TWO
Mercedes-Benz Actros 6x4 truck-tractors, fitted with the latest Mercedes-Benz
RT440 hypoid rear axles as standard, have achieved significant fuel savings of
more than five percent in test runs in the Eastern Cape.
Search This Blog
Sunday, June 30, 2013
AUDI recently launched its RS5 cabriolet at Desmond Gutzeit’s mad,
tight track in Port Shepstone.
BMW uses an “M” to show which of its cars is faster than the rest.
Merc warns with “AMG” that this car is not for the bowls club. On an Audi, the
letter R hints that all the vital parts, from the shocks to the valves, have
been tuned to perform faster.
Vale to take on guys at Dezzi's
![]() |
Morne Venter holds it steady |
FIA, motorsport’s global controlling body, this week hosted 250
attendees at Goodwood in the UK “to share ideas on how to develop motorsport”.
At the time of going to print, Talking Transport had
no report back from the meeting, but if drifting did not feature on top of FIA’s
agenda, the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile is missing the plot —
again.
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Countdown to King of Spin

In Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, the countdown has started to find the King of Spin and King of
Drift at Sidewayz at the Market at the end of July.
The event, on July 27 and
July 28, will attract spinners and drifters from all parts of South Africa,
eager to show their precision throttle feathering.
Seen here is Lionel Jordaan, who will represent the Western Cape over the two-day event. Gates open at 4 pm on the Saturday.
Seen here is Lionel Jordaan, who will represent the Western Cape over the two-day event. Gates open at 4 pm on the Saturday.
On the Sunday, gates open at 9 am for the drifting
event and the finals of the top spinners, who will go head-to-head to win the
title of King of Spin.
One lucky spectator will win a trip to the Pro Series Supra Drift in Japan. Sidewayz offer an early-bird special with two gate passes for R70. On the day of the event, a gate pass will cost R70 per person at the gate.
For more on how to buy your tickets early and save, phone 083 792 0853.
One lucky spectator will win a trip to the Pro Series Supra Drift in Japan. Sidewayz offer an early-bird special with two gate passes for R70. On the day of the event, a gate pass will cost R70 per person at the gate.
For more on how to buy your tickets early and save, phone 083 792 0853.
From mechanics to master mechanics
THE Motor Workshop
Industry Association (Miwa) has launched a training course to qualify mechanics
as master mechanics.
Les McMaster, chair of the association, said diagnostic equipment assisted mechanics to a certain extent, but it could
only do so much. Which is why Miwa approached training company Delmar, based in
the U.S., two years ago to host its ground-breaking automotive technician training programme
in South Africa.
McMaster said the association now offered a distance learning
Master Technician training programme that teaches a list of 13 aspects covering
the latest technology in cars from bumper to bumper.
Hyundai flagship gets more power
Hearing about the problems that a giant in the motoring industry
has with the outcomes of our Sectoral Education and Training Authorities (Seta)
is not standard fare for a car launch, but it does show Hyundai’s level of
commitment to the future of South Africa.
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Potholes and arseholes in Limpopo
(Updated) Ever wondered why the roads in Limpopo province is in such a bad state?
It is because the officials who are supposed to fix 'em, are instead getting their own fix from the official budgets. The good news, a little hawk-like bird told us, is that arrests are being made.
Marietie Louw-Carstens for Beeld reports that in Polokwane two former senior employees of the departmentr of roads and transport in Limpopo had been arrested for fraud involving R79 million.
The Hawks yesterday arrested Mashanoke Alice Mogotlane (44), former chief officer of the Limpopo Roads Agency. The agency is managed by the department of roads and transport.
Ndangani
Robert Nemavhola (48), former manager of special projects in this department, was also arrested.
Since this blog was put on, Paul Nkosi (37) van UMSO-Construction was also arrested and given bail of R10,00.
Since this blog was put on, Paul Nkosi (37) van UMSO-Construction was also arrested and given bail of R10,00.
Nkosi, Mogotlane and Nemavhola are suspected of fraud and corruption involving R79 million to build a bridge over the Olifants Rivier in the Penge area near Burgersfort.
In December, five Limpop government offiocials have been arrested since December 2011 .
In April, Floyd Brink (31), chief assest manger of the department of roads and transport was arrested for allegedly committing fraud involving R63 million. The money was supposed to fix potholes caused by the 2011 floods in the area, but these were never fixed.
Nkosi, Mogotlane and Nemavhola will appear Augustus in the Polokwane magistrate's court.
Sunday, June 23, 2013
For when the going is all up
Watts may as well have
been describing what it feels like to drive the Hyundai i20 diesel, for swing is
when the music sounds like it’s going faster while it is not.
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Top Gear show makes for awesome Father’s Day
OSCAR Pistorius, necklacing and an encouragement to drive fast on
public roads were just three of the carefully choreographed gaffes that the
Top Gear team slipped
into the live show, hosted in Durban at the weekend.
The fans who packed out the north side of the Moses Mabhida stadium
in four sell-out shows did not even flinch. This is now standard fare from the
live version of world’s most watched factual show, produced by Rowland French
and hosted by Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May. To Top Gear fans, the hosts
are just known as Jezza, who is like a naughty uncle; the Hamster, the favourite
cousin; and Captain Slow, the boring science teacher who also has chemicals that
can explode.
Want Orries stoot én trek
Dis toe
vrek maklik om ’n Audi quattro amper so vinnig soos SuperVan om draaie te jaag,
solank jy net die drie stappe onthou: stop, trap, en hou dan vas!
Die
gestop maak nie sin nie, maar dit werk, soos ek in ’n Audi RS5 afslaankap op Desmond
Gutzeit se baan in Port Shepstone gaan leer het. As hy nie geel masjiene bou om
berge te skuif nie, jaag Gutzeit graag sy Nissan GTR karre om die baan se veegdraaie.
Ek meen daai
draaie was een aand na baie brandewyn in die stikdonkerte geskraap. Want een
kant het ’n blinde hoogte met ’n neëntig-grade draai na regs wat dan aanhou
toemaak. Die ander kant eindig in ’n 360-grade draai met ’n 20-meter afgrond
vir ’n sypaadjie. Onthou jy daai grappie van Tiger Woods, sy kar en die
pennetjies waarop sy golfballe rus? Wel, manne wat by Dezzi se baan jaag,
gebruik nie golfbal pennetjies nie, maar Buckey broeimasjiene. Volstruiseiers pas
gemaklik in Buckey broeimasjiene.
Vir die vinniger pa
Die eerste
RS Audi in SA was ‘n stasiewa, maar die rooi Avant se hantering en versnelling
het in 1994 elke rooibloed pa laat regop sit.
BMW wys met ’n
“M” watter van hul motors vinniger as ander is. Merc waarsku met “AMG” dis nie ’n
kar vir kerk toe gaan nie. Op ‘n Audi vertel die letter R dat als, van die
dempers tot die kleppe, vir verrigting ingestel is.
In vergeleke
met die lang geskiedenis van die ander twee Duitsers is Audi die nuweling in
die vinniger-maak arena. Audi het eers in 1983 begin om verrigtingsmodelle
gebou. Eie aan Audi se aard was die eerste RS model in SA dan ook nie ’n
twee-deur afslaankap of gestroopde vierdeur ren-sedan nie, maar ’n stasiewa. So
’n bloue.
‘Top Gear’ is getting to be repetitive, but the young uns loved it
SHELL did
not sell any seashells on the seashore over the weekend, but sponsored lots of
Top Gear fun. The Witness sent three hip
20-somethings and a bloke twice their age to see what the world’s most popular
motoring programme is all about.
Top three challenges for transport in South Africa
![]() |
Presenters at South Africa's 8th State of Logistic
survey in Johannesburg: (from left) Zane Simpson (Stellenbosch University); Dr Cornelius Ruiters (CSIR); Nadia Viljoen (CSIR); Hans Ittmann (HWI Consulting); and Cobus Rossouw (IMPERIAL Logistics). |
The long and short from the survey is that South Africa’s economy stand to benefit from the continent's growth, but entrenched dependence on road transport makes the region's economy very vulnerable.
The survey was jointly released by the CSIR, IMPERIAL Logistics and Stellenbosch University.
Nadia Viljoen, scientific editor of the survey and a researcher at the CSIR, said in a press release accompanying the survey that South Africa must urgently address critical issues relating to the road freight sector; shift from road to rail; and address rampant skills shortages and misalignment in the logistics sector.
A less reverent look at the Gautrain
In days of yore, western governments built huge steely erections to show their prowess.
Some governments in the east is still at it, but more common these days is to built a fast train. Presumably because the government officials can then tell each other at the urinals how fast their's can go.
And it all costs.
Like this report from Engineering News, that the the South African Government had paid a monthly ridership guarantee to Gautrain operator, the Bombela consortium, since June 7, last year, amounting to R831.4-million by the end of March, Transport Minister Ben Martins on Tuesday noted in a written response to a question posed in Parliament.
Friday, June 14, 2013
Thursday, June 13, 2013
eTolls not going / not going to Austria
On 12 June 2013, Kapsch TraffiCom, the Austrian company operating South Africa’s eTolling system, announced that additional annual revenue of €50 million will be coming from the pockets of Gauteng’s drivers. The Automobile Association of South Africa (AA) was stunned by this latest revelation.
The AA said this announcement shows a continued disregard for the South African motorist. While it is the mandate of every organisation, local or international, to increase the bottom line, in this case the South African government is allowing this to happen to the detriment of its already hard hit citizens who are simply trying to make ends meet.
The AA said this announcement shows a continued disregard for the South African motorist. While it is the mandate of every organisation, local or international, to increase the bottom line, in this case the South African government is allowing this to happen to the detriment of its already hard hit citizens who are simply trying to make ends meet.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
The wheel — reinvented
Currently, the wheels are only fitted to skateboards, but The Witness predicts it won’t be many years before the mishapen
wheels appear on trailers.
Shark Wheels last year sought — and got — funding for its sine wave
wheel on Kickstarter, selling pledges for $50 (R506,21) and $55 on its different
wheels.
Having demonstrated the new wheels at Venice Beach in California on
December 15 last year, Shark Wheels says it has the money to start deliveries by
September 2013.
The creator of the spherical expansion wheels David M. Patrick said
his sine wave wheels are neither square nor round, but made up of three strips,
each of which create a helical shape when they roll. This forms a sine wave
pattern where the wheels make contact with the ground.
The tracks made by each of the wheels look like a wave drawn by a
child’s fingers in the sand.
Patrick said his wheels result in fewer friction points on the
ground, allowing the wheel to roll faster than a traditional skateboard wheel
and also allows for better handling in rough and wet terrain, which causes
problems for normal wheels.
The sine wave pattern also grants improved lateral grip, as the
width of the wheel is able to be increased without adding any unnecessary
friction, and thus, slowing down the board.
It also provides three lips for stopping, where a traditional wheel
only has one.
Another interesting application of Shark Wheels is the ability to
mix different hardnesses in the same wheel.
The hardness of a skateboard wheel is measured in terms of
durometers, and the three interlocking pieces of this particular wheel allows
the rider to choose three different ones in each wheel, which grants extra
customisation in terms of grip and slide.
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Feeling the used car blues
GARY Ronald, head of public affairs at the Automobile Association
(AA) of South Africa, recently issued an advisory to explain how the Consumer
Protection Act (CPA) affects car sales.
The act prohibits any official car dealer from selling a vehicle voetstoets, irrespective of whether they disclose what is wrong with
the vehicle or not. Private sales can be voetstoets, if a full
list of all known car defects has been provided to the buyer, who has to sign
the list.
This implies buyers can now take a dud car back to a dealer, as two
readers, who complained to Weekend Witness about buying what they
say were problem cars, tried to do.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
Where girl meets boy
It has the looks. It’s got the goods. And after boy met girl and
they made whoopee, it has a third door on the kerb side. For dropping the dear
little ones off safely at school, so that they don’t step in front of traffic,
see?
Sunday, June 2, 2013
Worries about Redisa's "weak plan''
TYRE dealers and fitters last week lost two battles in their
ongoing struggle to stop a recycling plan that they say will become very costly
for tyre buyers in South Africa.
First the Bloemfontein high court ruled that the Department of
Environmental Affairs may continue implementing a reworded recycling plan, as
resubmitted by the Recycling and Economic Development Initiative of SA (Redisa).
Then the SA National Civics Organisation (Sanco), which initially
held an exploratory meeting with the tyre industry forum, on Wednesday aligned
with Redisa.
The delighted CEO of Redisa, Hermann Erdmann, said: “We can now
move ahead with the original intention of the plan, which is to remove waste
tyres from the environment whilst creating jobs and building a recycling
industry.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)