Innholdsfortegnelse for May/June 2020 i Leisure Wheels

Here are some of your thoughts Keep up to date with news, videos, photos and articles, with Leisure Wheels online Like our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/LeisureWheels Follow us on Twitter: @LeisureWheelsZA Web: www.leisurewheels.co.za Volkswagen has finally revealed the first teaser of the all-new Amarok. What do you think of the design so far? Daryl Schreiber: Looks good but the Ford partnership rumour is concerning. You would think that VW would learn from the Mercedes/Nissan issue. Sean Fenwick: If they do an AWD supercab with a 3.0 V6 TDi they can take my money now. Frans du Preez: Sorry, but it looks like those Ford Rangers with all the horrible looking attachments that make them look like armoured vehicles. Nyanyu Indongo: I hope they are going to include a V6 petrol power…

Suzuki recently introduced the cheapest new car you can buy in South Africa and it just so happens to be a compact SUV. It’s called the S-Presso and it’s basically Suzuki doing what it does best: making a small car. Viewed from the front, it catches the eye with its bold four-slot grille with large S-emblem. Below the grille, the lower black bumper is swept up in a trapezoidal shape into the coloured main bumper to create a larger air intake and the visual impression of a high-riding SUV. But it’s not just an SUV in name. It has a ground clearance of 180mm on all models, thanks in part to its the 14-inch steel wheels. All models feature colour-coded door handles and side mirrors. At the rear, a small…

Volkswagen South Africa has been promising us the 190kW version of the Amarok for a few years now but has finally confirmed the 190kW version will arrive in the third quarter of this year. The high-output Amarok delivers 190kW and 580Nm of torque from the same 3.0-litre V6 diesel engine. This is a decent increase over the 165kW and 550Nm the Amarok currently makes. Once it arrives, the 190kW model will be the most powerful bakkie available in South Africa, as the Mercedes-Benz X-Class is to be discontinued.…

The all-new Volkswagen Caddy recently made its international debut. It may seem familiar on the outside but it now runs on VW’s MQB platform, which means a completely new vehicle underneath. In terms of engineering and specification, the Caddy’s exterior has a number of new features including optional electric closing aids for the sliding doors and tailgate, plus a panoramic sunroof, with an especially large glass area of 1.4m2 above both the first and second rows of seats. It also features larger wheel options up to 18-inch alloy wheels and new LED lights. Included for the first time are the keyless access ignition and locking system and the ‘digital cockpit’. The new Caddy will again launch as the Cargo (panel van with enclosed superstructure), an estate (with passenger compartment windows)…

Volkswagen has launched an all-electric Kombi called the e-Bulli T1 bus. It is based on a 1966 VW T1 Samba Bus, but with a modern electric powertrain. Here’s the good news: this is not just a one-off concept vehicle. Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles is partnering with eClassics with the hope of offering these stunning vehicles to the public. The standard car had a 32kW four-cylinder boxer engine, but the e-Bulli is equipped with a 61kW electric motor, powered by a 45kWh lithiumion battery. It has a range of more than 200km. Most electric vehicles are quite fast but not the e-Bulli. It’s much faster than the old petrol-powered car but the top speed has been limited to 130km/h, most likely for safety reasons. VW went to great lengths to offer a…

Dunlop is bolstering its already impressive range of SUV and 4×4 tyres with the Dunlop Grandtrek AT5, featuring a new compound formula that increases tread block rigidity and promises to give consumers the best of both worlds from improved performance and lifespan to affordability. “This tyre literally takes the road, any road,” says Riaz Haffejee, chief executive of Sumitomo Dunlop. “Part of our extensive and impressive Dunlop Grandtrek range, the AT5 is an all-round performer that we are confident will be a game changer for drivers.” Developed with versatility in mind, the Dunlop Grandtrek AT5 offers a 50% improvement in mileage, is 25% more effective at braking and – along with a quieter ride (8% noise reduction against the benchmark) – can transition with ease from tar to rugged off-road…

TO add some perspective to Land Rover’s ambitious foray into Namibia with its all-new Defender, you have to briefly travel back in time to the ’80s. At the time, American motorcycle company Harley-Davidson was in some bother. Cutting costs in the manufacturing processes had resulted in bikes that resembled a 20-year-old supermarket shopping trolley, held together only by the grace of some second-hand bloudraad. So not top-quality then. Sales, not surprisingly, slowed. Worryingly, especially if you were a Harley executive, was the fact that the notorious Hell’s Angels biker’s club had a Harley-only policy. So no Japanese bikes or other American brands; if you were a Hell’s Angel, you had to ride a Harley. Then a new management team took over in Milwaukee and those vital quality issues were attended…

FOR some reason, this has been one of our busiest snakebite seasons in many years and doctors in high-risk areas have had their hands full. Most bites happen in the early evening between January and April/May when snakes are accidentally trodden on. Southern Africa has 173 different types of snakes and about 10% of them are considered potentially lethal. The snake that accounts for most serious snakebites is the Mozambique spitting cobra, also known as the M’fezi, followed by the puff adder, Rhombic night adder and Bibron’s stiletto snake. These snakes account for over 90% of all snakebites and their venom is largely cytotoxic – causing pain, swelling, blistering and in severe bites, tissue damage. Fatal bites are rare, even from puff adders. The Mozambique spitting cobra is common where…

THE Duster 4×4 was introduced locally exactly one year ago. We know this because we took delivery of our brand-new long-termer directly after the launch and drove it to the South Coast the very next day. On that trip, it was quite clear that 50% of what made the previous model such a success was still present on the new model: loads of space, a comfortable ride, generous equipment levels and a parsimonious turbocharged diesel engine. As a family car, it’s sublime. It fits into the life of a family of four people perfectly, which is something that can’t be said of most compact crossovers due to space constraints. Since most Dusters serve as family transport, it was also great to see the changes Renault made in the safety department.…

Johan Badenhorst is probably South Africa’s best-known overlander, with his amazing adventures televised on SABC2. He also knows a lot about patience – probably the best attribute if you plan on travelling the African continent. To a certain extent, the Kalahari is like a Land Cruiser. Neither are the most convenient nor particularly cost-effective. But once a Cruiser man, always a Cruiser man (and more often than not, a Cruiser girl). This month I want to talk about one of the best known but least populated areas in South Africa, a region that causes poets to grab their pens and notepads, writers to open their laptops and troubadours to strum a few cords on a guitar. This land is called the Kalahari; a dry, hot place. There are the die-hard…

Land Rover’s Discovery Sport has been enhanced with latest technologies, new levels of interior quality and increased space for families with a spirit of adventure and is now available in South Africa. New vehicle architecture ensures the fastest-selling Land Rover ever produced is now more technologically advanced and versatile than ever, keeping its occupants safe and comfortable in all conditions. The new Discovery Sport delivers superior interior space and refinement, while its optional 5+2 interior features an infotainment interface with the latest connectivity, plus a more flexible seating arrangement with up to 24 combinations for enhanced versatility in optional seven-seat configuration. The body is 13% stiffer than its predecessor, with rigidly mounted sub-frames that reduce noise and vibration intrusion, improving comfort and providing maximum safety in the event of a…

The facelifted Suzuki Ignis recently made its international debut. This upgrade includes changes to both the styling and powertrain. The facelift model retains most of the design elements that made it so popular while adding a new SUV-style five-spoke front grille, along with front and rear bumpers featuring silver trapezoidal under garnishes, amplifying the overall SUV character and uniqueness. Complementing the characteristic exterior, the interior of the Ignis was designed with futuristic urban styling and sweeping horizontal lines that convey the breadth and a feeling of space. This has been further enhanced in the facelift model, with new gunmetal grey or blue accents matched to grey or blue seat upholsteries. The instrument panel, featuring a newly designed meter cluster, has been updated with a contrast of black and white that…

Completing the new hand tool range from Tork Craft is the selection of plier options including cutters and specialist pliers, a range of mini combination pliers, long, round, flat, needle and bent nose pliers, side cutters and end cutting pliers. The range includes six new technically advanced high leverage combination pliers and side cutters in varying sizes from 160mm to 200mm with newly designed grips for comfort, to avoid slipping and for a better grip. The range also includes four 170mm circlip pliers, straight and bent for internal and external applications. The high leverage individual units can be recognised by the red and black handles and the mini range by the yellow and black handles. The three-piece heavy-duty combo set is made up of a pair of 200mm pliers, a…

In all honesty, the answer is probably no. The Bakkie of the Year competition was not intended to merely award the best overall double cab, but also serves as a buyer’s guide for anyone interested in purchasing one. As regular readers will know, value for money was never a consideration. The thinking behind it was fairly simple: if a person has more than R800 000 to spend, the Volkswagen Amarok V6 is the business. Between R600k and R650k, there are various options, with the Hilux scoring the most points in that category. Under R450k, however, there was just one competitor. The general idea was that a consumer would look at his budget, consider the results and then decide what option was best. If value for money was a consideration, the…

Arbeidsloon is a beautiful campsite, about 20km from Mossel Bay on the beautiful Garden Route, only 7.7km from the N2 and the perfect base from which to explore the Garden Route. There is an 800m gravel section to the campsite but the road is in great condition and easily do-able with a normal caravan. What made Arbeidsloon so delightful is that it is situated on a tranquil corner of a working cattle and grain farm in the most beautiful surroundings but you are still very close to Mossel Bay and Hartenbos and other nearby towns and tourist attractions. After a visit to one of these towns, you can head back to the peaceful atmosphere of your campsite. The nearest swimming beach, Boggomsbaai, is just 5km away so you can drive…

Never apply an arterial tourniquet. Many people are bitten by harmless snakes or snakes that inject very little venom while over 90% of all serious snakebites are from snakes with cytotoxic venom. Tourniquets do far more harm than good and are extremely dangerous. Do not cut and suck out the venom – you will do far more harm than good. Snake venom cannot be removed by suction. Do not use ice or heat. Neither denature snake venom and application of either may aggravate tissue damage. Do not inject antivenom. Nine out of 10 snakebite victims who are hospitalised do not need, nor receive, antivenom. When required, antivenom is injected in large quantities by a medical doctor in a hospital environment. The side effects of antivenom include allergic reactions or even…

DESPITE finishing in a commendable sixth place in our giant 4×4 double cab shootout, the Isuzu D-Max is now the greybeard of the segment and the market is keenly awaiting its replacement. Our long-termer has been with us for 10 months and 17 000km and its most recent trip was to the Free State – Clarens specifically – for a mountain-running training camp. If you hate pounding tarmac, the (mostly) sleepy Free State dorpie is paradise. It’s ringed by trails, many of which fall within the Clarens Village Conservancy, with the locals doing a fine job of maintaining not just the routes, but also keeping out invasive plants. The round trip from Joburg’s northern suburbs wasn’t the traditional one and we meandered down via De Deur, Vereeniging, Heilbron and Petrus…

OUR biggest gripe with caravans and motorhomes is the part between when you leave your house and when you reach your holiday destination. Towing a caravan can be tedious, overtaking is tricky and your fuel consumption goes down the drain. A motorhome is even worse; it is basically like going on holiday in a bus and for petrolheads like ourselves, that doesn’t exactly sound like fun. In the 1970s, Winnebago had a unique solution for this: the company, better known for motorhomes and travel trailers, took surplus helicopters and converted them into Heli-Campers. The Itasca division of Winnebago Industries designed, built, flew and sold the flying and floating Heli-Camper. Wheels and pontoons made this helicopter capable of landing on the ground or calm waters and it was advertised as the most…

In your recent bakkie test, you state 80% of the scores in this test were achieved in a scientific manner. So I am attaching the ‘scientific outcome’ only of your published results, to open a different discussion point. I also believe there was no weighting attached to the different categories as such and a straight average calculation applied in this area. I know the feeling of how a vehicle drives is crucial, and the feel-good adrenaline it supplies to each individual is crucial as that is what makes us all unique. My letter is not intended to dispute your outcome but merely to provide a different way of analysing your results and opening up debate, which will never have a final outcome, I am sure. Weighted averages can be applied…

Mercedes-AMG recently introduced the hottest version of its smallest SUV. The all-new Mercedes-AMG GLA 45 4Matic and GLA 45 S 4Matic are both powered by a 2.0-litre, but not just any old 2.0-litre. As was the case with the previous model, Mercedes is once again claiming this new turbocharged unit is the most powerful series-production four-cylinder engine in the world. The base model produces 285kW, while the S variant delivers 310kW. The active, fully variable AMG Performance 4Matic+ all-wheel drive distributes the power to the rear axle wheel selectively by AMG Torque Control. This is made possible by a new rear axle differential featuring two multi-disc clutches, one for each rear wheel. The AMG Speedshift DCT 8G dual-clutch transmission apportions the power within a split second to suit the specific…

Mahindra has added a new upgraded S11 model to its seven-seater Scorpio SUV range. The Scorpio S11 will now be available with the more powerful mHawk engine as found in the Pik Up. This increases the power from 88kW to 103kW. The 2.2-litre four-cylinder diesel utilises common rail direct injection and a turbocharger to deliver all the available torque, 320Nm in the new model, between 1 500r/min and 2 800r/min. The Mahindra Scorpio first landed in South Africa in 2016 as the brother of the new Pik Up range. As such, it offers SUV enthusiasts a hard-wearing ladder frame chassis, electronic shift-on-the-fly transition between 4×2 and 4×4 on models equipped with a four-wheel-drive system. As before, the off-road-ready underpinnings are matched with stylish 17-inch alloy wheels, a distinctive bonnet scoop,…

Bilstein’s locally optimised Raise Your Game (RYG) kits continue to raise the bar when it comes to affordable suspension upgrades for popular 4×4s. The latest addition is an RYG kit for the Suzuki Jimny and it will fit both the current and previous generation versions. Because the Jimny has coils all round, the kit is a little more expensive than those for double cab models but at R22 625, it is an attractive price for a premium set-up. The kit comprises B8 off-road shocks all round, paired with locally sourced, uprated coil springs for a lift in the region of 35 to 40mm. Bilstein products are available from Goldwagen and Incomex stores nationwide. More information: info@bilstein.co.za or 012 748 3800…

In 1948, Englishman Maurice Wilks created the first Land Rover. In time, it became, arguably the most revered, most recognised 4×4 in the world. Now, 72 years later, the first all-new Land Rover Defender is about to land in markets across the world. After the Second World War ended in 1945, there was a steel shortage around the world, so Wilks used aluminium – which was widely used in the war for aircraft bodies – to clad his new 4×4. The first Land Rover was powered by a 1.6-litre petrol engine that delivered all of 37kW. It had a wheelbase of 80 inches. That’s quite a way shorter than the all-new 110, which is just over five metres long.…

I’VE been fortunate to visit the Baviaanskloof on three occasions. During those visits, I’ve traversed its length almost five times; close to twice on a motor bike (long story) and thrice in a car (longer story). While it’s never been a boring ride, when my stepdaughter Ashley expressed interest in us doing it with me, I was determined to find a new angle. I’d first heard about the Kareedouw to Baviaanskloof 4×4 route (aka the Rus en Vrede 4×4 route or Kouga-Baviaans 4×4) from seasoned travel writer Richard van Ryneveld on one of our far-too-seldom trips together. Perhaps we’d go more often if I hadn’t sold him my old hiccupping Land Rover motorhome; regardless, since then I’ve been itching to do it, either in a 4×4 or by motorbike. With…

IT’S odd that more bakkies aren’t offered with a tonneau cover as standard, seeing as how criminals are big into crimes of opportunity. If an unsuspecting bakkie owner stops at a robot on his way home from hoarding toilet paper, there’s nothing stopping a miscreant from reaching over and grabbing some. Fortunately, there are various quick fixes. ARMADILLO ROLL-TOP COVER We start with something that functions perfectly as a cover for the load bin and then some. The roll-top is locally assembled by hand using highquality aluminium and other materials. Once it’s fixed, you can even load stuff on top of it. Up to 500kg, in fact. This cover can be controlled via remote control and features an auto-locking function when the owner forgets to close it. It’s lightweight, robust,…

FROM the UTV race, with over 130 entrants, the fiercely competitive Everyman Challenge with Legends and Stock Classes battling it out, to the ‘mini’ Baja for 1 000bhp desert racing trucks with a cool $100 000 winners cheque, King of the Hammers (KoH) continues to defy belief with how much it keeps growing. But more than its size and the brutality of the course, the main race itself couldn’t have been scripted to be any more thrilling. Qualifying was just a short blast over the hill outside Hammer Town and a loop back again… but this being KoH, where the levels of off-roading extremities are unimaginable anywhere else, it served to sort the men from the boys. As well as allowing the cream to rise to the top, with a…

There simply isn’t a need for it anymore, as proven by the various manufacturers who moved their new model unveilings to an online platform within hours. To be honest, it’s not like we didn’t see it coming. It’s been years since we attended an international motor show, yet we have access to the same material at the same time as someone in attendance. New car unveilings have long been live-streamed, meaning we could tune in via YouTube from thousands of miles away. And you don’t have to battle 100 other journalists to get an unobstructed view of the car. With the motor show slowly marching towards demise, is the same true for dealership floors? Has the digital space finally arrived at a point where consumers trust it enough to buy a…