Tabla de contenidos para July 2019 en Leisure Wheels

DURING my 15 years as a motoring journalist it has been fascinating to watch the whole electric car concept develop. From first hearing about the idea to driving prototype test mules and then getting behind the wheel of the market-ready products has been an interesting journey. The sensation of piloting these vehicles has always been interesting because of the manner in which they deliver power and then recharge via regenerative braking systems, which require a different driving style. Electrically powered vehicles have always been a quirky alternative that I thought was only attractive to early adopters. But that has changed. Electric vehicles have moved on from a niche prospect for bunny huggers to a serious proposition for mainstream motorists as the technology comes of age. The operating range of these…

Going into neighbouring Namibia may take a while, at times, especially when they try and operate their fingerprint system. That is why I try a different border post each time. In the process, I’ve come across a few that are easier than others. On South Africa’s north-western border, where the Orange River runs into the Atlantic and where many diamonds are found, is one of the best places to enter Namibia. On the southern end of the Ernest Oppenheimer Bridge, the longest single-lane bridge in Southern Africa, is Alexander Bay. On the northern banks of the river, Oranjemund. The border post is open between 6am and 10pm and recently, visitors are allowed to visit Oranjemund without a permit. Fill up at the newly built filling station for fuel a little…

We’ll be honest and say we misjudged the Audi Q8 completely. But can you blame us? It is Audi’s version of the Porsche Cayenne and Lamborghini Urus, so we were expecting a fire-breathing maniac of a thing. The fact that we spent the previous week behind the wheel of the all-new RS4 didn’t help. So, we took the wheel expecting a blistering performance SUV with scalpel-like handling and a Spitfire soundtrack. The Q8 is not like that at all. In fact, it has more in common with Audi Q7 than any of its sportier cousins. Were we disappointed? Slightly, at first. It’s hard not to be. The styling is so stunning you can’t help but expect a driving experience that thrills from the moment you push the starter button. Pushing…

The all-new Range Rover Evoque is now available in South Africa and although it looks almost exactly like the earlier model, it’s completely new. Standout features on the outside include flush door handles, LED headlamps and a more purposeful stance. In fact, the only bodywork it shares with the previous model are the door hinges. The interior is a big step forward compared to the old model with the new Evoque adopting a minimalist design which is confirmed by the almost completely digital cabin. Land Rover says the cabin is designed to be a calm and serene space, ensuring comfortable, healthy and happy occupants, with technologies such as the twin touchscreen Touch Pro Duo system, featuring new, faster software, 16-way seat controls and cabin air ionisation that complements the increased…

THIS reputation took a turn for the worse when the automatic was launched a few years ago. It had full-time four-wheel drive and a rear differential lock but no transfer case. Many wrote it off as a gimmick and said it wasn’t possible to replicate low-range with a short first gear and a fancy off-road button. “It will never do what my insert name of any other mainstream double cab here can do…” I wasn’t entirely convinced either, but over the years I’ve seen Amaroks do some amazing things. The most epic example of this is probably the time we got lost somewhere in Lesotho on a road that eventually disappeared. We were filming a Nissan Patrol at the time and even that struggled on our overnight venture to cover…

HERE at Leisure Wheels, we are real petrolheads who like the tried and tested, things that work and can get a job done. So when the opportunity to put the I-Pace, through its, er, paces, arrived, we set out to make the best case for petrol-fuelled internal combustion engines we could by booking Tarlton Raceway and arranging the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk. Tarlton Raceway is the only proper full-length drag strip in South Africa and the Jeep Trackhawk is said to be the fastest SUV on the market. The I-Pace faced a real challenge. AMERICAN MUSCLE Under the bonnet of this Jeep is a good old American V8, with a big blower on top. The supercharged engine is designed and manufactured using only the strongest and most durable materials. Its…

THE USA is smattered with ‘shops’ dedicated to overhauling just about anything with wheels. And if it has wheels, it obviously deserves a V8 engine. Anything smaller is basically treason. Crate engines are at the core of this cultural trend. The most famous is the Chevrolet LS engine range. It’s renowned for its ruggedness, loudness, reliability and, most importantly, its ability to comfortably produce 600bhp with just a few modifications. Since it has been on sale for ages, it’s reasonably cheap as well. The ultimate crate engine to date went on sale early in April. Manufactured by Dodge, it produced 750kW and 1 300Nm of torque. Rather fittingly, it was named the Hellephant. The entire consignment was gone within 48 hours, which just goes to show how big the demand…

IN THE SHADOWS OF GIANTS South African trail runner extraordinaire Ryan Sandes trains before the 102km Tarawera Ultra Marathon in Rotorua, New Zealand earlier this year. Sandes finished fifth after suffering a few stumbles. STARRY, STARRY NIGHT The campsite on the Greenland ice cap was the base for Will Gadd as he explored inside the ice cap in the name of climate research. Gadd is a professional ice climber and the 2015 National Geographic Adventurer of the Year. EAT MY SPARKS Jamie Whincup races the light during the fifth round of the Australian Supercar Championship in Perth, Western Australia.…

BMW’S HOTTEST ENTRY-LEVEL SUV BMW has expanded the X2 range with an M35i, powered by a 2.0-litre TwinPower turbo engine that delivers 225kW and 450Nm of torque. Transferring power to the wheels is BMW’s intelligent xDrive, which works in conjuction with an eight-speed automatic gearbox, allowing the X2 M35i to accelerate from 0–100km/h in just 4.9 seconds. The rear of the X2 M35i is characterised by the standard M rear spoiler and two specially designed exhaust tailpipes, which also come in Cerium Grey. The M35i is equipped with a host of standard features including ConnectedDrive, real-time traffic information, wireless charging and navigation. Pricing for the BMW X2 M35i starts from R809 100. NEW NAVARA FLIES UNDER THE RADAR Nissan recently introduced a new variant of the Navara in SA called…

IT’S a brave move: introducing a D-Max double cab 4×4 with a price tag of nearly R800 000, in a tough, competitive and some-may-claim oversaturated leisure bakkie market. Yet it also seems to be an inspired move. Isuzu says it has increased the production run of its new Arctic Trucks 35-inch D-Max, the first batch of big-wheeled bakkies already accounted for. Clearly there is a demand for an Isuzu double cab bakkie running on huge 35-inch BFGoodrich KM2 all-terrain tyres and featuring custom suspension parts, Fox Performance Series shock absorbers (quite the fashionable item these days) and custom-made Arctic Trucks parts like the extended wheel arches, rims and side-mirror extensions. Our test unit was replenished in ‘Pull Me Over Red’ and rounded off with black 17-inch Arctic Trucks rims and…

THE Riverside Country Club and Caravan Park campsite is situated on the banks of the Riet River, 35km south of Kimberley, near the villages of Modderrivier and Ritchie. It is about 3km off the N12 en route between Cape Town and Johannesburg. The last 50m to the campsite is on a good gravel road. When we reached the campsite, we received a friendly welcome from owner Lucy van Dyk. The Van Dyks bought the riverfront property in 1994 and soon decided they wanted to share this peaceful environment with others. They began developing the land into a camping site with plots and neat self-catering units and gave it its current name. Lucy accompanied us to our campsite, overlooking the Riet River. Our stand was situated near the communal ablution facilities.…

WITH the popularity of performance SUVs growing monthly, it was only natural that these, too, would try their luck at racing up the hill. In class B9 for unlimited SUVs and pickups, Terence Marsh took home his first every hill climb trophy. He won the class in a Nissan Navara, which was built to compete in the Dakar Rally, ahead of Peter Lindenberg in a seriously modified Ford Ranger. “It felt odd to race in the Hillclimb, where the emphasis is on speed and repeatability, with a Navara that was built to handle races where everything changes all the time. Still, it was a great experience and we had a lot of fun,” says Marsh, who improved with every hill run. A pair of 405kW F-Pace SVRs proved SUVs can…

TANZANIA WILDEBEEST MIGRATION 20 JULY – 28 AUGUST Get yourself ready for a life-changing experience. We visit five countries with awesome national parks en route, including South Luangwa, Ruaha, Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti. After our five-night stay in Serengeti, we travel east to Lake Victoria and south all along Lake Tanganyika. Included in the agenda is a visit to the Gombe National Park for some chimpanzee tracking. Gombe came about due to the efforts and work of the world-renowned Jane Goodall. We will also visit the monument where the famous words “Dr Livingstone I presume” were uttered by Stanley. Visits to Kapishya Hot Springs and Victoria Falls are also included. Price includes guide fee, all hotel/chalet fees where applicable, all park, vehicle and camping fees, except the parks in…

THERE are clearly plenty of reasons to be pessimistic but it’s not all doom and gloom for the automotive sector. According to the latest new vehicle sales statistics released by the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa), export sales continue to perform exceptionally well. In April 2019, export sales at 33 090 vehicles reflected a substantial increase of 11 571 units, or a gain of 53.8%, compared to the 21 519 vehicles exported in the corresponding month last year. Naamsa predicts that the momentum of vehicle exports over the second half of the year should increase further, and industry export sales for the year could reach close to 400 000 units, compared to the record 351 139 vehicles exported last year. Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa…

One of the most highly anticipated vehicles of the year has landed in SA. The Ford Ranger Raptor is finally here and it costs R786 400. That’s almost a R100 000 increase over and above the WildTrak, so what do you get for the extra cash? For starters, it is 51mm taller, boasts 283mm of ground clearance, a front and rear track that is 150mm wider than a normal Ranger and 850mm of wading depth. The 32.5-degree approach angle and ramp-over and departure angles of 24 degrees are also impressive. From the outside, you can tell the Raptor apart thanks to the wider stance, big Ford lettering on the grille and the range of colours unique to this bakkie. The front fenders are made from durable composite materials, while the…

“WHERE shall we go and what shall we do when we get there?” That’s the basic premise behind every adventure we go on. This question is usually followed by a flurry of ideas, most of which sound good in your mind, but less so when spoken out loud. “What about Putsonderwater?” Cue the signature sound of buttons clacking away furiously as an investigation into Putsonderwater starts. “There doesn’t appear to be much there,” is the response. “The last update we found dates back to 2017 and that report suggests it is a ghost town.” “Well, the last time I was there they were building stuff,” said another colleague. Interesting. If Putsonderwater was indeed in the midst of a renaissance, we wanted to get there first and enjoy the results before…

TAKING turns with some likeminded mates riding rough out front on dual-purpose motorcycles and then later, switching places and taking it easy in the sweeper 4×4 vehicle at the back of the convoy, might be the best way to explore the back roads of South Africa. The idea was originally born of necessity. The elderly man I’d been guiding annually around the Karoo had suffered some health challenges not long before we were due to set off on a tour of the Tankwa Karoo and Northern Cape. Although he was fit to travel, he was still a bit fragile and I thought it best to ask my fiancée and travelling partner, Annette, if she wouldn’t mind following us in my recently purchased Pajero iO. Not only did she love the…

THE heated and cooled cupholders are great but tech like that was to be expected given the car we’re talking about. German manufacturers generally use their more expensive products to debut funky things that will eventually syphon down to the rest of the range. And who wouldn’t like to keep their coffee at a perfect temperature during the coming winter months? The good news is that the car surrounding said cupholder is even more impressive, in more ways than you’d expect. Before we get there though, two pertinent questions anyone in the market for a large luxury barge will definitely want the answers to… IS IT STILL A LUXURY SUV? Yes, very much so. It has all the elements of a luxury vehicle wrapped up in a big, bold SUV…

An African odyssey We needed a 4×4 to travel to Mozambique, to check some sand tracks we were planning to use on our annual Leisure Wheels safari and we didn’t want to spend a small fortune. Just the job for our long-term Renault Duster 1.5dCi 4WD, then. RENAULT DUSTER Mileage at start: 563km Mileage: 6 211km Average consumption: 6.1 litres/100km Tank size: 50 litres Distance per tank: 790km THE GOOD: ■ Surprisingly spacious, frugal and comfortable. THE BAD: ■ Engine can run out of steam at higher speeds, clutch is still heavy. COVERING around 1 500km in three days in Renault’s Duster 4WD certainly highlighted some of the little French SUV’s great qualities… and revealed it’s not perfect in every way. The Duster’s 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel engine is really well-mannered…

THERE you are, in the gramadoelas, 4×4-ing with your buddies. It’s a real tough old track though, just the way you and your mates prefer. Inevitably, someone gets bogged down. Badly. This will be no hook up and tow out job. No siree. There will be some lifting, digging, pushing and pulling involved. And this is where ARB’s trick new jack system gets in on the action. Previously, in a dire situation such as this, you may have needed to bring forth the high-lift jack. It certainly can do the job. But anyone who has ever worked a mechanical high-lift jack knows of its follies: it’s heavy and bulky and can be pretty dangerous if you get it wrong. With its loaded spring action, the lifting handle can become a…

ALL the big automotive manufacturing countries have a current production 4×4 that can trace its roots all the way back to the battlefield: America, Britain, Germany and Japan. One manufacturer you’d never associate with military wheels though, is Volvo. Instead, the Scandinavian country is famous for flat-pack furniture, having unpronounceable town names and station wagons. More importantly, the Swedes haven’t been involved in a war since 1814, famously deciding to remain neutral during the first and second world wars. What need could they possibly have for a military vehicle? Interestingly, even though Sweden chose to remain neutral, it has always been a force to be reckoned with. Even today, they are one of the leading manufacturers of military equipment and aircraft. At the time of World War II, a large…