I will mainly cover CAR Magazine & Leisure Wheels (CAR's Off Road Spinoff), but will also include other articles where relevant.
This will be a monthly feature.
MAY 2018
CAR Magazine of May 2018
A red Xerox Class Merc on the cover.
Toyota will launch 5 new vehicles this year:
* A new Aygo
* The new RAV4 on the TNGA Platform with a new 2.0 petrol engine
* New Auris, also on the TGNA platform.
* Lexus UX
* New Lexus LS with a Twin Turbo 3.5 - 310kW & 600Nm.
An Electric Supercar from Rimac on pages 14 & 15 - 1408kW & 2300Nm, 0 - 100 in under 2 seconds.
An electric Porsche Panamera on page 16.
Page 17 shows the Mercedes-AMG GT - but now with 4 doors...
Then 2 pages on the next Auris.
The New Models list is interesting in that no new 4x4's are expected. The Wrangler is 2019 & they make no mention of the MU-X while, for the next Jimny they just say 'TBC'.
Discontinued models - All the remaining Tata's... meaning Tata will only sell one vehicle from now on, the Bolt...
Jag s launching an all electric SUV called the... XJ!
Page 34 on... they Drive the Bentley 4x4 SUV called Blurgghh!. R3 million, expect to see one at Moegatle soon!
Right! The Tests!
Mercedes Benz Xerox Class 250d.
They say it is a thinly disguised Navara with bad ergonomics. Gearlever in the wrong place.
They say that Merc did however, greatly improve the Navara's poor ride quality.
Merc also slapped on more sound-deading material than the Navara has.
The bottom line - at nearly R800k for the manual it's grossly overpriced & no match for the Amarok.
Their choice?
1. Ranger
2. Amarok
3. Xerox Class (but only if you're stupid).
The Top Ranger is nearly R180k cheaper!
Next test is the Yaris 1.5, they say rather buy the Kia Rio over the Yaris & rather buy the Polo over the Rio.
Then a test of the Qashqai 1.5dCi from Renault... er Nissan
They say buy the Qashqai over the Kadjar, but the Sportage 1.7 over the Qashqai...
Then they test a BAIC 1.5MT Fashion (I kid you not
).For similar money, rather go Ford Ecosport or Renault Captur.
They test a Subaru Outback 3.6, but say, while it's better than an Infiniti QX (what isn't
), you should rather opt for the VolvoV60 CC T5 AWD Geartronic - whatever that means?Final test is the Lexus RX350L - basically a 7 seater RX for Toyota fans who are too stupid to buy Prado.
The Bike Feature covers 3 Harley's, they publish two long term test results, the Audi Q2 1.4T, it averaged 8.53l/100km - not impressed.
The other long termer is the Vovo XC90, it averaged 10.86l/100km - also poor from a TDi.
Their Technical articles cover new CVT gearboxes & how F1 makes oil better.
There's an article on visibility, as in making your self seen & seeing better (Lights, reflective tap etc.)....
Their Used Car Study covers budget hatch backs for R90k - they pick the Suzuki Alto first, but also suggest a Spark or a Go!
The Classic Buy feature covers the Old Opel Superboss...
That's all 4x4 fans!...
