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Daimler’s first hydrogen fuel-cell truck to start customer trials in 2023

By: Irma Venter 17th September 2020 Daimler Trucks has unveiled its first hydrogen-based fuel cell truck. The GenH2 Truck is aimed at the long-haul transport market and marks the beginning of commercial fuel-cell drive development for the German truck maker. →

Electric car racing series announces cyber protection deal

By: Irma Venter 14th September 2020 Airspeeder, which aims to be the world’s first electric flying car racing series, has announced a technical and strategic partnership with cyber protection specialist Acronis. The deal will see the racing series, created by Australian performance electric flying car manufacturer, Alauda, receive... →

Ford improves efficiency at Silverton plant with new wheel and tyre facility

By: Irma Venter 11th September 2020 Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa (FMCSA) has upgraded the wheel and tyre facility at its Silverton assembly plant, in Pretoria. The plant produces the Ranger pickup and Everest sports-utility vehicle for the domestic market, as well as more than 100 export markets. →

The new wheel and tyre facility at Ford's Silverton plant

The time for SA to shift to EV production is now – report

By: Irma Venter 11th September 2020 South African policymakers and automotive manufacturing sector stakeholders need to develop a coherent strategy for the shift to the production of electrical vehicles (EVs), or fall behind global developments and lose their edge in the export market. This emerged as a key message from a report on... →

Battery metals to boom despite widespread Covid-19 disruption

By: Donna Slater 11th September 2020 Battery metals, which are used in modern energy efficient electrical products, are playing an increasingly important role in climate change mitigation and the shift towards a lower carbon-intensive future. Battery metals, including lithium, vanadium, copper, cobalt, nickel, lead and graphite are... →

Nissan reports breakthrough in carbon-fibre parts production

By: Irma Venter 10th September 2020 Japanese car maker Nissan has reported what it terms a breakthrough in carbon-fibre parts production. This development should see carbon-fibre, typically used in airplanes, rockets and sportscars, find its way into more mass-market cars, says Nissan. →

Ford and partners roll out self-parking project

By: Irma Venter 7th September 2020 Autonomous driving may not sound like a lot of fun, but autonomous parking may just be a different kettle of fish. Ford Motor Company, real estate developer Bedrock and Bosch are launching a demonstration project with connected Ford test vehicles that can drive and park themselves inside... →

Dube-Ncube congratulates CHEM Energy for opening S Africa’s first fuel cell factory

By: Sane Dhlamini 7th September 2020 KwaZulu-Natal Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs MEC Nomusa Dube-Ncube has congratulated CHEM ENERGY, a subsidiary of Taiwanese conglomerate CHEM Corporation, which has opened its $200-million fuel cell production factory in KwaZulu-Natal at the Dube TradePort Special... →

Photo by Supplied
CHEM Energy President Angelin Maharaj with KZN MEC for Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs Nomusa Dube-Ncube at the opening of the first fuel cell opened at the Dube TradePort

Covid-19 containment measures, manufacturing shutdown cost Metair R250m

By: Irma Venter 4th September 2020 The Covid-19 pandemic has cost Metair about R250-million, taking into account the measures taken to keep employees safe, as well as the total shutdown of manufacturing, says CFO Sjoerd Douwenga. This number, however, does not include the profit lost, he adds. →

Supporting policy must embrace EVs, says uYilo

By: Irma Venter 28th August 2020 The supporting policy driving vehicle manufacturing in South Africa needs to “evolve and embrace electric vehicles (EVs)” in order for the country to fully adopt the technology, says uYilo eMobility Programme director Hiten Parmar. “It should be clearly defined, incentivising multinational... →

Hiten Parmar

Covid-19 puts EV sales, carbon emission targets at risk

By: Irma Venter 28th August 2020 Data analytics and consulting company GlobalData says lower oil prices as a result of the Covid-19 crisis could reduce electric vehicle (EV) demand and impair European Union (EU) efforts to significantly reduce average new-vehicle carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the European car market.... →

New-vehicle pricing increasing sharply, TransUnion index shows

By: Irma Venter 28th August 2020 The South African car market experienced record lows in the second quarter of the year, as the combination of minimal trading owing to the Covid-19 lockdown and the depressed economy saw a 71% decline in the number of new and used cars financed over the same period in 2019. This is according to... →

Electric Mini to make its debut in South Africa in Q4

By: Irma Venter 26th August 2020 BMW Group South Africa (BMW SA) will launch South Africa’s fourth electric vehicle (EV) in the fourth quarter of this year, when the Mini SE will make its local debut. The Mini SE follows the new style of EVs, where a known model is turned into an electric car, and the vehicle is not manufactured... →

Nissan enables customers to check affordability before applying for finance

By: Irma Venter 25th August 2020 Nissan South Africa has launched what it calls “intuitive digital application technology” to assist customers when applying for vehicle finance online. The Nissan pre-finance tool is powered by WesBank and allows customers to check affordability by completing a pre-approval form before applying... →

It’s full steam ahead for Toyota investments, despite Covid-19, says Kirby

By: Irma Venter 21st August 2020 Toyota Motors South Africa (TSAM) is going ahead with its three big investment projects, despite the Covid-19 pandemic, says TSAM president and CEO Andrew Kirby. “Largely we have been able to protect and secure all of our big projects that were originally planned in 2019, despite the fact that... →

Andrew Kirby

The time for S Africa to shift to EV production is now, says TIPS report

By: Irma Venter 20th August 2020 South African policy-makers and automobile manufacturing sector stakeholders need to develop a coherent strategy for the shift to the production of electrical vehicles (EVs), or fall behind global developments and lose their edge in the export market. This emerged as a key message from a report... →

Sappi, Fiat in project to help reduce the carbon footprint of cars

By: Irma Venter 14th August 2020 Sappi’s Symbio biocomposite cellulose fibre, derived from responsibly managed renewable forests, has been chosen as the feedstock for the development of lightweight biocomposite materials for the Life Biobcompo project. This project aims to reduce vehicle carbon dioxide emissions by 8% through... →

Fiat Chrysler SA appoints new CEO

By: Irma Venter 14th August 2020 As part of a restructuring in some African markets, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) has announced the appointment of Ismaeel Hassen as the new CEO for FCA South Africa (SA). Outgoing CEO Pierre Martin Bos will now head up the company’s operations in Morocco. →

EVs of all kinds to overtake ICEs by 2030, says KPMG survey

By: Irma Venter 13th August 2020 For the first time in the history of the KPMG Global Automotive Executive Survey, executives think that by 2030 the largest share of vehicles will not be powered by an internal combustion engine (ICE). Executives also feel that fuel-cell electric vehicles (FECVs), battery-electric vehicles... →

Naacam, Proudly SA launch portal for face shield producers

By: Irma Venter 12th August 2020 The National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers (Naacam) has joined forces with Proudly South Africa (SA) to launch a Web portal to list the manufacturers of locally produced face shields and visors. A similar portal was launched for face mask producers in May. →

New-vehicle export revenue declined by R21bn in H1 2020

By: Irma Venter 11th August 2020 Vehicle exports from South Africa declined by 73 419 vehicles, or 40.3%, in the first half of the year compared with 2019, says National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa) trade, exports and research executive manager Dr Norman Lamprecht. This decline saw vehicle... →

Norman Lamprecht

Create, own your own driving data through AA Connected Car

By: Irma Venter 7th August 2020 Ordinary motorists may now have access to the digital details of their driving behaviour and vehicle performance, through the launch of the Automobile Association (AA’s) Connected Car. “This is a truly fantastic product which will not only give individual drivers, but also fleet managers, access... →

Gert Pretorius (left) and Willem Groenewald

2020 Sasol Solar Challenge postponed to early 2021

By: Irma Venter 7th August 2020 The 2020 Sasol Solar Challenge (SSC) has been postponed to early 2021. The solar car racing event is provisionally scheduled to take place from February 19 to February 26, 2021, instead of September this year, as initially planned, say the organisers. →

Fiat, Peugeot merge to form Stellantis, but no changes yet in South Africa

By: Irma Venter 7th August 2020 Peugeot (Groupe PSA) and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) have announced the corporate name of the new group as they move towards the completion of a 50:50 merger as defined in the combination agreement announced on December 18 last year. The corporate name of the new automaker will be Stellantis. →

Hyundai installs rooftop solar system at its parts centre

By: Irma Venter 7th August 2020 Hyundai Automotive South Africa (HASA) has cut the ribbon on a more than R3-million solar energy system at its parts distribution centre (PDC) in Ekurhuleni. →

Schäfer leaves VWSA to become ŠKODA Auto CEO

By: Irma Venter 3rd August 2020 Volkswagen Group South Africa (VWSA) chairperson and MD Thomas Schäfer is departing the local arm of the German car maker to join ŠKODA Auto as its new global CEO, effective August 3. The Czech brand has been part of the Volkswagen group since 1991. →

Thomas Schäfer

RAV vaccination of pregnant women could prevent pneumonia in babies – Wits prof leads study

By: Sane Dhlamini 31st July 2020 University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) Professor Shabir Madhi has uncovered that immunising pregnant women with Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) vaccine could prevent pneumonia in babies. Madhi is leading Africa’s first coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccine trial. →

Ariya electric car, five new SUVs destined for local market – Nissan SA

By: Irma Venter 31st July 2020 Nissan South Africa (Nissan SA) will launch seven new models in South Africa in the next two years in an effort to streamline its product portfolio in line with international developments at the Japanese manufacturer, says Nissan SA CEO Shinkichi Izumi. These launches will have a strong focus on... →

BMW to set up pilot plant as it aims for large scale battery-cell production

By: Irma Venter 30th July 2020 The BMW Group will set up a pilot plant to produce lithium-ion battery cells. This comes as the German car maker seeks to penetrate all aspects of the battery-cell value chain: from selection of materials, to battery cell composition and design, all the way to near-standard production and... →

Protoype battery production

'Relief' as Toyota confirms R2.5bn hybrid production in Durban

By: African News Agency 29th July 2020 KwaZulu-Natal's MEC for economic development, Nomusa Dube-Ncube, on Wednesday expressed "relief" after Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) confirmed a R2.5 billion investment in the province's automotive economy. The company will be building a hybrid synergy drive (petro-electric) car at its plant... →

Photo by Supplied by KZN EDTEA
KZN MEC for Economic Development, Tourism, and Environmental Affairs during a meeting with Toyota South Africa

National Automobile Dealers’ Association appoints Marcia Mayaba as VP

By: Irma Venter 28th July 2020 Barloworld Motor Retail franchise executive Marcia Mayaba has been elected as National Automobile Dealers’ Association (Nada) VP. “We are extremely excited to have Marcia on board,” says Nada chairperson Mark Dommisse. “We look forward to working closely with her on various matters impacting... →

Marcia Mayaba

Nissan’s Mike Whitfield elected as AAAM president

By: Irma Venter 28th July 2020 Nissan Africa South (NAS) chairperson Mike Whitfield has been elected president of the African Association of Automotive Manufacturers (AAAM). He replaces Volkswagen Group of South Africa chairperson and MD Thomas Schäfer. →

Mike Whitfield

Premium car market to decline by 35%, Land Rover to gain from new Defender

By: Irma Venter 24th July 2020 South Africa’s new premium car market was down 45% for the first six months of the year compared with 2019, says Jaguar Land Rover South Africa (JLR SA) MD Richard Gouverneur. “We are expecting a gradual recovery for the rest of the year. We expect that the premium market will be down 35% for the... →

The new 110 Defender

Covid-19 is pushing back start of Navara production, says Nissan SA

By: Irma Venter 24th July 2020 The start of assembly of the one-ton Navara pick-up at Nissan South Africa’s (Nissan SA’s) Rosslyn plant, in Pretoria, has been pushed back from November to early next year, says Nissan Group of Africa MD Shinkichi Izumi. “Covid-19 has caused a slight delay in the start of production.” →

High-mileage drive belt introduced locally

By: Tracy Hancock 24th July 2020 Automotive parts supplier Autobax extended its range of Gates automotive components in March this year by introducing drive belts specifically designed for high-mileage cars. This involved a soft launch of the RoadMAX belt to existing customers across South Africa, following which South Africa... →

TO THE MAX The RoadMAX belts for high-mileage vehicles feature improved dimensions, good belt flexibility and stability, as well as smooth-running operation

Lower human activity limiting tyre sales

By: Tracy Hancock 24th July 2020 Every business is going to face the consequences of lower human activity and, thereby, commercial activity, as South Africans consume less or differently, owing to Covid-19, says automotive tyre manufacturer and supplier Sumitomo Rubber South Africa (Sumitomo Dunlop) CEO Riaz Haffejee. Tyre sales... →

REBOUNDING DEMAND Demand for Sumitomo Dunlop’s tyres is increasing since the restrictions of lockdown have eased

Ariya electric car, five SUVs to come to SA, says Nissan SA

By: Irma Venter 21st July 2020 Nissan South Africa (Nissan SA) will launch seven new models in South Africa in the next two years, in an effort to streamline its product portfolio in line with international developments at the Japanese manufacturer, says CEO Shinkichi Izumi. These launches will have a strong focus on... →

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