Wheels_18_Aug_2016

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August 18, 2016

Witness

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KWAZULU­NATAL’S BEST READ ON ALL THINGS WHEELED … EVEN A TRAIN­PULLER

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S T E ICK

WIN T

The first car to be called a Mercedes goes under the hammer, and then there’s a dummy tank. — Page 4

Stand a chance to win two tickets to the Spin Bash at Scottsville on August 27 by e­mailing the name of the venue to alwyn.viljoen@witness.co.za.

Kwanda Mokoena is keen to win himself a place in the Rotax Max World Mini Max finals in Italy when he races in the Rotax Max African Open at the Zwartkops Kart Track on Saturday.

— Page 8

Hyundai is looking for more WRC podiums on German tar. — Page 8

Dutch students set out to ride around the world in 80 days on two electric bikes equipped with rather big batteries packs. — Page 7

Shocker! our Ukhozi FM petrolhead correspondent Sibonelo Myeni drives ’lektric — and likes it. Well, mostly. — Page 7

100s Riders — KZN’s safest bikers — host a fun ride to Umzimkulu River Lodge on Sunday.

All welcome at the pre­ride registration and braai at the VSCC on 120 Oribi Rd tomorrow night at 6.30 pm.

For more, call Stephen Peate, 081 362 2016

Pre-owned

The all-new Audi A4.

Progress is intense.

Visit Audi Centre Pietermaritzburg today for incredible offers on a range of Audi Pre-owned vehicles.

Only while stocks last, terms and conditions apply.

This Women’s Month, spoil yourself or the lady in your life with our tailor-made offer on the new Audi A4 Sedan.

With 0% deposit and a 6.65% interest rate* it may sound too good to be true... Visit Audi Centre Pietermaritzburg today to enjoy this limited offer and call the driving seat of an Audi your own.

Model Audi A4 1.4T FSI 110kW S tronic

Vehicle Price R494 500

Monthly No. of Installments Installments R6 549

48

Interest Rate Linked/ Variable

Deposit

GFV

Total Cost Incl. Fees and Vat

6.65%

0%

59.38% (R293 624)

R607 994

Fine print: Offer calculated on the Audi A4 1.4T FSI 110kW S tronic in standard specification over 4 years. *Linked to FNB prime rate, currently 10.50%. R6 549 monthly instalment. Information subject to change without prior notification. All Finance offers are subject to credit approval from Audi Financial Services. Instalment includes initiation and monthly administration fee of R68.40.

Total Retail Price as above at a Guaranteed Future Value based on 20 000 km p.a. Audi Financial Services - a division of Volkswagen Financial Services South Africa (Pty) Ltd. An Authorised Financial Services and Credit Provider. NCRCP6635. Terms and Conditions apply.

Ref

Year

Vehicle Description

Colour

Mileage

Special Price

11410

2015

Audi A4 2.0T FSI Design S tronic

White

6 000

R 489 995

11471

2016

Audi A6 1.8T FSI S tronic

White

11 000

R 459 995

11486

2015

Audi A6 1.8T FSI S tronic

White

10 000

R 499 995

11495

2014

Audi Q5 2.0 TDI quattro S tronic

White

80 000

R 379 995

11496

2010

Audi S4 245kW quattro S tronic

Silver

115 000

R 249 995

11504

2013

Audi A4 1.8T FSI 125kW

Grey

97 130

R 229 995

11511

2013

Audi Q5 2.0 TDI quattro Manual

White

125 000

R 279 995

11513

2015

Audi RS3 SB 270kW quattro

White

18 000

R 699 995

11524

2016

Audi A4 2.0T FSI S tronic

Silver

10 000

R 499 995

11525

2016

Audi A4 2.0T FSI S tronic

White

10 000

R 429 995

11526

2016

Audi A4 2.0T FSI Design S tronic

Grey

10 000

R 449 995

11527

2016

Audi A4 2.0T FSI Sport S tronic

Red

3 000

R 479 995

11528

2016

Audi A4 1.4T FSI Sport S tronic

Red

2 000

R 479 995

11530

2011

Audi RS5 Coupe quattro

Black

77 000

R 499 995

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

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WitnessWheels MOTORING

Trailblazer standards AMIL UMRAW finds the wild alter­ego button in Mercedes­Benz’s new CLA. THE Mercedes CLA is the C­Class’s sexy little sister and she has just under­ gone some cosmetic surgery, the nips and tucks making her even prettier.

Being true fashionistas in their seg­ ment, the face­lifted CLA range boasts a combination of contemporary ele­ gance with racy curvature, elements that are pronounced both inside and out.

But before I get into that, Mercedes has added a whole new derivative to the previous CLA production line: the eco­ friendly 200d.

With an output of 100 kW, 300 Nm of torque and a claimed fuel consump­ tion of 4,4 l per 100 km, the spirited die­ sel engine offers a smooth balance be­ tween speed and economy, which I antic­ ipate will do rather well in the South African market.

The CLA seems like the type that would wear a pencil skirt with high heels but would also let you get lucky on the first date.

It’s sophisticated when it needs to be, but has a spontaneously wild alter ego when you decide to mix business with pleasure.

So what’s new?

On the outside, the CLA has been made more aggressive, with sleek new bump­ ers and Mercedes’ all­new diamond radi­ ator grill. Also, there are some new rims to choose from.

On the inside, Mercedes has added new seat covers and fiddled a bit with the trimming, throwing in chrome­plat­ ed controls as an extra touch.

There is no need to go in depth about the quality trimming and material, the fancy headlights, the keyless this and hands­free that, the attention to detail and the functionality of it all — it’s a Mercedes so we all know what to expect.

Now on to what everyone really wants to read about: the CLA45 AMG. It’s a howler A true racing brute, the spec’d out 45

The Mercedes­AMG CLA 45 4MATIC Coupé is among the most powerful vehicles in its segment but at the price, it needs to be. PHOTO: QUICKPIC is not a subtle machine.

The engine howls away in a symphony of cylinders, emitting one hell of a bang as the turbo dumps on every gear change.

We all know the 45s are fast and this one is no exception. With a peak output of 280 kW and maximum torque of 475 Nm, the Mercedes­AMG CLA 45 4MATIC Coupé is among the most powerful vehicles in its segment, acceler­ ating from rest to 100 km/h in just 4,2 seconds.

At the same time, a fuel consumption of just 6,9 l per 100 km underlines the trailblazing standards of efficiency achieved by Mercedes­AMG.

In this model, the AMG design team have fiddled with the aerodynamics, bolting on new splitters, wings and vents across the car, not only adding to the aesthetic appeal, but also making a huge difference to the handling and stability of the car.

As a result, the ride is exceptional.

The 45 sits tight around corners and allows the driver to accelerate flat out with the confidence of a single hand on the steering.

About that pricing With most German vehicles, you would not expect to pay anything less than R400 000 for something fresh off the production line.

Starting at R449 900 for the CLA 200 and skyrocketing all the way up to R832 900 for the 45, the cosmetic sur­ gery comes at a price.

Also, what you see on the poster will most likely not be what is actually on the showroom floor.

Expect to fork out up to about R100 000 extra if you want all the bells and whistles.

Pricing: CLA 200 R449 900 CLA 200d R481 900 CLA 220d R519 900 CLA 250 Sport 4MATIC R631 900 AMG CLA 45 4MATIC R832 900.

e­ROT: a terrible name for a really clever new damper CLEARLY, the marketers did not get to meet the engineers before they decided to name their new prototype electric damping system the e­ROT. Spelling it with capitals, as Audi does, just makes it worse, so expect a name change soon.

But also expect to hear a lot more about electromechanical rotary damp­ ers.

These replace the hydraulic dampers used in all cars today to provide what Audi says is an even more comfortable ride, but their use is dictated not by the smooth ride, but their ability to capture kinetic energy to be turned into electrici­ ty.

The principle behind e­ROT is easily explained: “Every pothole, every bump, every curve induces kinetic energy in the car. Today’s dampers absorb this energy, which is lost in the form of heat,” said Stefan Knirsch, a board member for technical development at Audi AG. “With the new electromechanical damper system in the 48­volt electrical system, we put this energy to use. It also presents us and our customers with en­ tirely new possibilities for adjusting the suspension.”

The e­ROT system responds quickly and with minimal inertia. As an actively controlled suspension, it adapts ideally to irregularities in the road surface and the driver’s driving style. With e­ROT, Audi configures the compression stroke to be comfortably soft without compro­ mising the taut damping of the rebound stroke. Another advantage of the new damper system is its geometry.

The horizontally arranged electric motors in the rear axle area replace the upright telescopic shock absorbers,

Audi’s prototype e­ROT electric dampers capture kinetic energy to help charge the car’s 48 Volt electric system.

PHOTO: SUPPLIED which allows for additional space in the luggage compartment.

The e­ROT system enables a second function besides the freely programma­ ble damper characteristic: it can convert the kinetic energy during compression and rebound into electricity.

To do this, a lever arm absorbs the motion of the wheel carrier. The lever arm transmits this force via a series of gears to an electric motor, which con­ verts it into electricity. The recuperation output is 100 to 150 watts on average

during testing on German roads, from three watts on a freshly paved freeway to 613 watts on a rough secondary road.

Under customer driving conditions, this corresponds to a CO2 savings of up to three grams per kilometre.

The new e­ROT technology is based on a high­output 48­volt electrical sys­ tem. As currently configured, its lithi­ um­ion battery offers an energy capacity of 0,5 kilowatt hours and peak output of 13 kilowatts. A DC converter connects the 48­volt electrical subsystem to the

12­volt primary electrical system, which includes a high­efficiency, enhanced output generator.

Initial test results for the e­ROT tech­ nology show potential fuel savings of up to 0,7 litres per 100 kilometres. Thus its use in future Audi production models is certainly plausible.

A prerequisite for this is the 48­volt electrical system. But when Audi rolls out this phase of its electrification strat­ egy, the marketers will hopefully have come up with another name. — WR.

August 18, 2016

New Benz brand for electric cars MERCEDES­BENZ is reportedly working on a new sub­brand for elec­ tric vehicles, which will supposedly include two new fully electric SUVs and two new all­electric sedans.

The German luxury carmaker plans to roll out the new vehicles be­ fore 2020, with the first prototype being introduced in September at the Paris Auto Show. It is expected that the vehicle will be an SUV, with a driving range of roughly 500 km.

In addition to the electric cars, Mercedes is planning its first all­elec­ tric heavy­duty delivery truck by the start of the next decade. The compa­ ny recently unveiled its new concept truck, the Urban eTruck. It is a vehicle made for intra­city shipments.

Specifically designed for short runs and heavy construction, the truck will be a sign of the company moving into a new market. In addi­ tion, there will be an electric varia­ tion stemming from the company’s Smart brand of vehicles.

The company has also promised electric versions of each of the vehi­ cles in the Smart city­car brand.

Mercedes currently offers the all­ electric B250e, which is still a low­ volume vehicle, and the Smart fortwo Electric Drive.

Earlier this year, Mercedes said that the manufacturing of the new electric vehicles will take place at the facility in Bremen, Germany.

Starting in 2017, a fuel­cell electric GLC SUV should be in manufactur­ ing stage and the car is expected to be able to tap both hydrogen and wall sockets for recharging.

The GLC F­Cell will be the first production fuel­cell vehicle to get a usable all­electric range capable of delivering a range of 50 km. Togeth­ er, the battery and the fuel­cell offer a zero­emission range of 500 km.

— WR.

Fuel price set to drop some more SPRING promises not only to put leaves on the trees but line your wallet with a little more green as well, thanks to a lower fuel price.

The Automobile Association said in a statement that the ongoing rand strength has muscled out a climbing oil price, raising the possibility of substantial fuel price cuts this month end. This is according to the Auto­ mobile Association (AA), which was commenting on unaudited mid­ month fuel price data released by the Central Energy Fund.

“The rand firmed substantially against the U.S. dollar in the first fort­ night of August,” the AA said.

“However, international petrole­ um prices showed a sharp jump over the same period.

“Fortunately for South Africans, the rand is ahead in the contest and the current data indicates considera­ ble price reductions at month end.”

Petrol could go down by 69 cents a litre and diesel by 94 cents.

“The fuel price for September will depend on whether the rand can con­ tinue to counter upward trends in in­ ternational petroleum prices.

“Any flattening out of the rand’s gains would be negative for the fuel price, but there would have to be a substantial reversal for the current picture to be spoiled before the end of August,” the AA said.

The fuel prices are adjusted on the first Wednesday of each month.

— WR.

MOTORING WitnessWheels

August 18, 2016

Its all about people What do robot trucks and self­driving cars herald for vehicle dealerships?

ALWYN VILJOEN

Key Group and Fidelity co­hosted a networking breakfast for platinum fleet clients and Sharks rugby staff, with Key Group Pietermaritzburg’s truck sales director Marc Michaux saying such relationships will continue to shape future transport and car dealers far more than self­driving cars or robot trucks will. PHOTO: SUPPLIED fordable German technology; for our Chevrolet Spark, still considered the best­value small car in SA; and for our Isuzu bakkies and trucks, which form the backbone of KZN’s hardest­working fleets. Dealing with these buyers is a pleasure, because we share a drive to get the most value for money from our wheels, but even when we start selling robot bakkies, this trusted relationship will always be — excuse the pun — key,” said Hall­Jones.

To celebrate the relationships that Key enjoys with its fleet buyers, the

group has started co­hosting network­ ing breakfast with Fidelity Security Ser­ vices. Hall­Jones said Fidelity has over 36 000 staff ensuring secure operations in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Swaziland and Zambia.

Key Group sells the right transport, from fire trucks to VIP transport.

“Our clients sell products or services that we all use. Networking them with the likes of Sharks captain Tendai ‘The Beast’ Mtawarira proved a big success because even for the far future transport seller, it will always be about the people,

not the wheels,” said Hall­Jones.

Truck sales director Marc Michaux agrees, and said that the exciting devel­ opments with self­driving trucks can al­ ready be implemented in rich mines in Africa. “These trucks are already work­ ing above and underground in Australia and South America, but they require huge outlay and rare skills.

“Most businesses in Africa operate on very thin margins and for them, Isuzu trucks and bakkies will offer the most cost­effective solution for many decades to come,” said Michaux.

Next step in effective engines NISSAN’s e luxury vehicle division, Infiniti, has to date seen little sales in South Africa and relatively few around the world, but this may all change if Infinity’s new 2.0­litre, four cylinder turbo engine with variable cylinder compression lives up to the hype.

President of Infiniti Roland Krue­ ger described the new engine as “a revolutionary next step in optimising the efficiency of the internal combus­ tion engine”.

Krueger said this technological breakthrough delivers the power of a high­performance 2.0­litre turbo petrol engine with a high level of effi­ ciency at the same time, moving be­ tween compression ratios of 8:1, which allows high turbo boost; and 14:1, which allows the pistons to just sip while cruising. Infinity said it can vary the compression by raising and lowering the top and bottom points of the piston stroke without moving the crankshaft or the cylinder head, instead using an actuator arm that changes the angle of a multi­link that sits around the crankshaft The engine goes on show at the 2016 Paris Mo­ tor Show at the end of September, when pow­ er specs will also be announced.

— WR. PHOTO: INFINITY

1025/45494

ADMAKERS.COM

IN the United States, Europe and China, car builders and sellers are preparing themselves for a future in which fewer cars will be working harder, thanks to apps like Uber, which make ride sharing easy; and efficient drivetrains that make it cheaper to keep drive rather than pay for parking.

The people developing these vehicles — which range from the self­driving Ot­ to trucks from former Google employ­ ees, to really weird, foam­wrapped, one­ seater trikes from China that can be stacked on their tails and float in an emergency — all say they can have their assembly lines ready by 2020.

Does this mean lots of rapid changes for South African car dealers?

No so fast, said Mike Hall­Jones, man­ aging director at Key Group in Pieterma­ ritzburg. For while the idea of owning a robot car that can deliver you and the kids to school and work before spending the day paying its keep as a self­driving taxi makes sense, this idea does not yet appeal to most South African car buyers.

Hall­Jones said that SA car buyers can be divided into three broad groups: the conspicuous consumer on one end, the person who just drives what dad drove because it proved reliable on the other, and in the middle the buyers who re­ search all the options, compare a mod­ el’s trade­in values, theft statistics and power specifications before they decide.

“These are the informed buyers we deal with at Key Group. They come in for our Opels, which offer the most af­

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4

CONCOURS SA HOSPITALITY PACKAGES IN conjunction with Sun City, the or­ ganisers of Concours South Africa are offering special hospitality packages for exclusive guests at the very first Concours South Africa, being held at Sun City from September 9 to 11, 2016.

The hospitality packages are availa­ ble to private visitors to the Concours, as well as corporates wishing to en­ tertain their guests in an exclusive manner, befitting of this glamorous motoring event.

The Concours is being held from Friday, September 9, to Sunday, Sep­ tember 11 and the hospitality packages are available only for the Saturday, September 10 and Sunday, Septem­ ber 11.

The hospitality packages for the Saturday and Sunday include a buffet lunch, full bar service and snacks, VIP appearances of motoring celebrities, including Sarel van der Merwe, Ian Scheckter and David Bullard, exclusive paddock access and VIP parking.

Hospitality pack prices are R2 500 per person, per day, or R4 500 per person for two days. Prices exclude VAT. “This is an ideal opportunity to net­ work with clients, and the owners of the magnificent Concours cars, over two days in beautiful relaxing sur­ roundings,” said Concours South Africa organiser Ross Crichton.

“Our venue on the lawns at Sun City Hotel, adjoining the Gary Player Country Club, is world famous amongst the golfing fraternity. After the second weekend in September, 2016, it is going to be world famous amongst aficionados of fine automo­ biles.

“Our ambition is to turn this into an event that will be mentioned right up there with the likes of Pebble Beach and Lake Como.”

For more information on securing hospitality packages, contact Sabrina Morris at Sabrina@eventoptions.co.za — Supplied.

OIL FOR CLASSIC CARS BACK IN THE GREEN CANS CASTROL has advised owners of cars that were made before 1980 that its range of oils that were specifically de­ veloped, designed and made for these cars and motorcycles is now available in South Africa, and in the famous Castrol Classic green metal cans to boot.

Historically, many motor manufac­ turers recommend Castrol by name in their original vehicle handbooks and now today’s owners are able to follow those original recommendations.

“Choosing the right engine oil for your veteran, vintage or classic vehicle or motor cycle is essential for ensur­ ing peak running conditions, perform­ ance and maximum wear protection for your engine,” said Castrol’s Giovan­ ni Schule.

“South Africa has a huge number of veteran, vintage and classic vehicles on the road that are used and are still running today and often used for special events shows, racing and ral­ lies, all of which should be using Cas­ trol Classic products.” said Giovanni.

Castrol produces a range of famous Classic oil brands to the correct for­ mulations and viscosities as originally recommended by the vehicle manufac­ turers, but are now using the latest technology, where appropriate, and low­detergent formulations are there to protect your veteran, vintage and classic vehicle.

Castrol Classic Oils use original for­ mulations to cope with old engines’ peculiarities but also provide modern, anti­wear additives. — WR.

WitnessWheels TRANSPORT MOTORING

August 18, 2016

RARITIES GOING UNDER THE HAMMER

This Mercedes­Simplex was the first car to wear the Mercedes name and tomorrow sees a rare, 1904 Mercedes­Simplex five­seater with rear entry going under Bonham’s hammer at the Quail Auction in the U.S., where it is expected to sell for between R33 and R40 million.

On eBay meanwhile, another German rarity could sell for as little as R284 930 today. The ‘Panzerattrappe’ or dummy tanks were first used as tank training vehicles and later as decoys in World War 2. They were built on Germany’s answer to the Jeep — the Volkswagen Kübelwagen, which was designed by Ferdinand Porsche and built by Volkswagen and this 1932 dummy tank is as scarce as vehicles get. PHOTOS: SUPPLIED

Signal theft too easy Researchers show that most older cars are vulnerable to tech savvy attack ALWYN VILJOEN GERMAN and British researchers have discovered a security flaw in remote locking systems fitted to around 100 million cars worldwide that could make car theft in South Africa easier.

In a report, Lock It and Still Lose It— on the security of automotive remote keyless entry systems, Flavio D. Garcia and David Oswald, University of Bir­ mingham; Timo Kasper, Kasper & Os­ wald GmbH; and Pierre Pavlidès, Uni­ versity of Birmingham, showed how the older technology can easily be circum­ vented by tech­savvy thieves.

They chose Volkswagen models be­ cause the group enjoys over 23% mar­ ket share in Europe (September 2015) and 11,1% worldwide (August 2014), with almost 100 million cars sold be­ tween 2002 until 2015.

The researchers admit not all of these vehicles use the Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) schemes covered, but say they have strong indications that the vast majority of the cars are vulnerable to attacks using a simple battery­powered listening set­up that costs under $40 (R540) to build, and which can eaves­ drop and record rolling codes, emulate a key, and perform reactive jamming.

“As the main result of this section, we discovered that the RKE systems of the majority of VW Group vehicles have been secured with only a few cryp­ tographic keys that have been used worldwide over a period of almost 20 years.

“With the knowledge of these keys, an adversary only has to eavesdrop [on] a single signal from a target remote con­ trol. Afterwards, he can decrypt this sig­ nal, obtain the current UID and counter value, and create a clone of the original

Security researchers built a cheap battery­powered eavesdropper and proceeded to hack key codes from older cars, PHOTO: SUPPLIED remote control to lock or unlock any door of the target vehicle an arbitrary number of times,” they said.

Popular models including the Golf 4 and 6 and also vehicles from subsidi­ aries like Audi, Seat and Skoda are on the list of vulnerable cars.

Other brands affected include Citro­ ën, Peugeot, Renault, Fiat, Opel, Nissan and Ford.

Volkswagen said in a statement the researchers had set themselves the task of analysing security technologies such as the immobiliser and remote control to identify systematic weaknesses, re­ gardless of practical applicability.

“Their academic work that has now been published showed that the securi­ ty systems of the vehicles that were up to 15 years old do not have the same security level as, for example, our

present vehicles based on the MQB Modular Transverse Matrix (e.g. the current Golf, Tiguan, Touran, Passat, etc.).

“These current vehicle generations are not affected by the problem de­ scribed. The responsible department at Volkswagen Group is in contact with the academics mentioned and a con­ structive exchange is taking place.

“We agreed that the authors would publish their mathematical­scientific findings, but without the sensitive con­ tent that could be used by accom­ plished criminals to break into vehicles.

“The findings obtained will serve to further improve the security technolo­ gy,” VW said.

VW also suggested in comments to the media that the no one would want to steal such old cars and the hack “was

of mostly academic interest”.

But when the hack arrives in South Africa, where the Automobile Associa­ tion lists the average age of cars on South African roads at 11 years, it would be even easier for thieves to take cars over the border to Mozambique, de­ spite the Department of Transport’s plans to place large cement blocks be­ tween South Africa and our neighbour in an attempt to stop the daily drives over the porous border.

The researchers said solving the de­ scribed security problems completely would require a firmware update or ex­ change of both the respective ECU and (worse) the vehicle key containing the remote control. They warn the high cost of replacing or upgrading all affect­ ed car keys in the field makes this an unlikely event.

In the meantime, they suggest disa­ bling all that fancy kit and relying on good old­fashioned locks instead.

“The well­known advice to verify that a vehicle was properly locked with the remote control [blinking direction lights, sound] is no longer sufficient.

“An adversary may have eaves­ dropped the ‘lock’ signal from a dis­ tance of up to 100 m and generate a new, valid ‘unlock’ rolling code any time later.

“Preventing or detecting the eaves­ dropping of RF signals is impractical.

Hence, the only remaining (yet imprac­ tical) countermeasure is to fully deacti­ vate or at least not use the RKE func­ tionality and resort to the mechanical lock of the vehicle.

“Note that in addition, for many cars, the alarm will trigger after a while if the car doors or the trunk are mechanically opened, unless the immobiliser is dis­ armed with the original key.”

UK car museum helps to teach science and technology THE UK’s top automotive museum is aligning its displays with the national curriculum as part of the “Keep Calm and STEAM Ahead” project.

The National Motor Museum Trust (NMMT) at Beaulieu will use a £72 800 (R1,26 million) grant from Arts Council England to support edu­ cation programmes linked to STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) in response to recent changes in the National Curricu­ lum.

A creative take on STEAM has been

adopted for the project, which will use the newly researched material to inspire a range of lively automotive steampunk­ themed family activities over the next two years.

Visitors to the museum will be able to explore the collections in imagina­ tive ways such as story­telling sessions, a Magical Mechanisms family trail and opportunities to dress up in full steam­ punk style.

Andrea Bishop, director of collec­ tions for the National Motor Museum, said: “I take particular pleasure in an­

nouncing this funding support from Arts Council England, as it will reveal fresh insights into the captivating histo­ ry of motoring and deliver engaging outcomes for our audiences.

“Behind the scenes, the grant will help us make better use of our existing collections management system and re­ search under­used parts of the collec­ tions. This will unlock a wealth of mate­ rial, making it accessible to the wider public for the first time, and create new learning programmes and playful auto­ motive steampunk activities.”

The National Motor Museum Trust’s collection of over 250 vehicles is world famous, along with its exten­ sive range of motoring artefacts, photo­ graphic images, specialist reference li­ brary and film and video library.

Visitors to Beaulieu can enjoy all of the features of the attraction including the National Motor Museum, On Screen Cars, the World of Top Gear, Palace House, which has been home to the Montagu family since 1538, and the 13th century Beaulieu Abbey and grounds. More on www.beaulieu.co.uk.

MOTORING WitnessWheels

August 18, 2016

5

Agile and enjoyable BRIAN BASSETT drives the Suzuki Swift 1.2L GL Hatchback THE Suzuki Swift was launched on the international market in 2005 and came to South Africa in 2011.

It received its last upgrade in 2014. Over time it has built itself a solid reputation for excellent build quality and reliability and is now into its third generation, although the recent upgrade was largely cosmetic.

The front grille and bumper have been redesigned and Blue­ tooth added as standard. Con­ necting your cellphone is easy and does not require six months technical training. You also get a third brakelight above the rear tailgate.

I have wanted to drive the 1.2L Swift for some while, as an old friend in Cape Town has one in the family and has just passed it on to his youngest son to allow him to commute to Stellenbosch University each day, as commut­ ing is much cheaper than renting in the town.

The car has done over 100 000 km and there are no rat­ tles. Also, other than tyres and a battery, there have been no oth­ er problems.

Given the fact that the Swift is the ideal alternative to the Mini you can’t quite afford, I jumped at the opportunity to drive the car offered by Des­Marie Victor, new car sales manager at Suzuki Fury in the city.

on the driver’s door. The gear lev­ er is well­placed and pleasant to operate without having to reach forward.

The front seats are comforta­ ble and adjustable, although the driver’s seat has no height adjust­ ment, which may be a problem for the shorter amongst us.

The rear seat is somewhat cramped for those with long legs and are really made for short dis­ tances, although it is surprising what can be achieved by adjust­ ing the front seats.

Luggage space is only 210 litres with all seats in place, so carrying the week’s groceries is no prob­ lem. This rises to 533 litres with the rear seats folded down in 60/40 fashion.

Styling The Swift portrays an image of pugnacious practicality and overall solid quality.

The front end has swept back headlamps, complemented by distinctive bezels on the fog lamps, which accentuate the dy­ namism of the overall design.

The roofline flows backwards from the generously­propor­ tioned front window and the smooth rhythm of the side view is undisturbed by the electrically­ operated colour­coded side win­ dows.

The rear end has two large tail­ light modules and a centrally­ placed Suzuki badge. The entire car has a simple but sporty feel to what is an excellent external design.

Performance and handling The delight of the 1,2L Suzuki Swift is its manoeuvrability and energy in city conditions.

The 1,2L Suzuki K12M, 4­cyl­ inder engine delivers 62kW/115Nm and 0­100 km/h comes up in around 13,8 seconds, while maximum speed is around 160 km/h.

So this is not a robot racer but a city runabout. In parking lots it is easy to park, and sticking to the speed limits around the curves it is a pleasure to drive and quite athletic.

Fuel consumption is around 6,2 litres per 100 km and, given the fact that I drove the car quite hard at times, it is very good.

On the open road the Swift cruises happily at 120 km/h but, because of the small engine, you will have to use the gears to over­ take or on long hills.

The engine note is quite de­ lightful and the roar achieved when I drove up Old Howick Road made me feel as though I was driving a much more power­ ful car.

The steering is sensitive, pre­ cise and provides excellent feed­ back.

I also visited friends on a smallholding beyond Curry’s Post and was quite surprised at how well the car handled the rut­ ted farm road, as well as the D­road I had to drive on to reach them.

Interior The swift’s interior finishes are largely done in hard, patterned plastic.

However, having said that, it is very well made and the overall design is clean, logical and mod­ ern, especially considering the jelly­mould design Suzuki had in the 1980s.

The plastics also appear hard­ wearing, while the interior has a feeling of spaciousness not sug­ gested by the exterior design.

The dash has all important in­ struments grouped in front of the driver for easy viewing, while the centre console houses an ade­ quate, four­speaker radio, CD, Aux system and 12V plug for your electronic toys, as well as the manually­operated air condi­ tioning, which is surprisingly ef­ fective in both the front and rear of the car.

The multi­function three­ spoke, height­adjustable steering wheel is typical Suzuki fare, but pleasant to handle and useful for controlling both audio system and Bluetooth while driving.

The side mirror controls, as well as electric window buttons, are conveniently set into a ledge

Safety and security The Swift GL has a five­star Euro NCAP rating so you can en­ trust your family to its care with confidence.

There are seatbelts for all and ABS with EBD, as well as two front airbags. The car also has a factory­fitted alarm, central lock­ ing and front fog lamps, which are useful for night driving, as I found out. There are several oth­ er safety features like head re­ straints.

The general impression, how­ ever, is of a vehicle able to cope easily with modern, sometimes dangerous road conditions.

Costs and the competition The Suzuki Swift 1.2L GL will cost you around R164 000, while about R20 000 more will get you an auto gearbox.

The car comes with a three­ year 100 000 km warranty, a 30 000 km or two­year service plan, as well as a six­year corro­ sion warranty and roadside as­ sistance.

Also look at Ford Figo, Honda Brio, Toyota Aygo/Etios/Yaris and Renault Sandero to mention but a few.

New president for Honda SA

The Suzuki Swift is a city runabout that is nevertheless happy to obey speed limits on the highways. PHOTO: JAPANBULLET.COM

Toshiaki Konaka became president for Honda Motor Southern Africa, replacing Yoshiaki Nakamura, who following eight years in the role, has retired after a long and distinguished career with Honda.

In his 32 years with the company, Konaka headed up Honda Spain and Honda Poland. Honda Motor SA operations director Graham Eagle has been promoted to vice president.

PHOTO: QUICKPIC

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WitnessWheels MOTORING

August 18, 2016

Good for road and track work ‘Just add lightness’ is the solution for racing, but in this case, it also works to pull heavy trains HEAVY­DUTY train pullers that can drive both on roads and railways are such a normal sight at shunting yards that railway workers don’t give them a second glance.

But whenever these machines, called Trackmobiles, are displayed indoors, like at the Electra Mining conference, these double­duty shunters turn more heads than sleek sports cars.

Distributed in southern Africa by Sur­ tees Railway Supplies, the shunters have a history that goes back to 1947 and all the way to Illinois in the U.S. A young ex­Navy fighter pilot and en­ gineer named Marshall Hartelius got the job to modify an old Whiting locomo­ tive that had been used in the yards.

The locomotive was constantly being trapped on dead­end tracks, losing hours of productivity.

Hartelius was charged with finding a way to move it by road to avoid bottle­ necks to railcar movements. Hartelius first designed a road wheel system to mount on the locomotive, but found it was cumbersome and complicated.

Despite the added utility of road­to­ rail capability, the locomotive consumed a lot of fuel and oil and required constant repair.

Hartelius scrapped his first design and in its place submitted to his boss a con­ cept for a vehicle specifically designed for in­plant rail movement.

It had hard rubber tyres to move by road and flanged steel wheels to work on rail.

The central problem was how to de­

A prototype was built in 1948, and designated the “Mule”. It went to work in the Whiting plant and was an immedi­ ate success: railcar movement was ac­ complished in a fraction of the time the locomotive had required. It consumed little fuel, required little maintenance, and dramatically lowered operating costs compared to the locomotive. Har­ telius had solved a difficult railcar switching problem for his company.

One day in 1950 Hartelius wondered if other companies might be interested in a Mule.

He put one on a trailer and took it around the country, demonstrating the advantages of a mobile railcar mover.

Since that day, more than 10 000 Trackmobile units have been put into service in 54 countries, including South Africa.

Today Trackmobile is a company within the Marmon Transportation Ser­ vices Division.

— WR.

The Trackmobile was first called the Mule, because it works harder than any other vehicle in shunting yards.

PHOTO: RAILMACHANIC.DEVIANTART.COM sign a machine that was light enough for road movement and yet heavy enough to start and stop railcars. Hartel­ ius’s solution to this engineering dilem­

ma: borrow weight from coupled railcars to increase the vehicle weight for trac­ tion.

He designed a coupler head that could

be operated from the driver’s seat, and that would raise hydraulically to lift the railcar, transferring up to 22 680 kg to the wheels of the vehicle.

Mahindra heeds calls for six­speed auto THE popular Mahindra XUV500 sports utility vehicle has been further enhanced with the addition of an auto­ matic transmission option.

The advanced six­speed transmis­ sion will initially only be available on the front­wheel W8 derivative.

“Our New Age XUV500 has been ex­ tremely well received since we launched this sophisticated, well­equipped and highly competent SUV locally in Octo­ ber last year,” said Sanjoy Gupta, chief executive officer of Mahindra SA. “However, customer feedback indi­ cated that there is a significant demand for an automatic transmission model.”

A new, highly advanced automatic transmission, sourced from leading global transmission manufacturer Aisin, has since been approved for use in the XUV500, and has now been add­ ed as an option to the XUV500 model range in South Africa.

The new, second­generation auto transmission links a torque converter to planetary gears for smooth, precise gear shifts. It offers the best of both worlds, achieving the quick responses of a manual transmission with the re­ finement, convenience and ease of use that is associated with automatic trans­ missions.

The six­speed design has gear ratios to ensure brisk acceleration and mid­ range tractability, while the overdrive sixth gear allows economical open­ road cruising. The intelligent transmis­ sion adapts seamlessly to different driv­ ing conditions and is equipped with a

Hartelius made a machine that was light enough for road movement and yet heavy enough to start and stop railcars up to 22 680 kg.

Drone racing, in case you don’t know, is the latest thing and Ford has now challenged two of the world’s top drone pilots to race the Mustang.

PHOTO: FORD

Drones take on a Mustang The long­awaited automatic shifter for the Mahindra XUV500 has finally arrived.

PHOTO: SUPPLIED “creep” function to cope easily with stop­start driving conditions in urban traffic. A manual override mode allows drivers the option of shifting the gears themselves.

The automatic transmission is linked to the XUV500’s powerful, effi­ cient turbo­diesel engine.

The 2,2­litre four­cylinder mHawk

140 turbo­diesel makes use of a variable geometry turbo charger to produce 103 kW at 3 750 rpm and 330 Nm be­ tween 1 600 rpm and 2 800 rpm.

It sells for R389 995, with a five­ year/150 000 km warranty, and a five­ year/100 000 km service plan. Services are at 20 000 km intervals or every 12 months, whichever comes first. — WR.

IT had to happen, drones versus cars, the movie — but Ford was first off the mark to pit the pilots in one of the world’s most exciting new sports against its fin­ est fast cars, all to create a new video called Dronekhana.

Two of the planet’s best drone pilots tackle a unique obstacle course that in­ cludes a drifting Focus RS, a smoking Ford Mustang, and a robot.

Pilots Luke Bannister and Brett Collis navigate their drones remotely with the help of special goggles, which provide a first­person view as they fly under the Ford Ranger pickup and through the Ford B­MAX’s pillarless doors.

A rig of 36 GoPro cameras captured the drones mid­action in a style made famous by the 1999 film The Matrix.

“It’s basically like stepping into the cockpit. It was a tough course and we had some mishaps — but at least the

Mustang’s alright, that’s all that mat­ ters,” said 16­year­old World Drone Prix champion Luke Bannister, who took on the course with Tornado XBlades team­ mate and fellow Brit, Brett Collis (22).

The race was filmed at Ford’s Europe­ an headquarters in Cologne, Germany, the city which this week hosts Games­ com, Europe’s biggest interactive games trade fair. Ford has also invited five gam­ ers from across Europe to Cologne to try to set a new world record for the “longest video marathon on a racing game”, in Forza Motorsport 6.

They face a two­day stint behind the wheel of a virtual Ford GT race car to simulated the Le Mans 24 Hours — where the real­life Ford GT race car won earlier this year. To set a new record, the gamers will need to race for more than 48 hours and one minute — which start­ ed on Tuesday. — Newspress.

Chip gives Amarok more power, or better consumption, or better towing STEVES Auto Clinic (SAC) has created the Mission Impossible (M:I) Amarok.

This Amarok Bi­TDI kicks out 170 kW, up from 132 kW in standard form, and the torque sees a similar jump from 420 Nm to an impressive 515 Nm. SAC said in a statement the new M:I Amarok kit is available at all its

branches, where a performance engi­ neer will make sure that the installa­ tion is done correctly and that the power delivery is matched to the en­ gine condition and age, to ensure that your Amarok continues to give you many years of good service.

“People use their bakkies in differ­

ent circumstances and for different reasons, so we decided to programme several different maps that allow the driver to select different power deliv­ ery options based on the need,” said Stephen Fischer, founder of the SAC Group.

The maps include a security option,

which renders the engine completely powerless, a 4×4 and Caravan mode, which gives the Amarok maximum low­down torque. There is also a fuel consumption option, which remaps the engine power to deliver the best possible fuel consumption to get close to VW’s claim of 7,9 litres per 100 km

combined fuel consumption in stan­ dard mode. Two extra maps are avail­ able on this M:I Amarok power up­ grade. SAC has also developed a brand new 76 mm performance ex­ haust system for the Amarok, which frees up valuable extra horsepower.

— Wheels Reporter.

MOTORING WitnessWheels ELECTRIC

August 18, 2016

Plugged into power SIBONELO MYENI experiences instant torque and becomes a believer I’VE just been stopped by Metro cops and after five minutes, I am yet to reach for my wallet — no, not for that! To get my driver’s licence.

That’s ’cause the two friendly cops wanted to see the car I am driving up­ close and to take selfies in and around it … such is the attraction power of the BMW i8.

The design of the i8 is cutting edge with a shape that is more akin to a con­ cept car than a production one. It shows, judging by the number of people that are stunned when they see it, most just seem in a trance as they approach you to ask to see it closer.

In my nine years of car testing, I have never seen a car that cuts across race, age, sex with interest like the i8 does.

Open the party trick “Bat wing” doors and ladies envy the passenger seat … oh and its got four seats but the rear two are for midgets. Because of those doors, getting in an out is a bit tricky, especially for the rear passengers, and you need to master it considering the attention you get when parking.

The interior is typical BMW with good­quality materials and well laid out switchgear meaning the i­Drive control infotainment screen dominates the driv­ er­focused cockpit. The electric seats look and feel snug with good adjustment allowing a comfortable driving position.

Press the engine start button and a futuristic sound gives a hint that you are now ready to go … no engine sound. The i8 is a plug­in hybrid that fuses a rear­ wheel drive 1,5­litre three­cylinder Tur­ bo with a front­wheel drive electric mo­ tor for a combined power output of 266kW/570Nm enabling the svelte coupe to sprint from 0 to 100km/h in 4,5 seconds before topping out at 250 km/h.

That sprint time is possible with a charged battery because at less than ide­

All wheel drive plus instant electric power equals blistering accelleration in the BMW i8, perfect for the Formula E pace car and our blue light bridge will love it. PHOTO: BMS al charge, the i8 uses the petrol engine, which results in slower sprint times.

Fully charged, the i8 can drive for 35 km at speeds of up to 120km/h on electric mode only. We averaged 6,2l/100km during a week of hard driv­ ing which is impressive taking into ac­ count the performance. However, the 30 litre fuel tank does limit range.

The BMW engineers dialed in a good dose of seat­of­your­pants fun on the i8 as it handles like a sports car.

The combination of all­wheel drive and instant power from the electric mo­ tors ensure rapid speeds are achieved with no fuss. However, squeal from the narrow tyres make the driver know when the limit has been reached.

Slot the gearshift into Sport and the instrument dials turn red with a V6 like growl from the engine (helped by the ra­ dio for that explosive sound inside) with a nice exhaust blip on manual up­shifts.

In comfort mode, the i8 rides bumps well, helped by the light but rigid carbon fibre body which in turn aids high­speed change of direction.

The transition from using the electric motor to adding the petrol engine could be better as it sometimes gives a clumsy kick.

At R1,9 million, the i8 is a bargain tak­ ing into account the technology and most importantly the drop­dead gor­ geous looks. You have to pay three times that money to get similar attention­

grabbing looks from the Italians.

Oh … I got stopped at every roadblock I encountered during the week of driving in Durban and Jozi … with very little in­ terest being shown in the driver.

Zero to 100 km/h comes up in 4,5 seconds, in what is basically a 1,5­litre three­cylinder turbo front wheel drive car.

Good for the average distance home, but so is the 30d NOTHING says I have arrived in the world of excess than an M­Sport spec BMW X5 with those 20­inch wheels.

That usually means the owner will al­ so have to budget nicely for stops at the local petrol station; however, with the X5 40e that’s not necessarily the case … here’s why.

The X5 40e we had on test consumed 10,1l/100km during the test week, drove for about 100 km without consuming a single drop of fuel (that’s between char­ ges) and on a full tank of petrol with full charge does 710 km before fill­up.

Best is the fact that in Jozi’s notorious traffic, I drove from Midrand to Pretoria and back to Midrand with little fuel used.

You see the X5 40e uses a 2,0­litre, four­cylinder TwinPower Turbo linked to a plug­in electric motor for a com­ bined output of 230kW/450Nm (that’s as much as the 3,0 litre, six­cylinder tur­ bo which averages 13­14l/100 km of eco­ nomical driving).

When charged, the 40e sprints from rest to 100 km/h in seven seconds but on the open road, the 2,0­litre struggles to maintain its fuel­sipping target, espe­ cially when the batteries are depleted.

A fuel­cap­like opening in the front left fender is where you charge the bat­ teries (two hours of a fast charge gives a 30 km range — about the average dis­ tance home for most people) but the challenge is, charging stations are not as common. You can charge at home over­ night for a full charge (remember Eskom rates are lower at night).

The rest of the 40e looks similar to the X5s launched a couple of years ago, which means it doesn’t raise a lot of eye­ brows when people see it. It does strug­ gle against newer design competition, notably the Volvo XC90 and Audi Q7, but it manages to outdo the recently re­

7

Round the world in 80 days FIRST the students at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands gave us Stella and Stella Lux, the road­legal family saloons powered entirely by the Sun. Now they have embarked on a round the world tour in 80 days on two electric motorbikes the built themselves. The students said in a statement their tour will show the world what electric transport can do.

It took the 23 students only two years of preparation to get the theory and then make the removable batter­ ies, which are stacked into hexagonal shelves where other motorbikes have the engine. The students say the few moving parts involved make these scooters ideal for the ultimate chal­ lenge — 26 000 km in 80 days.

The whole route has been mapped out and scouted day by day. The jour­ ney takes in the northern hemi­ sphere, starting in Europe and via Central Asia and North America be­ fore ending, back in Eindhoven, on November 2.

After the start, which saw a charg­ ing problem in the first few kilome­ tres, rider Yuri Steinbuch posted:: “We have had a great, but rough start. A successful starting event combined with a rough first lap. And we are here, nobody doubting about whether to go to sleep; we need to fix that bike tonight. Some of us are getting some sleep to allow others that work through the night to sleep tomorrow.”

The engineers worked through the night and the Wave software that caused the glitch was fixed.

The tech in the eBikes The team will ride two electric mo­ torbikes that it believes represent how electric transport should look: quiet, efficient and with sufficient range.

The motorbikes have a top speed of 160 km/h and can ride 380 km be­ fore needing to be recharged thanks to the battery pack designed by the students themselves.

The batteries — 24 separate car­ tridges and good for up to 28,5 kWh energy — can also be replaced by a fully charged battery pack within sev­ en minutes.

The students say the secret sauce is packed into the huge battery pack.

And because adding a lot of bat­ tery cells to the bike does come at a price, the top­spec Storm tips the scales at 340 kg.

As fat as it may seem, the Storm Pulse can reach 160 km/h and will do 0 to 62 mph in five seconds.

The touring version of the bike can load 24 cartridges, for a total energy storage capacity of 28,5 kWh, which can be reduced to only a half in race trim. The charging time is eight hours, but a 0­80% charge needs on­ ly 38 minutes. The frame is a self­de­ veloped aluminium sheet unit with Hossack forks and custom shocks.

Get daily video updates on www.storm­eindhoven.nl or on twit­ ter #storm80days.

The main competitor for BMW’s X5 40e comes from the equally good X5 30d.

PHOTO: BMW vised Mercedes­Benz GLE. The inside is typical BMW with quali­ ty switchgear and a well laid out cabin.

However, the seven­seat option is not available here due to the batteries stored underneath the slightly smaller boot.

Five people do get comfortable ac­ commodation with our test unit’s op­ tional Logic 7 Audio system, one of the best in the business. The panoramic glass sunroof is another worthy option to go for, but one would have expected the Xenon headlights to come standard.

The X5 40e comes standard with rear air suspension, which makes this model

one of the most comfortable X5 models yet to test. Adaptive suspension allows a Sport mode that firms up the suspen­ sion for Porsche Cayenne­equalling han­ dling dynamics aided by the lightweight 2.0­litre engine (XC90, Q7 and GLE won’t even get close).

Wind and tyre noise is noticeable by its absence, even on the 20­inch, M­Sport suspension test unit.

At R1,1 million, the X5 40e is certainly not cheap, but considering the technolo­ gy you get, its dynamics, it’s worth a con­ sideration … it’s just the X5 30d is equally good. — WR.

The X5 40e gave me 10 km/litre in open road and city traffic, using only battery and then the 2­litre turbo.

The X5 30d does quite a bit better than this.

One of two electric bikes built to go around the world.

PHOTO: EINDHOVEN

8

WitnessWheels MOTORING RACING

August 18, 2016

Battle is taking shape The WRC drivers head to Germany and an all­tar surface at the weekend ALWYN VILJOEN AFTER the snow and giant jumps of Finland, the drivers contesting the World Rally Championship (WRC) yester­ day started testing their new Mi­ chelin tyres in the series’ only all­ tar race in Germany, which comes to a head on Sunday.

Following the opening three outings of the five­round series, the title battle is taking shape, with Welshman Osian Pryce and “Flying Finn” Max Vatanen sep­ arated by just five points at the top of the standings, having claimed one round apiece, with the latter popularly triumphing on home turf in Finland the last time out.

Both men have strong sealed surface pedigrees, with Pryce having won asphalt events in the British championship and Va­ tanen clinching class victory at the Monte­Carlo rally last year.

Pryce said on the WRC web­ site: “I’m looking forward to the switch to tarmac — it’s a new challenge for everyone.

“Some of the stages in Ger­ many are difficult and require a good set of pace notes to be competitive. Our aim is to score strong points for the third set of prize drives and maintain our championship lead.”

Pryce and Vatanen may not have things all their own way,

VW driver Andreas Mikkelson shows his drifting skills around a stack of tyres in Portugal. PHOTO: WRC with third­placed Jon Arm­ strong having spent his early years competing on asphalt in Northern Ireland. After winning in Poland, the 21­year­old will be eager to bounce back from an ac­ cident in Finland to keep his title hopes alive.

French teenager Nicolas Ci­ amin — the youngest trophy contender at just 18 — also comes trained on tar.

And fifth­placed Thierry Neu­ ville, who claimed his and Hyun­ dai’s breakthrough victory in Germany two years ago, will be competing on his home turf.

Neuville will be joined in Hyun­ dai’s lead squad by Dani Sordo, who secured a similarly emo­ tional success at the rally in 2013, but sat out Neste Rally Finland last month due to injury.

“Rallye Deutschland is the

Karters aiming for world finals TWO karters will be rolling the dice when they compete at the Rotax Max African Open at the Zwartkops Kart Track on Satur­ day as the prize is a place in the Rotax Max World Mini Max fi­ nals in Italy.

Kyalami kid kart star Kwanda Mokoena may have missed out on double 2016 South African national karting titles by the closest imaginable margins, but the 12­year old is fully intent on making up for that by winning the prize ticket to race.

“The African Open is now the big one for us. We love Italy and

I really want to race there, so I now have to grab that ticket to race the world finals there,” Kwanda said.

Ballito kart ace Daniel Dumi­ ny (15) is also chasing the hal­ lowed Rotax African Open high school 125 cc Junior Max win at the Zwartkops Kart Track on Saturday.

In a controversial decision this year, race organisers have not included the Junior Max Af­ rican Open winner among the world final team as usual, with the prize simply being to go to watch the racing, but that has

not prevented Daniel from en­ tering. “The prize for the winner of the Junior Max final at the African Open at this stage is a ticket to watch the world final,” Daniel said. “But I am quietly hoping that Rotax Max can somehow find a way to get the Junior Max African Open win­ ner into a kart in Italy and rac­ ing. That’s why I’m excited for this next weekend. I’m hoping for the best and not letting last year’s sad result get to us when we so narrowly missed out on the chance to win that ticket to actually compete.” — WR.

SPINNING RETURNS TO MARITZBURG

Evershin Pillay prepares to get back into the driver’s seat of Team Alky’s well­known Beemer as it spins around him.

Pietermaritzburg hosts the first spin bash in a long time, on August 27 at the Wanderers Sports Club in Scottsville. Adults pay R60 to get in and children under 12 only R30. The action start at 1 pm and goes on until late, with MC Kaylin Smith keeping the fans entertained and legendary drivers like Pillay, who got his team name from the El Camino bakkie he first drifted as a laaitie. PHOTO: THRILLSEEKER

highlight of the season for me.

It’s like my home rally, very close to the Belgian border and a lot of supporters come down with Belgian flags.

“It’s the rally we most look forward to, and it’s an event at which we have always been com­ petitive,” said Neuville.

After the South Korean man­ ufacturer missed out on the po­ dium by less than five seconds

in Finland, team principal Mi­ chel Nandan is hopeful of bouncing back quickly on home turf.

To make what racing cogno­ scenti consider the most de­ manding form of car racing even more competitive, points the crews collect in Germany will be added to the tally, with the two highest scorers winning two prize drives in the 2017 WRC.

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SO far, the 2016 South African National Rally Championship has seen the two Toyota Ga­ zoo Racing SA, in association with Total Quartz, Yaris S2000 rally cars dominate proceed­ ings.

Leeroy Poulter and navigator Elvéne Coetzee have won all four rounds to date, with teammates Giniel de Villiers and navigator Carolyn Swan re­ corded second­place finishes on each round.

Now, the crews face a new challenge, in the form of the Heidelberg Rally tomorrow and Saturday — an event that hasn’t formed part of the na­ tional rally championship in more than two decades.

“For us the new event is a chance to consolidate the overall championship,” says To­ yota Gazoo Racing SA Team Principal, Glyn Hall.

“We’ll be running the cars with the same setup as on last month’s Volkswagen Rally, so we have every reason to be positive about our chances.”

The Heidelberg Rally is round six of the eight­round South African National Rally Champi­ onship.

The rally be followed on the calendar by the visually spec­ tacular Toyota Cape Dealer Rally, which takes place to the north of the Mother City on September 16 to 17 — WR.

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