GREAT START FOR TOYOTA SA TEAM AT DAKAR 2013

Torrential rain and flooded rivers turned the final stage of the first week of the Dakar Rally into something of a lottery, but this did not stop the South African/German duo of Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz from successfully defending the third place overall they established in their Imperial Toyota Hilux on the fourth day of the race.

Special stage eight between Salta and San Miguel de Tucuman in Argentina was originally intended to be 470 kilometres long, but overnight rain resulted in it being shortened to 185 kilometres before the start at 2.05 pm local time (7.05 pm SA time. When a swollen river 30 kilometres from the end of the stage prevented all but the first five cars from reaching the finish, the race direction applied the slowest stage time of the finishers to all those who failed to finish.

It appears this decision is being contested by some competitors and teams and the current results are subject to confirmation.

The stage was won by Guerlain Chicherit and Jean-Pierre Garcin of France in a two-wheel drive SMG Buggy. De Villiers and Von Zitzewitz were among those who were unable to cross the river.
Current official overall results place Frenchmen Stephane Peterhansel and Jean Paul Cottret, who have led from stage two in a four-wheel drive diesel Mini, in the lead after 18 hr 31 min 4 sec of racing since the Dakar started in Lima, Peru, on January 5. The Qatari/Spanish combination of Nasser Al-Attiyah and Lucas Cruz are second in a two-wheel drive petrol Buggy, 3 min 14 sec behind.  De Villiers and Von Zitzewitz are 44 min 3 sec in arrears and 4 min 51 sec ahead of fourth-placed Russians Leonid Novitskiy and Konstantin Zhiltsov in another Mini.

Whatever way the officials decide De Villiers and Von Zitzewitz will remain third overall in their proudly South African four-wheel drive petrol Hilux, with the gap to the first and second cars and to the fourth car depending on the final decision.

The top three drivers are all former winners of the Dakar, Peterhansel having won in 2004, 2005, 2007 and 2012, Al-Attiyah in 2011 and De Villiiers in 2009. All are competing in the T1 class for Improved Cross Country Vehicles. Peterhansel and Cottret are first in the four-wheel drive diesel class, Al-Attiyah and Cruz lead the two-wheel drive petrol class and De Villiers and Von Zitzewitz are the front runners in the four-wheel drive petrol class.

Sunday is a rest day and the race will resume on Monday with another tough stage over 293 kilometres San Miguel de Tucuman and Cordoba in Argentina before it finishes in Santiago, Chile, on January 20. For now, it’s a welcome respite from the hardships of the 8 500-kilometre marathon and a time to rest weary bodies and battered machines and prepare for the second week.

“It was quite a challenging stage!” said De Villiers. “It went well for us. We started fifth and overtook Nasser when he suffered a puncture. Then we reached a river which was totally flooded. It was impossible to cross. We heard from the organisers that the rest of the stage was neutralised and that the result would be taken as at Check Point 2. A pity, as we were having a good run and would probably have been able to make up a bit more time by the end.”

The Toyota Imperial South Africa Team set out from Lima a week ago with two Imperial Toyota Hilux 4x4s, the second South African-built bakkie in the hands of 2012 national off road champions Duncan Vos and Rob Howie. Competing in their second Dakar – they were 10th overall in their debut in 2011 in an Imperial Toyota Hilux – they were forced to withdraw from the race on race. Lying 12th overall after the first two stages, they rolled their Hilux after cresting a high sand dune too quickly and damaged the roll cage. They completed the stage, but were unable to continue for safety reasons.

“It’s been a tough and hectic week,” said team manager Glyn Hall. “Giniel and Dirk have had a very good run so far and we’re in a good position to challenge for a podium position in Santiago on January 20. Duncan and Rob were unlucky to go out the way they did. They could have continued if the roll cage hadn’t been damaged, but the rules do not allow this. Calling Sunday a rest day is a bit of a misnomer as it’s anything but for the technical team. We’ll be stripping down Hilux #301 and checking everything and replacing components where necessary.  We still have another tough week of racing ahead of us before we can say we conquered the Dakar again.”

STORY BY TOYOTA

Post Title → GREAT START FOR TOYOTA SA TEAM AT DAKAR 2013

FACELIFT MERCEDES-BENZ E 63 AMG IS OFFICIAL

Mercedes-Benz went back to their labs and reconfigured the astounding E 63 AMG. Based on the new facelift E-Class that’s destined for South Africa sometime this year, E 63 AMG is now even more powerful than ever.

While the 5.5-litre bi-turbo V8 remains the very same block used by the current E 63 AMG, some things have clearly changed. Like the fact that it now reaches out 410kW at 5500rpm, and pushes through 720Nm of torque between 1750rpm and 5250rpm. Mercedes-Benz says it will now splash forth from 0 – 100km/h in just 4.2 seconds.

But that’s not all. There’s a new extra model called the 4MATIC S-Model which has a rear diff lock. This thing is thus the most powerfulcar in its class, more so than the new Audi RS 6 Avant (412kW) and BMW M5 (412kW). This one is good for 430kW also at 5500rpm and a blasted 800Nm between 1750 rpm and 5000rpm. They say it will scatter off into the distance from standstill to 100km/h in just 3.6 seconds, making it the quickest E-Class of all time, and something quickerthan the SLS AMG GT.

The cars wear 19-inchwheels and are run by a 7-speed MCT automatic gearbox. The interior it more plush, but at the same time aggressive, featuring aluminium pieces on the pedals, steering wheel, the doors and dashboard among others.

We should expect the new facelifted E 63 AMG in #Mzansi sometime before June, where it will meet up against its natural foes.

Post Title → FACELIFT MERCEDES-BENZ E 63 AMG IS OFFICIAL

Barn Find Bikes Discovered by Charterhouse

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Every classic car and motorcycle collector dreams about coming across a barn full of old items, and Charterhouse Auctioneers have unearthed such a barn contents which will be sold their classic car and motorcycle auction on Sunday 10th February.
“It is a truly amazing discovery and the motorcycles have been amassed by one Dorset family. Ripe for restoration is a 1923 Matchless J Type motorcycle with sidecar, which has been in the same family ownership since new!” Commented Matthew Whitney. “We occasionally joke about old vehicles with one owner from new, but one family ownership for nearly 100 is the longest ownership I have ever come across.”
The Dorset barns are now being emptied due to their immanent sale after the passing of a family member. The 1923 Matchless pulled out of the barn has an 855cc vee twin engine which was a large engine in its day. In addition to this Matchless motorcycle, there are also several other large vee twin motorcycles from the 1920’s in barn find condition along with various spare engines, frames, tanks and other parts now looking to be restored. Rarely do such as these Pioneer motorcycles come on the market in original condition and they will represent a fantastic opportunity for collectors to buy a piece of early motorcycle history.
Charterhouse is now accepting further entries for this auction of classic cars and motorcycles on Sunday 10th February. The sale is being held at the Royal Bath & West Showground, Shepton Mallet, Somerset.
To arrange a free home visit or for more information regarding this auction  please contact Matthew Whitney, Associate Partner at Charterhouse, The Long Street Salerooms, Sherborne 01935 812277 or via email on mw@charterhouse-auctions.co.uk

Barn find and one family owned since new – a 1923 Matchless J Type with rare sidecar £5,000-7,000
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Post Title → Barn Find Bikes Discovered by Charterhouse

GM LOOKS TO GROWTH IN 2013

NAAMSA vehicle sales statistics for December reflect 46 016 new vehicle deliveries for the month, an increase of 1.8% on December 2011. This brought total sales for the year to 623 914 units, up 9.2% on 2011.

“The motor industry went into 2012 facing two psychological break points in terms of growth targets for the year,” says Malcolm Gauld GMSA’s Vice President Sales and Marketing “The first was the volume challenge of 620 000 units for the year and which was realised with the release of the December numbers taking the total for the year to 623 914.

“The second was the possibility of double digit growth, a goal that seemed destined to be easily exceeded going into the third quarter but was hampered by a drop-off in sales, particularly in the light commercial sector, during the last three months of the year. The passenger vehicle market performed well above the ten percent growth benchmark for most of the time ending the year 11.3% up. However, the light commercial sector lagged – impacted by a crisis of confidence amongst commercial buyers which saw the LCV sector decline by 13.1% month on month December 2012 vs 2011. Growth in this sector for the year was inhibited to just 4.6%, but was still a welcome plus for the industry.”

“For the GM franchise in South Africa 2012 was an exciting year which saw the expansion of both the Chevrolet and Opel brands with the introduction of a number of exciting vehicles. The image building Astra GTC and the Meriva MPV boosted interest in the Opel brand while the main events for Chevrolet were the introduction of the Trailblazer SUV and the Cruze Hatch. The Chevrolet Utility continued its leadership in the competitive sub-1 ton market segment to once again end the year as the top selling vehicle in its class. GMSA ended 2012 with total sales of 69 968 vehicles and a full year market share of 11.2%.

“Looking ahead through 2013 the GM franchise once again has a lot to offer South African vehicle buyers starting off with the introduction of the most powerful Astra yet from Opel, the new Astra OPC, which is set to raise the stakes in the performance car sector with its 206kW/400 Nm power-plant. This exciting hot hatch is due in the market in February. The all-new Isuzu 1-ton pick-up range is set to transform our LCV line-up with significant styling and technology improvements over the existing Isuzu KB range towards the end of the first quarter.

“There has been a marked shift in buying patterns towards smaller vehicles like the Chevrolet Spark in recent times. GMSA is unique in this market as the only manufacturer to produce a vehicle in this class locally. We will take advantage of the flexibility that this gives us to add value and contemporary styling to the Spark with a significant update due in the early part of the year.

“Our forecast going into the new year is for a virtually flat market. The buying down trend in the passenger market will continue as vehicle operating costs continue to come under pressure and buyers look for overall cost efficiencies.

“It is probable that there will be some consolidation in the passenger vehicle market with private buyers perhaps retreating a bit. This trend will likely be countered by a renewal of buyer interest and activity in the light commercial sector – no ground shaking trend expected but rather a reversal of the downward trend seen in the last quarter of 2012. Whilst the past year has produced welcome growth in the industry contrary to global trends, the coming year the focus will be on preventing any erosion of that growth.”

STORY BY GENERAL MOTORS

Post Title → GM LOOKS TO GROWTH IN 2013