu to explain why he made false statements about the funding of the corporation in the RTMC’s 2020 annual report. The association further says the RTMC has failed in its core function (contained in the preamble to the RTMC Act): “… to enhance the overall quality of road traffic and, in particular, to promote safety, security, order, discipline and mobility on the roads ...” “Road deaths in South Africa remain high despite the billions of rands of revenue the RTMC has received to address the issue. The mandate of the RTMC is not being fulfilled, and the high remuneration of executives and board members grossly exceeds private-sector norms for companies of similar size. For instance, the CEO of the RTMC, Advocate Makhosini Msibi’s total remuneration in 2020 was R9,8 million, in spite of adverse findings by the auditor-general in respect of the RTMC’s management,” said the AA. In the last RTMC annual report, the auditor-general found that management at the RTMC did not ensure the financial statements “… were in line with the reporting framework, and [that they] were accurate and complete”. The AA said: “Aside from an urgent inquiry into the operational financial affairs of the RTMC, Parliament must establish a committee to investigate and enforce performance standards with justifiable metrics for SOE executives with clear targets for performance bonuses,” the AA said. “We also believe legislation is needed to reduce the size of SOE boards to further limit executive remuneration. Taxpayers have a right to understand why the RTMC is costing so much, yet delivering so little, especially in terms of road safety.” The proposed parliamentary inquiry is among several recommendations by the AA in its submission to the Department of Transport commenting on the pro-
posed new fees for the RTMC which are as contained in the Government Gazette seeking to amend the RTMC’s regulations. The AA is also preparing a further submission to the revised draft regulations published earlier this month. “The proposed regulations amending the RTMC’s fees are outrageous. Yet again we see the trend of repurposing traffic law to generate revenue instead of improving safety. If the RTMC needs more money, it should first prove it adds value. It hasn’t yet, which is why we are calling for urgent intervention into its affairs,” said the AA. In the AA’s view, the drive to generate funds effectively disincentivises the RTMC to improve road safety as this would negatively impact on its revenue. The conduct of the RTMC’s Majavu is another matter the AA says needs to be investigated. “In the RTMC’s 2020 Annual Report Majavu states: ‘The entity (RTMC) is wholly dependent on the Transaction Fees for continued funding of operations.’ This is false. “The same report shows that the financial contribution of non-transaction fee revenue exceeded R400 million of the RTMC’s total revenue last year, and the RTMC Act itself provides for numerous sources of revenue. As the chair of a stateowned entity, he should be called to explain why he made a false statement in a public document,” said the AA. The association says it is also concerned that there is no clear justification for the proposed fee increases for the RTMC which already showed a surplus of nearly R262 million in 2020. “People in South Africa are struggling financially, and for many, a driving licence or PrDP to legally use a vehicle is essential to help them seek or maintain employment. “Yet the RTMC, which is responsible for renewing these licences, is squandering taxpayers’ money, pays its executives exorbitant salaries which are unattainable in the private sector, and has millions of rands in the bank. “To now suggest it needs to increase these fees to keep on operating is an insult to every South African, and Parliament needs to step in for the sake of all citizens to put an immediate stop to it,” said the AA. — WR.
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Toyota on Tuesday opened the Corolla Cross production line at its plant in Prospecton, KwaZulu-Natal. President and CEO of Toyota SA Motors, Andrew Kirby (pictured) said Toyota plans to fundamentally change the new energy vehicle (NEV) landscape in South Africa from selling a few hundred NEV’s a year, to selling over 10 000 units per year. This is part of the company’s roadmap towards carbon neutrality, which in SA starts with the Corolla Cross. The Cross is based on Toyota’s New Global Architecture platform, or simply the TNGA platform. To date, 32 Toyota and Lexus models use this platform which account for some 70% of global Toyota sales. — WR.
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