This Week In The News

NEWS IN SHORT

South Africa’s most affordable new electric car launching in March

The new BYD Dolphin is making its South African debut in March, well-informed charging solution company EV Charge confirmed to TopAuto.

At launch, the battery-powered hatch is going to retail from a starting price of R550,000 which will make it the most affordable electric vehicle (EV) in the country, undercutting its main rival – the new GWM Ora 03 – by a sizeable R136,950.

Sales of European cars plummet

The combined sales of the three German juggernauts – Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz – sank from 71,889 units in 2014 to just 26,202 in 2023.

In contrast, sales volumes of Asian automakers including Chery, Haval, and Suzuki have skyrocketed – with the latter alone seeing its annual registrations grow from 6,402 to 47,201 units over the past decade.
However, it’s not that consumers don’t want to buy European cars anymore, it’s that they are generally no longer able to afford them in the current economic landscape.

The South African pricing for the new Toyota Land Cruiser 76 and 78 is as follows:

• Toyota Land Cruiser 78 4.2 D Wagon – R900,100
• Toyota Land Cruiser 76 2.8GD S/W AT – R999,900
• Toyota Land Cruiser 76 4.5 V8 S/W – R1,076,800
Each purchase comes with a 3-year/100,000km warranty, with the option of adding a 1-year/10,000km service plan.

New Gauteng number plates launching soon

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has confirmed that the province will launch new number plates on 1 April 2024, but that each motorist who applies for a new car license disc will also be forced to get a new registration number.

Wait for it..............There is more.

“Everyone must register their vehicle … If you spend 30 consecutive days in Gauteng, it means your car must be registered in Gauteng,” said Lesufi.

South African banks will automatically charge for car insurance if you can’t prove you’re covered

Due to continuous insurance coverage being mandatory while financing a vehicle in most cases, South African banks can automatically add car insurance premiums to monthly finance payments, should the customer fail to prove that they are insured.

Nedbank’s vehicle financing division, Motor Finance Corporation (MFC), said it had to implement the strategy to add temporary limited cover to a client’s policy in July 2021, following an increase in clients who cancelled their coverage on the same day they collected their new vehicle.

In the case of MFC and another prominent loan provider, the clause is agreed to when the client signs the finance agreement and stipulates that the bank holds the right to cancel the contract completely if it does not receive valid proof of insurance cover.

Banks afford their clients approximately 45 days to supply their most recent proof of insurance from receiving their first communique from the bank.

The most reliable car in South Africa

A recent Consumer Reports (CR) study found that Lexus builds the most reliable vehicles in the world scoring a reliability rating of 79/100, with the ES, NX, RX, and UX – all of which are available in South Africa – standing out as the brand’s most trustworthy models.

Few will be surprised to learn that Lexus’ parent organization Toyota was in second with a score of 76/100, while BMW’s sub-brand Mini claimed third with 71/100.

A total of 330,000 individuals were surveyed owning vehicles as old as 23 years, with 20 “trouble areas” under the microscope from irritations such as squeaky brakes, to major issues including engine and gearbox problems.

Surprisingly, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, EQS, GLA, GLB, GLE scored 23/100

This is the world’s fastest car – and it’s made by a South African

South African born tech entrepreneur Priven Reddy wants to rock the eco hypercar world with this new creation called the Sandstorm by Ararkis Automobili.

Reddy is the CEO of a new automotive company called Ararkis Automobili Ltd, which has now revealed its first car to the globe in the form of the Sandstorm – a hypercar that can accelerate from 0 to 100km/h in just 1.5 seconds.

This, claims Reddy, makes it the “world’s fastest 0-100kph production car.”

Facts about financing:

• The car loan officially originated in 1919, when the General Motors Corporation (an automobile manufacturer founded in 1908 in Flint, Michigan) established the General Motors Acceptance Corporation, or GMAC. GMAC arose in response to the growing demand for automobiles among American consumers after World War I.
  
  
• The origin of finance can be traced to the start of civilization. The earliest historical evidence of finance is dated to around 3000 BC. Banking originated in the Babylonian empire, where temples and palaces were used as safe places for the storage of valuables.
  
  
• The practice of lending has been around for thousands of years, with the first instances tracking back to Ancient Mesopotamia.
  
  
• Lending at interest was a point of contention when ethics and religion had closer relevance to state laws and culture, particularly during the Middle Ages.

RE NATIS Western Cape

I want to thank Keven Pengelly for drawing our attention to the changes made by the Westen Cape authorities regarding the registration and licensing of cars sold.

We have vented our concerns with the RTMC (Road Traffic Management Corporation) and will be meeting with all the relevant organizations next week.

Our aim is for the Western Cape to revert back to the old way of treating outstanding warrants.

Our view is that the dealers in the Western Cape are now being used to cover for the inadequacy of law enforcement to manage traffic fine collection.