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Toyota is on the rebound after a few reliability niggles landed them on the wrong end of a witch hunt. Old foes and new competitors are clawing at market share so the Japanese giant had to think fast and aims to fight back with increased quality and quantity of products.
Lexus South Africa recently invited us to the launch of the CT200h, the third hybrid available locally from this luxury Japanese brand. Slotting in behind the snazzy RX450h SUV and refined GS450h saloon, the CT200h is the world’s first full hybrid luxury compact car.
Seasoned readers will know what’s coming – yup, another confession. The first car I ever owned and the car I owned the longest, was a C-Class. When I despondently handed over the keys last year it had covered 233,000km and was still as tight as a drum.
I’m quite sure that I’ve mentioned my love for coupés before, so our invitation to the new Volkswagen Scirocco R launch in Durban resulted in a brief rock-paper-scissors competition at the office, won by yours truly. Perhaps I cheated, perhaps I didn’t, but a few days later I was jetted off to KZN.
Many cars have left their mark on the South African market, some more than others, and few as successfully as the original Honda Ballade. The unique local name for what was essentially a Civic disappeared long before its antiquated, price-busting Citi and Tazz competitors did.
Die nuwe Toyota Verso-reeks het nou ‘n nuweling wat van ry nou lekker-ry maak. Hierdie lekker-ry is te danke aan die nuwe palwisselratkas wat nou in die reeks beskikbaar is. Maar wat is hierdie palwisselratkas? Die CVT, of op Engels, continuously variable transmission, is in wese ‘n outomatiese kas waar die enjinspoed konstant bly op die punt waar hy die meeste wringkrag vrystel en beste verrigting teen die laagste brandstofverbruik lewer.
Business tycoons, rock stars and lottery winners may want to pay attention today. Mercedes-Benz has just freshened up their flagship CL coupés and flew us to Gauteng for the launch which coincided with the brand’s (and indeed, the motor car’s) 125th anniversary.
“I hope this car doesn’t end up being a tragic hero” mumbles my co-driver on the recent launch of the new Alfa-Romeo Giulietta. “You know mos, a fantastic car that everyone ignores” he concludes while we negotiate hundreds of kilometers on scenic Boland back roads.
When the cat’s away, the mice will play. No sooner had our senior journalist boarded an Airbus bound for Germany and I took charge of the office. I rearranged all thumbtacks, drank all the coffee, put my feet on the desk and got myself invited to the launch of the new Volkswagen Amarok.
You might agree that our changing weather isn’t the ideal time to launch a new soft-top convertible, but this only boosted the confidence of Mercedes-Benz representatives at the recent launch of the new E-Class Cabrio. Backed by a joyful marketing campaign that denotes the newcomer as one cabrio for four seasons, the topless executive German completes the E-Class line-up of sedan, estate, coupé and convertible. It’s based on the 2-door coupé version of the E and is only available with a soft top.