CARの January 2023 の目次

There have been several raised eyebrows at the criteria we used to rank the cars on Performance Shootout in previous years, so we’re setting the record straight. Here is how we define performance this year. The word “shootout”, as defined by Collins, is the resolution of a conflict, but I feel some readers believe it means an all-out, guns-blazing affair. The only time this may be true is when we’re given free rein at a race track for a day. Afterwards, it’s not all tunnel runs and mountain passes, either, because that’s not what the majority of our roads are like. As well as blitzing between trucks on national motorways, we include relatively sedate stretches between fun B-roads. It would be an entirely different matter if we were going to…

01 Audi RS3 Sedan Quattro S tronic Price: R1 245 000 Engine: 2,5-litre, 5-cyl, turbopetrol Power: 294 kW @5 600 r/min Torque: 500 N.m @2 250 r/min 02 Ford Mustang 5,0 GT California Special 10AT Fastback Price: R1 154 900 Engine: 5,0-litre, V8, petrol Power: 330 kW @7 000 r/min Torque: 529 N.m @4 600 r/min 03 Volkswagen Golf R 2,0 TSI 235 kW 7-speed DS Price: TBA Engine: 2,0-litre, 4-cyl, turbopetrol Power: 235 kW @5 900 r/min Torque: 400 N.m @1 900 r/min 04 Toyota GR Yaris 1,6T GR-Four Rally Price: R761 200 Engine: 1,6-litre, 3-cyl, turbopetrol Power: 198 kW @6 500 r/min Torque: 360 N.m @3 000 r/min 05 BMW M240i xDrive Coupé Price: R1 113 662 Engine: 3,0-litre, 6-cyl, turbopetrol Power: 285 kW @5 500 r/min Torque: 500 N.m @1 800 r/min…

An almost perfect balance between the pulling of the front wheels and pushing at the rear + mind-boggling grip in the twisties, raucous exhaust note à la Group B - a little softer-spoken than previous versions, slightly cramped cabin Looming ahead of this trio parked off to the left at the foot of the Gydo Pass, just outside Prince Alfred Hamlet to the north of Ceres is 7 km of twisting tarmac that once played host to the premier hillclimb event in South Africa. The King of the Mountain race may have died 15 years ago, but in our minds, it was game on in the Audi RS3. Glancing up into the rear-view mirror are the gaping square grilles of the BMW M240i and, even further behind, the narrow slits…

This year’s Performance Shootout isn’t the i30N’s first rodeo. The manual-transmission model accompanied us on our 2020 Performance Shootout and gave a good account of itself despite the formidable company it kept. While we were taken with the manual’s pleasing mechanical shift action – not to mention the rev-matching module’s ability to effortlessly align gearbox and engine – the recently introduced eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission is an even better fit. As much as every good petrolhead will appreciate the interaction between driver and well-sorted manual ’box, the profusion of traffic crawling and stop- and-go roadworks that lined our route this year meant any break from manually modulating a clutch was more than welcome. Although the new automatic certainly acquitted itself smoothly at low speeds, its performance in attacking driving scenarios…

Confession time. Initially, we had anticipated, maybe even willed, the BMW to win the Shootout because it performed nearly flawlessly in testing in 2022 and the prospect of a better-performing candidate did not seem very likely. Our sentiments haven’t changed. It’s just that the other contenders we previously hadn't considered had delivered such breakout performances, they’d thrilled and delighted us more in equal measure. For giggling goodliness, look no further than the Toyota, although three-quarters of a million rand is equally laughable for a Max Power-ed Yaris. On the other hand, the elation and ecstasy from its manual gearbox, video-game levels of grip, and the reckless abandon with which you can order direction changes from behind the wheel are all straight from the rally-car-for-the-road playbook. With two doors, it’s not…

Price: R2 606 000 Engine: mid-mounted, naturally aspirated, 3 996 cc flat-6 Transmission: 7-speed DCT Power: 368 kW @8 400 r/min Torque: 450 N.m @6 750 r/min 0–100 km/h: 3,4 seconds Top speed: 300 km/h Fuel consumption: 12,3 L/100km (combined) CO2 emissions: 281 g/km Rivals: Porsche 911 GT3, Porsche 718 GT4, Audi R8 Coupe V10 + like the original Cayman GT4, now only more insane - as above, you couldn’t get one even if you could afford one The noise is bonkers. Ears singing, I’m yelling across the cockpit, signalling the rev counter as it swings towards 9 000 r/min. My deer-in-theheadlights companion points at his ears, can’t-hear-you, wide eyes glued to the rapidly approaching horizon. It is all deliciously ironic. Ironic because it’s thanks to quiet electric that this 4,0-litre,…

ExtensiveTV coverage and high-profile drivers, including winners Nasser Al-Attiyah and Giniel deVilliers, and F1 champion Fernando Alonso, have meant that many South Africans are aware of the Dakar successes enjoyed by theToyota Gazoo SA Racing Hilux. However, few are aware that behind these successes is a small 40-strong team, responsible for the development, design and build of the vehicles, including the in-house design and manufacture of some 2 400 different components. Despite operating on a budget a fraction of the size of some leading competitors, Glyn’s engineering talent and the ability to quickly adapt to changes in the rules and regulations have enabled the team to develop and build world-beating racers. DIFFERENT CATEGORIES Today’sWorld Rally-Raid Championship can trace its roots back to the first Paris– Dakar race, which began 44…

If ever misery loved company, in 2022, suffering scored a fist-bumping, high-fiving entourage of a wailing and gnashing of teeth. At the end of February, Russia invaded Ukraine and set off a worldwide food- and energy crisis. Unsurprisingly, the rand tanked and fuel prices skyrocketed, which in turn further sent inflation through the roof. Ignoring Eskom’s never-ending crisis for the moment, the endless infighting among the ruling elite rendered the government unable to implement meaningful and growth-enhancing policies. This inaction filtered down to street level, where joblessness and a teetering social fabric have now reached suicidal levels of hopelessness. Against such sobering realities as these, CAR’s Performance Shootout 2023 was conceived with the consciousness of the hardship endured by South Africans over the past year. Considering the state of the…

In years past, eight cylinders were almost a minimum requirement for admission to CAR’s annual Performance Shootout. As a sign of the changing times, downsizing and corresponding turbocharging have now become the norm; and it could well be that the 2022 winner – the Audi R8 Performance quattro with its decuplet of cylinders – signalled a genuine last hurrah for those big boostless engines in the competition. So, whatever one may think of the Ford Mustang – a proper and still enjoyable retro-throwback, or a mere marketing exercise in chest-beating – its now-endangered status guarantees special recognition of the momentous achievements written in spent octane and burnt rubber over the past 57 years. And why not? The Mustang, in SA as a limited-edition California Special, is the most powerful entrant…

The first surprise of CAR’s 2023 Performance Shootout was watching the BMW get off the line at the Saldanha airstrip during the drag racing match-ups. Regular automatic transmissions have long since taken over where manuals once ruled, but for faster vehicles – like those we’ve assembled here – dual-clutch systems still seem to be the shifters of choice. But tell that to the M240i, which uses an eight-speed torque-converter unit. Watching it race the rivals against which we’d had pitted it on the drag strip was an absolute joy because it seemed to get the jump on almost every single run. Of course, this is an all-wheel-drive BMW, so it’s not a massive surprise, but the way the M240i goes about putting the power into forward propulsion has to be…

Isuzu and Ford have always been among South Africa’s favourite brands, especially for hardworking folk whose vehicles must serve them consistently for both private and commercial use. On our Performance Shootout, we got the opportunity to fully experience the Isuzu Mu-X and the Ford Ranger Raptor outside of their regular long-term testf-leet duties. These vehicles have proved themselves worthy of being the supportive muscle behind the team. They were filled to the hilt with camera equipment, refreshments, sunblock, tyre pressure gauges, pens, notepads, ice, first-aid kits, walkie-talkie charging stations, spare batteries and boxes full of CAR-branded apparel. Under focused helmsmanship, they kept up with the performance cars along the route, depositing the video and photography crew at their designated locations. Thanks to this pair of reliable performers, we managed to…

Peter Palm South African children simply adore cars; once again, we witnessed this by the sheer number of them egging us on to drive faster. We couldn’t comply owing to the dangers, but perhaps special school visits should be considered to give these budding petrolheads a closer look at cars that none of us can afford. Damian Adams Aiming for the scorching Gydo Pass, I hung back in the Mustang to buy a consignment of essential ice and frozen luxuries. Goods stowed in the boot, sparse traffic and the rips-norting 5,0-litre V8, this would become a drive I’ll never forget. Braam Peens Comically pretending to ignore the lure of Dutoitskloof Pass upon returning from Ceres, once there, it was a matter of seconds before the threesome of the GR Yaris,…

6 months 9 698 km 5,7 L/100 km + comfortable, well-appointed cabin, endlessly configurable – spongy brake feel “Nice car. How did you get it down here?” Good question. The town was Leipoldtville, known for potatoes, an Art Deco petrol station and an insatiable curiosity. The tar ends just down the road from the village entrance, on the R365. Ordinarily, as I have done countless times in the past six months in the low-riding C220d, I would three-point turn my way back up the macadam and shoot a rueful glance back, but this time my curiosity got the better of me. Slowly, I edged down the rutted dirt, hoping the dorp was as close as I’d been told. Bingo, well worth the snail’s progress I needed to endure. A hidden,…

At the best of times, eulogies are notoriously difficult to write. Editorials tend to focus on the positives and gloss over the less pleasant essentialities of the subject’s life. The inconvenient truth blighting four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel’s CV is that he peaked too early. The passing of time and intervention of circumstance perhaps unfairly conspired to characterise his F1 career as one who too early flew too close to the sun; then spent the rest of his days fighting a losing battle chasing an unachievable dream. Lest we forget, here is a driver who holds the record for the youngest pole sitter, the youngest world champion, the longest run of consecutive victories, the most wins (until 2022) and pole positions in a year, the most laps led in a…

Two days earlier, the Golf had frustrated us at the Saldanha drags. We struggled to engage launch control and trawled through menus in search of the ESP-disabling setting. It was hidden in a near-invisible sub-menu. This irritation extended to other functions and the touchscreen unit seemed counter-intuitive. Some testers felt that the mechanically identical Tiguan R launched harder, too. A stone chip on the former’s windscreen had developed into a crack and saw the group’s enthusiasm for the Golf dwindle even further. Writing it off at such an early stage, though, didn’t seem fair. After the marathon session of the previous day, Friday’s plan was less taxing. It involved a straight drive out to Ceres for back-to-back blasts on the Gydo Pass, the one-time home to the country’s most proper…

The combination of a high-performance vehicle and an SUV isn’t always a match made in heaven. Firstly, there are the practicality-related impediments to dynamic driving: the added mass and longer wheelbase thanks to the need for sufficient space to seat five and/or swallow lots of stuff. Then you need more power than most, along with a transmission capable of handling that extra shove. A chassis tuned to accommodate nimble handling and more aggressively geared steering top it all off, along with a helping of sticky rubber. It all sounds eminently achievable, but in real life, nothing is that easy. Perfection is approachable, but seldom attainable. So, who would require this blend of high performance and practicality and a modicum of off-road ability? Well, perhaps a former Golf GTI pilot who…

*Price Stats Engine (cm3, layout, induction) Power (kW @r/min) Torque (N.m @r/min Transmission (speeds and type/drive wheels) Kerb mass (kg)/Power-to-mass (W/kg) Claimed zero to 100 km/h (sec) Tested zero to 100 km/h (sec) Tested zero to 160 km/h (sec) Tested 400 m (sec/speed in km/h) Tested braking from 100 km/h (sec/metres) Claimed top speed (km/h) Tyre make Tyre size Audi RS3 sedan R1 245 000 2 480, inline 5, turbo 294 @5 600–7 000 500 @2 250–5 600 7-speed DCT/all 1 575/187 3,80 4,11 9,65 12,46/179,1 2,77/39,04 280 Pirelli P Zero 265/30 ZR19 (front); 245/35 ZR19 (rear) Ford Mustang GT CS R1 154 900 5 038, V8, NA 330 @7 000 529 @4 600 10-speed auto/rear 1 831/180 4,80 4,81 9,82 12,96/183,0 2,84/38,64 250 Michelin Pilot Sport 4S 255/40 ZR19…

6 months 10 600 km 7,40 L/100 km + affordable with impressive real-world fuel economy – numb clutch and vague steering, voice-assistant tech needs improvement Many of us still remember the previous Zafira. It was a comfy seven-seater with all-round appeal. Then there was the much larger Vivaro, a package shared by Nissan and Renault for their Primastar and Trafic, respectively. The new Opel version has resurrected the Zafira name, while it is still known in the UK as the Vauxhall Vivaro. We had the Edition version, which offers seating for eight. As can be seen, there is no shortage of space and neither headroom nor legroom is ever a problem. The seats have long, firm squabs for decent under-thigh support. To make them easily removable, they are not wide,…

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