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Issue 56 | 5 December 2013 www.autolive.co.za LAUNCHED TODAY! COMING TO SOUTH AFRICA! After half a century, we fi nally get a right-hand-drive Mustang! Full Story On Page Two Jeff Nemeth on the A potted pony-car Desmond Tutu? Ferrari 458 Speciale, new Mustang history Page 7 McLaren P1 Page 2 Page 4 Page 11 Subscribe for free @ www.autolive.co.za Page 2 Editor Stuart Johnston Mustang’s Global Sally – Yes, [email protected] General Manager it’s coming to South Africa! Roger Houghton [email protected] AutoLive can confi rm Sales today that the 2015 Kieran Rennie model-year Ford Mustang [email protected] will be coming to South Address Africa! This follows the Suite 106B, MISA Centre global launch of the new 12 Fir Street, Northcliff Mustang in many parts of Johannesburg, 2195 the world just a few hours Tel ago (the offi cial media +27 (0)83 450 9255 release from Ford was Fax embargoed until 6 am Rather than publish a pic of Ford SA CEO Jeff Nemeth here, +27 (0)86 505 8957 South African time today, we thought we’d publish a pic of his very own ‘71 convertible Website December 5, 2013). Mustang, which he drives in South Africa! www.autolive.co.za 50th anniversary of the car on April middle of the grille and the tri-lights © 2013 WCM Media CC BY STUART JOHNSTON 17, 2014. at the back, and the cut-outs on the “We will be getting the car here side. So, rest assured, it’s a Mustang”. Production in South Africa 2015, so there is And there is a defi nitely a V8 ver- Marketing Support Services Big news for South African Mustang still a little wait for us,” Ford Motor sion on the way here too, which will +27 (0)12 346 2168 fans is that for the fi rst time in the Company South Africa’s President please the 500 or so enthusiasts who [email protected] car’s production history, just shy and CEO Jeff Nemeth told AutoLive own previous-generation versions of of 50 years, the car will be built in this week. Presumably this extra this American icon. Layout and Typesetting right-hand-drive form. Th is opens wait for local Ford fans will be due to Nemeth says he can’t say for sure Sharon Bredenkamp the way for the fi rst offi cial large scale the special tooling up to build right- why the Mustang has never been pro- importation of Mustangs to South hand-drive models. duced in right-hand-drive form until Disclaimer Africa by Ford Motor Company (see “Mustang has such a long herit- now, as this is his “fi rst right-hand- While reasonable precautions have background story starting on page age, and every time we redesign it we drive market.” But he adds: “I’m just been taken to ensure the accuracy 4), since the world’s fi rst “pony car” keep the design cues,” added Nemeth. glad they’re doing it now! Better look- was launched to a delirious public on “So yeah, there’s a big change to the ing out the windscreen than in the of the advice and information given April 17, 1964. appearance and it now has independ- rear-view mirror on that one.” to readers, neither the Editor, the Unconfi rmed at the time that this ent rear suspension for the fi rst time, Nemeth concedes that the big Proprietors, nor the publishers was written, is the news that while and a 2,3-litre EcoBoost engine has thrust to make many models more can accept any responsibility for the all-new-completely re-designed been added to the range for fuel econ- “global”, rather than region-specifi c any damages or injury which may Mus tang will be labelled as a 2015 omy, and it’s an all-new platform. But under the current Ford management arise therefrom. model, there is a plan for the new it’s still unmistakably Mustang, with car’s on-sale date to coincide with the the trapezoidal grille, the pony in the continued on next page Subscribe for free @ www.autolive.co.za Page 3 continued from previous page thing she hears this big roar from the ga- Editor’s Note rage. And when my kids want to go for regime is undoubtedly part of this strat- ice cream, they always nag me to use the egy to go right-hand-drive with the new Mustang. Th en I come out of the store IT’S BEEN A GOOD YEAR Mustang. “But the Mustang is such an and there are fi ve or six people hanging Th e South African motor in- iconic brand for Ford, and we’ve had such around it!” dustry can look back on 2013 as an improvement in our brand equity Nemeth confi rms that for South the third most successful year in around the world in the past few years, Africa, we will be getting both the new its history in terms of the number for instance with the one-litre EcoBoost 2,3-litre EcoBoost turbocharged engine, of cars sold. Well, the fi nal stats engine winning so many international with direct injection, as well as a V8 ver- aren’t out yet, but with growth awards, that it was just the right time to sion here in South Africa. In other markets this year running at over three per take the Mustang global.” a V6 will also be available. cent, that achievement should be Will the new Mustang be eminently “I can’t give the horsepower ratings yet attainable, barring a disruption of aff ordable, as it was when it was launched on the 2,3-litre EcoBoost engine. But I’ve seismic proportions in December. in 1964 and has pretty much remained so driven cars with that engine fi tted, and I It would have been a lot better without the serious seven-week ever since? can say that people won’t believe the kind strike that occurred in the second-half of the year, but hopefully “It’s too early for specifi c South of performance that engine delivers.” government and the unions will pay heed to our industry heads, African pricing. It’ll be a great value, that AutoLive is keen to try that new en- both local and global, who are serious when they warn that as I can confi rm. People that want a Mustang gine, in the interests of fuel economy, re- supplier in the global chain of automotive commodities, and will feel that it will be within their reach.” ducing global warming, and because all marginal one at that in terms of global perspectives, no special Nemeth in fact owns a Mustang as the EcoBoost engines we’ve sampled so far concessions will be granted if we can’t deliver the goods, and on his private car, a 1971 convertible. “It’s have been amazing. But, sorry folks, when time too. like a time machine. Every time my wife it comes to Mustangs, just on pure princi- Th at we are so much part of the global industry these days is asks me to go pick up bread or milk, next ple, make ours a V8 please! ■ indicated by the introduction of electric cars here, fi rst by Nissan with its Leaf, with BMW to follow shortly with its i3. While these initiatives are to be lauded in terms of their global responsibility, Toyota’s First Car to Reach a Million Units AutoLive cannot help but feel that to pay such a premium for an Produced in South Africa electric car here is largely for reasons of making a statement of the I-am-so-cool, I-even-care-about-the-planet variety. Th is follow’s on the recent production of While the 1 millionth Corolla will Yes, we care about the planet, but as long as our electricity is the 1-millionth Hilux bakkie. fi nd pride of place next to the 1 millionth generated largely by coal, the impact on the environment is not Team members at Toyota South Africa Hilux in Toyota’s museum at its Sales that much better than using a petrol- or diesel-fueled car. Yes, Motors celebrated in late November as and Marketing Head Offi ce in Sandton one can take the route of installing solar energy systems, but they the 1 millionth proudly-South African- the Prospecton Plant is busy preparing are very expensive. And to make the money required to purchase manufactured Corolla rolled of the pro- the manufacturing facility for the start them takes lots of energy-expenditure! Read planetary exploita- duction line at the company’s Prospecton of production of the new Corolla, which tion for that one! Plant in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. was revealed at the recent Johannesburg Personally, I am all for the hybrid solution as practised by an Th e white Toyota Corolla that came International Motor Show in October. increasing number of manufacturers today, where a small fossil- off the production line on Wednesday “It is very symbolic that the Corolla fuel engine can generate enough energy to adequately power a car 20 November 2013 caps six years of produc- reaches this milestone now,” says Dr Johan and replenish a battery that can in turn power an electric engine tion in which the Corolla was produced in van Zyl, President and CEO of Toyota to assist that small engine to make the car, a single car mark you, both left and right hand drive variants and South Africa Motors.