WeeklySA_AdminRELIEF AT THE PUMPS
South African motorists can breathe a sigh of relief with a drop in petrol and diesel prices from Wednesday. The second price reduction in as many months will be welcomed by South Africans as they navigate a hostile economic climate.
Prices
The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has announced the price of 93 octane petrol will decrease by R1.05 and 95 octane petrol will drop by 99 cents per litre from Wednesday, 3 July. The price of diesel (0.05% sulphur) will be cut by 30 cents per litre, while diesel with 0.005% sulphur will drop by 24 cents per litre.
CAR SALES DOWN
Reflecting on the new vehicle sales statistics, naamsa said that the ongoing downward slope in the new market since August 2023 underscored the constrained economic environment in the country, amplified by weak consumer and business demand. Aggregate domestic new vehicle sales in June 2024, at 40,072 units, reflected a further substantial decrease of 6,531 units, or a loss of 14,0%, from the 46,603 vehicles sold in June 2023.
Overall, out of the total reported industry sales of 40,072 vehicles, an estimated 33,039 units, or 82,5%, represented dealer sales, an estimated 11,0% represented sales to the vehicle rental industry, 3,6% to the government, and 2,9% to industry corporate fleets.
The June 2024 new passenger car market, at 26,928 units, registered a decrease of 2,671 cars, or a loss of 9,0%, compared to the 29,599 new cars sold in June 2023. Car rental sales accounted for a sound 14,2% of new passenger vehicle sales during the month.
MORE SUVs FOR SA
South Africa’s fastest-growing automotive segment is set to welcome at least 20 new models before the calendar clicks over to 2025. Some popular choices include the Toyota Corolla Cross, Chery Tiggo 4 Pro, and the Nissan Magnite.
Established brands such as BMW, Toyota, and VW plan to release vehicles with this body style within the next six months to meet the increasing demand for crossovers and SUVs. The highly anticipated next-generation BMW X3 is expected to arrive in the final quarter of the year. It will feature a completely new look and updated powertrains. Additionally, newcomers, including GAC Motor, Jetour, and LDV, are also entering the market. At the same time, the most powerful Land Rover Defender ever, called the Octa, will make its debut.
Toyota is also launching a new entry-level crossover in South Africa soon. Although it didn’t explicitly state a specific timeframe before the end of 2024, it would be very surprising if it arrived later than that. The refreshed Volkswagen Golf R has made its global debut, with the Mk8.5 generation boasting an upgraded interior and, most notably, more power.
GOLF R REFRESHED
Volkswagen has officially whipped the wraps off the updated, eighth-generation Golf R, with the German marque handing its halo hot hatch upgraded interior features and an injection of power. Here’s what you can expect from the revised model. Employing the Wolfsburg-based brand’s familiar EA888 powertrain, the pre-facelifted Golf R produced 235 kW and 400 N.m of torque, the latter of which is available from 2 000 to 5 600 r/min.
However, for the updated iteration, VW has injected the 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbopetrol with an additional 10 kW and 20 N.m, lifting the Mk8.5 Golf R’s peak power and torque outputs to 245 kW and 420 N.m, which, like before, are transferred to VW’s 4Motion all-wheel-drive system, replete with R-Performance torque vectoring, via a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox.
According to VW, thanks to the increases in power and torque, its all-paw hot hatch now completes the obligatory 0-100 km/h sprint in 4.6 seconds.
That’s two-tenths of a second quicker than the pre-facelifted model. The maximum speed is electronically limited to 250 km/h. However, specifying the optional R-Performance package increases the top speed by 20 km/h to 270 km/h
