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South Africa’s leading source of news and information on all aspects of the motor industry Issue 06 | 11 August 2011 www.autolive.co.za MG back in SA! As AutoLive comes on stream for its sixth edition today (August 11), an announcement will be made this afternoon that MG, the famous British sporting brand, is back in the country. Full story overleaf. Q&A with Total Economy Joburg readies for July sales Wendell Roberts Run winners Motor Show analysis page 5 page 7 page 8 page 13 Subscribe for free @ www.autolive.co.za Page 2 Editor Stuart JohnSton Stuart Johnston [email protected] Deputy Editor Today’s announcement will detail plans Tristan Wiggill for the famous marque’s return, which [email protected] is scheduled for the Johannesburg Motor Show this October. The organisation General Manager behind it is the vast Combined Motor Roger Houghton Holdings group, a JSE-listed motor retail- [email protected] ing group that has a network of dealer- Sales ships across the country, which include Bruno Lupini top-drawer franchises such as BMW, [email protected] Mercedes-Benz, Land Rover, Toyota, Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Peugeot, Ford and many Address more. Other interests include boating, One of Lopez’s main tasks in setting Nanjing was absorbed by SAIC, one of Suite 106B, MISA Centre motorcycling, car rentals and spare parts. up this afternoon has been “re-igniting the oldest Chinese automakers, and cur- 12 Fir Street, Northcliff Heading up the sales and marketing the passion” as he puts it, for the fa- rently one of the biggest. In fact, SAIC Johannesburg, 2195 division is Pedro Lopez, who was loathe mous nameplate started in 1925 by Cecil built cars under the old Chairman Mao Tel to give too much detail away before this Kimber, previously the general manager regime, creating large sedans for gov- +27 (0)11 431 0796 afternoon’s launch. However, it is con- for Morris Garages, from which is sports ernment officials known as the Shangai firmed that the model to be launched car “specials” took their name. SH760. Fax here will be the MG6, built in China In South Africa, MG has been a pres- Lopez is quick to stress that while +27 (0)86 505 8957 by the Shanghai Automotive Industry ence since the 1930s, and after World the car is largely built in China, the en- Website Corporation (SAIC). Two everyone’s favourite sports car was gineering, technology and design is all This car is a stylish five-door hatch- the famous wire-wheeled TC, followed by British, with the old Longbridge plant www.autolive.co.za back that will compete with the likes of the steel-wheeled TD and TF models. The re-opened to install the engines, trans- © 2011 WCM Media CC Opel’s Astra and Toyota’s Auris. But be- much more modern MGA came in 1955 missions and running gear into the Production ing an MG, the design and engineering and a number of them still exist within Chinese built-and painted bodies for the of the car is still very much the concern the MG Car Club in South Africa today. UK market. Marketing Support Services of staff at the famed Longbridge factory A car that was shipped here in con- “You only have to look at how well +27 (0)12 346 2168 [email protected] in England, and the car will have distinct siderable numbers in the late 1960s and Land Rover is doing under Tata to see sporting credentials. early 1970s was the MGB, especially the the potential of MG under SAIC,” com- Layout and Typesetting Chief amongst these is the engine, “fast-back” MGB GT. ments Lopez. For now, the hatch-back Johann Seidel which is a four-cylinder, multi-valve The nameplate disappeared from our MG6 is the only model confirmed for Disclaimer turbocharged unit, displacing 1.8-litres. shores in the late 1970s, but resurfaced launch here, although Lopez did mention Power output is said to be around 118 kW, in late 2001, under the Randburg-based a “line-up” during our brief interview While reasonable and will be fed through the front wheels Pearl Automotive Group. Pearl marketed at Investment Cars on William Nichol precautions have been via a five-speed manual gearbox. A zero the MGF (later the TF) sports car and Drive, where MG South Africa (this taken to ensure the accuracy of the advice to 100 km/h time in the mid-eight second MG ZT, based on the Rover 75 sedan. A name has not yet been confirmed) will and information given to bracket is claimed. number of MGFs and a sprinkling of ZTs be based. readers, neither the Editor, Chassis technology naturally owes were sold (Rovers were the stronger sedan The “line-up” phrase had AutoLive’s the Proprieters, nor the much to MG heritage, and the handling sellers) here until the UK company went antennae primed and pricked, as this publishers can accept of the car is said to be very crisp and bankrupt in 2005. could well mean that the purebred MG any responsibility for any sporting. The interior will make much of Soon after the manufacturing rights two seater sports car, based on the TF, damages or injury which MG’s 86-year-old history, with plenty of were acquired by the Chinese-based may well be part of our future once may arise therefrom. dark cladding and metal highlights. Nanjing Automobile, and two years later, again. ■ Subscribe for free @ www.autolive.co.za Page 3 Editor’s Note The struggle for sales su- premacy between Toyota and Volkswagen is a fascinating one. In July Volkswagen was once again the overall vehi- cle sales leader, with 8 717 units to Toyota’s 7 384 units. However, in terms of vehicles produced, Toyota was ahead, thanks to a sterling export month. The Durban-based manufacturer exported 9 733 vehicles, almost 2 000 more than VW’s effort of 7 876. Thus, in terms of overall perform- ance, Toyota was ahead in July by 524. The significance of this is that in the local market, Toyota has been Number One here since 1980 and year-to- date it still shades Volkswagen by 1 705 units. The totals to the end of July are Toyota at 58 885 local sales, and VW at 57 178, according to our resident industry-watchdog, managing Asimo returning to SA editor Roger Houghton. In third place is GMSA, or is it? The reality is that the No 3 spot is closely fought for by Hyundai, but the situation ASIMO, the quaintly-named humanoid robot made by Honda’s requires some digging and monitoring of vehicle registra- research and development engineers, is to return to South Africa tions, as Hyundai, the flagship brand of Associated Motor at the Johannesburg Motor Show in October (see page 8). Holdings, doesn’t report its sales stats to NAAMSA, al- though word has it that this will change in the near future. While Volkswagen doesn’t have any high-volume new roger houghton It can understand a number of voice model launches for the rest of this year, I suspect we are yet commands and give an appropriate re- to see the impact of the new single-cab Amarok on LCV sponse, while using a unique IC communi- sales. But that will be nothing compared to the launch of the New ASIMO took its first steps in Europe in cation card results in ASIMO recognising new Hilux, which happens at the end of this month. Hilux is 2007 and is now coming to Africa. It is 130cm and greeting people. New technology even the number one selling vehicle of all types in this country, tall and weighs 54kg, which makes it the per- permits it to carry a tray and put it on a ta- and if it can still sell 2 519 units in its run-out month, one can fect size for helping around the house or assist- ble, while it can transport heavy loads - up only imagine the impact the new one will have on the overall ing a person confined to a bed or wheelchair. to 10kg in weight - by pushing a trolley. sales race. And there will be a new Fortuner version too in The latest version can run and walk fast- ASIMO is powered by a 51.8 volt lithi- the coming month or so. er, while it has a greater range of movement um ion battery, which is located in its back- What’s more, Toyota has the new Yaris waiting in the than before, enabling it to do more twist- pack, and can operate for about 40 minutes wings towards the end of this year, as well as niche model ing, bending and pushing. Posture Control on a single charge, with recharging taking launches like the hybrid Auris, and the recently announced Technology allows ASIMO to maintain bal- three hours. Only one person is required to FJ Cruiser. So, while VW has narrowed the gap, it will be a ance and prevent foot slippage while running. control the robot, using a laptop or portable fascinating tussle. It can push a trolley on a set course computer and a wireless network. ■ And as Toyota launches the new version of its mega- while maintaining balance as well as move bakkie, Hyundai will weigh in with the new Elantra on the continuously towards a destination without “The latest version can run same day. And a new Accent is also in the pipeline.