38 The OYLEY Price of Oil

40 Truck Shows – a Thorny Issue

58 AAMA Alert
73 Marching to Pretoria
86 The Tree Bears Fruit
90 Information on AARTO
 The Phoenix

Keeping 35 Million Wheels

on the Road
Estimates vary, but there is general consensus that South Africa’s car parc is close
to reaching nine million vehicles, and that these vehicles need to be serviced and
maintained at the highest level possible. There is also no definitive average age for
this car parc, as estimates once again vary. The lowest realistic estimate is around
nine years, whereas the highest credible estimate is touching twelve years. Based on
this, ten years would seem to be the happy medium. Considering that the sweet spot
for the automotive aftermarket industry is in the four to twelve year old bracket,
these figures make for some mouth watering statistics.

T
he point of this editorial is that for the sake easy targets make one look proactive and relevant. Take our traffic
of our economy our vehicles need to keep authorities, for example. But I digress, once again.
moving. Taking this a little further, every-
thing needs to keep moving, and there is Our vehicle parc is paramount to the efficient working of our
no better illustration of the damage inflict- economy, and it is my assertion that it is being well served by the
ed when things stop moving than the various players in the industry, from the front line of workshops,
absolute frustration experienced and the spares shops, specialists, service providers, and the like, right
concomitant drop in productivity when we through to the motor manufacturers, who start the cycle. And
bear the brunt of rolling blackouts, courtesy of Eskom. With feeding this front line are the importers and distributors of parts,
Eskom, we have no and there is space for all
option but to bite the who deliver. If you
bullet and put up with analyse these compa-
the pain, plus the added nies, you will see that
insult of ludicrous price they all talk the same
increases. A painful language, of implemen-
crash course in the ben- tation. They are fiercely
efits of competition, competitive, fiercely
and the dangers of independent, and fierce-
monopolies and state ly proud. They are the
intervention. But this is pockets of excellence
not an Eskom bashing Which is the better scenario, from the consumer’s point of view? that Clem Sunter refers
exercise, as they do the to in his optimistic sce-
job very well themselves. We are looking at the transport industry nario of South Africa’s prospects, and the most common thread in
and personal mobility, and the need to improve the status quo. their endeavours is cost reduction, which allows for margin reduc-
tion and affordability for those at the bottom of the feeding chain.
No sane person would ever suggest that the automotive aftermar- Affordability is a key issue for the South African motorist, and this
ket is uncompetitive. Our cover story plus our insert in this issue has also created dual markets; the premium high quality market,
of Automotive Business Review illustrates the point comprehen- and the cost conscious market, but also with the need for an
sively. When it comes to fighting for the heart and soul of the acceptable level of quality. This is the fine balance and the thin red
automotive customer, AutoZone and Midas are the two gorillas in line that the distributors have to walk as they strive to satisfy diver-
the room, but there are many other players, of various sizes, and gent interests. And they are under constant attack from the fly by
various flexibilities, who keep these gorillas on their toes. It is an night characters and less ethical operations, but the soon to be
extremely competitive environment, which is good news for the introduced Consumer Protection Bill will cramp the style of these
consumer, and good news for the economy. And it is an extreme- vultures.
ly dynamic segment, with fluidity and positioning being the name
of the game, ever since I started taking notice some 35 years ago. 2010 will see a new landscape, and a new dynamic, but the wheels
Both AutoZone and Midas are currently going through a change will keep on moving, thanks to the Herculean efforts of the auto-
of ownership, which has generated much speculation and more motive aftermarket industry.
than a passing interest from the competition authorities. An
unhealthy obsession, in my mind, considering the other more
pressing uncompetitive sectors in our economy, but I suppose that

w w w. a b r b u z z . c o . z a
2 November 2009
 Contents

8 32 34

2 The Phoenix Keeping 35 Million Wheels on the Road

6 What’s the Buzz

14 Cover Story AutoZone – not just a business

18 Auto Topical No Need to be Passive about Forex Risk

20 Frankly Speaking SA’s Motor Industry – Some Food for Serious Thought

22 Engine Remanufacturing Why Remtec?

24 AIDC AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY CONFERENCE 2009

36 The Chery Story New Chery J1 Packs a Big Punch

38 Tony’s Take The OYLEY Price of Oil

40 Weighty Issues Truck Shows – a Thorny Issue

42 Health Care An Update on Moto Health Care

44 MISA Update Statement to Contributors

46 Schaeffler Shorts The Timing is Right

52 Tyre Safety Tyres’ Contribution to Safety in Motoring

54 Diamond Dialogues Opening the Doors of Perception to Standards and

Controls

56 Personal Profile Q & A with Darryl Jacobson

58 AAMA Alert A Volatile Rand

60 Customer C.A.R.E. Customer Relationship Management

Trilogy Customer C.A.R.E. Programme

The publisher and contributors have done their best to ensure the accuracy of the articles and cannot accept responsibility for any
loss or inconvenience sustained by any reader as a result of information or advice in Automotive Business Review. The information
provided and opinions expressed in this publication are provided in good faith and do not necessaraly represent the opinion of the
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tion of brief passages in reviews.

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4
 Contents

58 78 87

66 AIDC Quiz
67 Show Time Schramm confirmed as keynote speaker for Tyrexpo
Africa 2010

68 Robert Bosch ESP® Basics

The Golden Triangle

70 Capricorn Insights An Effective Marketing and Sales Tool

73 e-CAR Marching to Pretoria

74 Midas Moment Midas NAPA Convention ends on Emotional Note

76 Launch Technologies Launching Customers for Life

78 Partinform Algoa Bay Welcomes Partinform

82 Commercial Vehicle Update South Africa’s Toughest Warrior

83 Green News Going slowly, but going somewhere

84 Life Goes On Power GM Trio Briefs the Media

85 Corporate Conscience Midas Scores Way Above Par

The Tree Bears Fruit

SABAT Hosts 7th Annual Power Wheelchair Race

88 Show Time First HeavyWeight Expo

90 Intelli-Driving Information on AARTO Implementation

92 From the Cockpit Highveld Storm Washes the Blues Away

94 Fast Wheels Another Close Finish to the Formula One

95 The Last Writes

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November 2009 5
5
 What’s the Buzz?

Not a Rolling Stone

TYRE FITMENT Racing driver Stirling Moss celebrated
his 80th birthday on 17 September
CENTRES 2009. He drove for Mercedes-Benz in
one season, 1955 – an unforgettable
Bridgestone South Africa has reminded year for the brand owing to the many,
motorists to only use reputable fitment centres and many triumphs. Though an accident
be aware of safety-critical aspects when having new put an end to Moss’ career in 1962
tyres fitted. Romano Daniels, General Manager of and he never succeeded in capturing a
Group Communications and Marketing, said that world champion's title, he is regarded
tyres are safety-critical items which should only be as a phenomenal driver. And to this
mounted by properly-trained personnel. “Avoid the day he sees himself as an ambassador
temptation to use backyard mechanics or non-spe- of motorsport. Together with co-
cialists to fit your tyres,” said Daniels. “They may driver Denis Jenkinson he finished the
not have the equipment or expertise to ensure your Mille Miglia in a time which still
safety, and this could result in tyre failure.” He stands as a record today: after
advised motorists to consult with fitment centre 10 hours, 7 minutes and 48 seconds
staff if there was any doubt over the way the tyres the silver-coloured car with "722" –
were to be fitted. In particular he said motorists the customary starting time of the
should insist on the following: Renewing the tyre Mille Miglia – painted in red on it was
valve at each tyre change; Correction of tyre pres- waved across the finish line as winner.
sure to manufacturer’s stated figure after mounting;
Confirmation of correct wheel alignment to reduce
unnecessary tyre wear; Correct fastening sequence
when tightening wheel nuts or bolts; Correct
torque value of wheel nuts and bolts.
quickpic

Fiat is Europe’s most ecological

brand
One of the 25 best-selling automobile brands in Europe and after two years of hold-
ing the leadership position, Fiat Automobiles has proven to be the brand having the
lowest average CO2 emissions on cars sold during the first half of 2009: 129.1 g/km
(the figure was 133.7 g/km just six months ago). Fiat has also set a new record: it is
the only full-liner brand that already today has achieved the European average goal
of 130 g/km established for 2015. The record of 129.1 g/km set by Fiat was corrob-
orated by JATO, a world leader in automotive advisory and research services, found-
ed in 1984 and now operating in over 40 countries. Of the top ten brands, the bot-
tom line shows FIAT ahead of Toyota (132.9 g/km), Peugeot (134.5 g/km), Citroen
(138.1 g/km), Renault (138.9 g/km), Ford (140.4 g/km), Opel (149.5 g/km), quickpic
Volkswagen (152.5 g/km), Audi (162.6 g/km) and Mercedes (178.8 g/km).

SKF’S FORZA RACING SPONSORSHIP - A SHARING OF

VALUES & KNOWLEDGE
SKF South Africa’s sponsorship of Forza Racing is a perfect part-
nership between two companies that are dedicated to offering supe-
rior quality products, exemplary service, and a shared passion for
motor sport. The SKF group has been involved in the Formula
One Ferrari racing team for the past 62 years while the Forza slo-
gan, ‘Ferrari…It is in our blood’ sums up the Forza Racing vision.
SKF has, for over a century, maintained a powerful global position
as a leading specialist in rotating equipment and related technolo-
gy. Forza Racing, Forza meaning strength, is South Africa’s premier
independent Ferrari specialist and the ‘Go To’ company for all
Ferrari owners and enthusiasts. Managing Director, Oscar de
Oliveira, who founded Forza Racing in February 2008, has had a
love of cars from a very early age and he always managed to stay
close to the racing scene. Forza Racing and SKF share a number of
ideals, “And” says de Oliveira, ”because we have so much in com-
mon, the sponsorship deal is a winner for both companies. It is so
important to choose the right partner in this game. There has to be
synergies, common ground, a passion for this often cruel and very
expensive sport; the SKF team brings all this to the table. This part-
nership goes beyond the sponsorship of specialised bearings and
related products. It is a sharing of values, knowledge, advice and
technical expertise”. We also support annual fundraisers and auc-
tions held by the Foundation. We have a very special dream to ful-
fil in November, for one of the children from the Foundation”.

6 November 2009
 What’s the Buzz?

Hi-Q Celebrates 10 Successful Years

One of South Africa’s leading consumer tyre retail brands Hi-Q celebrated in September 10
years of exceptional growth within the retail tyre and wheel industry. From just three stores
in 1999, the franchise network – one of the country’s youngest major franchise brands –
has grown to 178 nationwide. Managing Director Sean Harrison, who joined Hi-Q two
years ago, said: “From a franchising point of view, the growth of the Hi-Q network has been
phenomenal. In just a decade, the brand has become a household name in South Africa.”
Over the past few years – and in spite of the turbulent economic climate – Hi-Q has been
the fastest-growing brand in the retail motor industry sector. “We are very proud of Hi-Q
and the enterprising individuals that make up our brand,” said Harrison. “At the time of its
inception, tyre manufacturers were looking for a channel of distribution that was increas-
ingly reliable and dependable. Global retail trends indicated that fitment centres owned by
independent franchisees as opposed to corporate organisations were the best option, as they
quickpic
were more likely to go above and beyond the call of duty in serving their customer base.”

Renault South Africa aims for 110%

Renault South Africa has launched a powerful national
campaign, with the objective of upping service delivery
at dealerships nationwide to exceptional levels. The
campaign’s implementation coincides with significant
improvements in Renault’s market share, and further
gains in sales volumes. The ‘110% Campaign’, which
went public in October, will see all staff members at
Renault SA’s head office, and especially Renault’s dealer
network, go out of their way to make the sales, after-
sales and service experience at Renault an exceptional
one. “While customers expect 100% in terms of serv-
ice delivery, and rightly so, we want to go one step bet-
ter,” says Tim Marriott, Vice President – quality and
Service, at Renault South Africa. “The 110%
Campaign is aimed at ensuring that our dealerships quickpic
deliver even more than expected.”

Lexus Leads the Way

When it comes to quality and care for the environment, Lexus is a leader in providing
the only range of PERFORMANCEHYBRID vehicles in South Africa. It’s also a well
known fact that Lexus has dominated quality and customer satisfaction awards for near-
ly 15 years. The freshly launched RX shows a clear intention to continue that domina-
tion, in particular with the RX450h, the world’s only petrol-electric hybrid SUV. The
new Lexus RX has raised the bar even further when it comes to quality and cleanliness,
and extensive care has been taken to ensure both these attributes reflect the premium
brand’s relentless pursuit of perfection. In PERFORMANCEHYBRID guise, the new
Lexus SUV really does its bit for the environment, returning class-leading CO2 emis-
sions of just 148g/km, similar to typical 1600 family sedans. But Lexus’ consideration
for the environment extends beyond the operation of its hybrid SUV to the impact its
manufacturing process has, as well as its ultimate disposal at the end of its usable life.
Indeed, clean manufacturing not only leads to limited environmental impact, but its
attention to detail shows through in quality terms as well. Lexus’ Kokura plant in Japan
is the only dedicated hybrid factory in the world. Its operational philosophy ensures
cleanliness and quality throughout thanks to the use of many advanced production
technologies that guarantee not only superlative product quality, but consistent levels of
accuracy in every single component.
quickpic

Nissan Unveils Sketch of its Future Global Compact Car

Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. has revealed the sketch of its global compact car. Planned to be
manufactured in 5 countries, including Thailand, China and India, the model will be
first launched in Thailand in March 2010 and will be available in more than 150 coun-
tries, including South Africa. “We aim to make an impact on the B-segment, the biggest
market for passenger vehicles in South Africa” – says Mike Whitfield, Nissan South
Africa, MD. This major segment caters for first time car buyers or as a secondary mode
of household transport. “We are confident that the new Nissan will offer a stylish, yet
value for money package,” concludes Whitfield. Timing for local introduction will be
announced in due course.

8 November 2009
 What’s the Buzz?

SA Women vote Suzuki Jimny Tops

The pocket-sized Suzuki Jimny 4x4 has kicked dust
in the headlights of many of South Africa’s fancied
all-terrainers by taking the category laurels in an
annual Car of the Year contest voted for exclusively by
women. The 2009 Women’s Car of the Year Awards
are organised annually by the Women on Wheels
motoring supplement. The supplement is edited by
seasoned motoring journalist Charleen Clarke, and
published in Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Oprah and
House and Leisure magazines. The Jimny, which
quickly established an enviable reputation as a big-
hearted, agile and affordable all-terrainer, after being
launched in SA in September last year, was one of 10
finalists in the 4xFabs category of the contest. This
year’s panel of judges consisted of Clarke, together
with fellow motoring scribes Helene Griffiths and
Peta Lee, as well as current affairs anchor Fenley
Foxen . In addition, readers of the supplement were
invited to vote for their favourite choice in each of
eight categories.

YOUR NEWLY SOUTH AFRICA’S FIRST LIVE

LICENSED
TEENAGER NEEDS
EXPERT TRAINING
In the latest available global statistics, South
Africa ranked the highest in the road fatality rate
per 10 000 vehicles. A sobering enough
thought, but in October CARS (Committee For
More Road Safety) revealed that a new study
suggests that our road death toll has been under-
estimated by more than half. While the
Department of Transport gives a figure of 10
000 each year, CARS says in reality it is nearer
18 000. So, if your first experience of handing
over the keys to your newly licensed teenager
was more one of panic than mere trepidation,
know this – you have every right to be con-
cerned. Grant McCleery, a multiple SA motor
sport champion, who heads up Yokohama
Driving Dynamics, has been teaching specialised
driving skills for nearly two decades and in his
opinion, every man, woman and especially
teenager, needs more than just basic driver train-
ing to ensure their safety on our roads.
He says “The K53 driver training system is a
great way to learn the basics but you need more
sophisticated skills to deal with the unexpected,
like avoiding collisions, regaining control of
your vehicle, recovering from aquaplaning, or
even just braking properly in an emergency.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking of these
skills as the exclusive domain of racing drivers.
You child needs to know this stuff if he or she is
going to get around safely on our roads.”
Yokohama Driving Dynamics has forged an
alliance with General Motors South Africa as its
preferred vehicle supplier, to ensure that clients
get the very best instruction in quality driving
and safety. The fleet of cars includes Corsa OPC,
Chevrolet Lumina, Aveo’s and Optra’s and the
newly launched Cruze. Yokohama Driving
Dynamics is based at Gerotek and also offers its
courses at a variety of venues, countrywide. For
more information, contact the company on
011-431-2000 / info@drivingdynamics.co.za or
visit the website on http://www.drivingdynam-
ics.co.za/
24/7 DEDICATED ONLINE CAR
AUCTION SITE LAUNCHED
Online Car Bid - www.onlinecarbid.co.za -
South Africa’s first live 24/7 dedicated online car
auction website, launched early in October.
Through Online Car Bid, consumers and deal-
ers will be able to buy or sell vehicles via an
online auction process, which the company’s
local founders believe will revolutionise the local
car sales industry. Online Car Bid has already
secured partnerships with several of the coun-
try’s largest dealerships and consumers will be
able to bid on an extensive range of used vehicles
across all price ranges. Reserve prices, which
reflect the minimum price that sellers will be
willing to accept, start at as little as R1. At the
other end of the spectrum, multi-million rand
vehicles will also be available to bid on. Online
Car Bid is the world’s first online car auction
website to offer a full auction house service,
backed by a qualified and dedicated national
sales team of Auction Ambassadors, who are
trained to provide a transparent, safe and profes-
sional service to all clients. “Our Auction
Ambassadors act as a ’middle man’, providing all
buyers and sellers with a sales representative with
whom they can liaise and who will assist with
arranging safe meetings and test drives to ensure
the security of both parties,” says General
Manager of Online Car Bid, Simon Nainkin.
BEWARE OF MULTI-MILLION
RAND SCAMS IN USED CAR
INDUSTRY
Criminals are coming up with increasingly devi-
ous ways of parting used car buyers with their
money. Sadly, more and more South Africans are
falling prey to these fraudsters, losing millions of
Rands in the process. This sobering news is
courtesy of Darryl Jacobson, Managing Director
of Burchmore’s, who warns that buyers need to
be extremely cautious when acquiring a used car.
“While most used car buying experiences are
good ones, we are hearing of new scams daily,”
he reveals. “Generally they have one feature in
common: the buyer is being offered an unbeliev-
ably good deal.” Jacobson says that these “unbe-
lievably good deals” need to be scrutinised over
and over again. “If you’re about to buy a used car
at a ridiculously low price, ask yourself why this
is happening to you. Why would you alone be
privy to such an exceptionally good deal? Why
are you so lucky? Chances are excellent that
you’re about to be scammed,” he warns. The
fraudsters are becoming increasingly creative,
and Jacobson reveals that they may pose as an
agent or staff member at a used car retailer or
bank. “They are extremely convincing and
appear authentic, and it’s relatively easy for them
to dupe trusting members of the public. Their
schemes are both innovative and sophisticated,”
he notes.
MIDAS / IMPERIAL DEAL
GAINS COMPETITION BOARD
APPROVAL
The penultimate hurdle in the 56% acquisition
of the Midas Group by Imperial Holdings
Limited has been successfully negotiated; it was
announced on 8th October 2009 by Gordon
Odgers, CEO of the Midas Group. This
announcement follows the recent unconditional
approval of the transaction by the Competition
Board, which clears the way for the procedural
formalities of due diligence and obligatory legal
processes, as required to finalise the deal. This
announcement also puts to bed months of spec-
ulation around the merits and prospects of the
transaction. Imperial Holdings Limited had pre-
viously approached the Midas Group with a
view to acquiring a majority stake, as they saw
opportunities and synergies for both Midas and
Imperial. Imperial places great store in the finan-
cial performance and the strong position of
Midas in the automotive aftermarket, and also
respects the business model, culture and man-
agement team of Midas, and it is on this basis
that Imperial has committed to keeping these
structures in place, and in retaining the unique
shareholding of the balance of shares, i.e. man-
agement, member franchisees and empower-
ment partners. Gordon Odgers emphasises that
Midas is a sound Group illustrating long-term
growth and cash generation off a solid platform
of well established franchises with a national
footprint. He continues, “The transaction will
provide a big brother for the Midas Group, will
fit the Imperial strategy perfectly, unlock certain
management and member franchisee sharehold-
er matters and enable other opportunities to be
embraced and as such has received unanimous
shareholder and board support.”

10 November 2009
 What’s
World's first emission-
free foundry
As from 2010, BMW’s Landshut plant will
boast the world’s first foundry with emission-
free sand core production. The light-alloy
foundry at the BMW plant is introducing a
new sand core production method for gravity
die-casting, whereby conventional organic
binders will be replaced by highly eco-friendly
inorganic binders, which generate virtually no
pollutant emissions. The introduction of this
innovative production method will allow the
light-alloy foundry to reduce its emissions of
combustion residues by 98 per cent. The plant
will completely decommission its current waste
air treatment systems by 2010.
AA South Africa pledges support
for Jean Todt FIA Presidential bid
The Automobile Association of South Africa
announced before the voting that it would sup-
port Jean Todt in his bid for the FIA presiden-
cy. “FIA affiliated auto clubs worldwide, repre-
senting 100 million members and the well
respected auto club brands, face unique chal-
lenges in areas as diverse as the environment;
road safety; road usage and infrastructure and
12
the Buzz?
tourism. The FIA is going to require an excep-
tional leader with vision to respond to the
needs of the mobility industry.” said Karen
Bryden, Managing Director. The election
results will be available before this magazine
hits the desks, so go to www.abrbuzz.co.za to
get the results.
Volvo Cars on the quickpic
move towards a
future without
traffic accidents
In the quest for the ultimate
vision of an accident free
traffic environment, Volvo
Car Corporation's bold
short-term target is that no
one will be killed or injured
in a new Volvo car by 2020.
"Zero is the one and only
alternative for us. As the
leader in car safety we can't
accept that people are killed or injured just because they want to transport themselves from A to
B," says Jan Ivarsson, head of Safety Strategy at Volvo Cars. If we see an aircraft crash it's a disas-
ter that we remember forever. But when passing a traffic accident where someone may have been
injured or killed, people are often more concerned with the delay in traffic. It is this attitude, that
traffic accidents are an inevitable part of our daily lives, that Volvo wants to challenge with its
Vision 2020.
November 2009
 What’s the Buzz?
OGILVY CAPE TOWN’S VOLK-
SWAGEN COMMERCIAL VEHI-
CLES CADDY CAMPAIGN PAYS
TRIBUTE TO SMALL BUSINESSES
To thank all their loyal
customers for making the
Caddy Panel Van No.1 in
its class, Volkswagen
Commercial Vehicles and
Ogilvy Cape Town have
initiated the Caddy Panel
Van Branding Challenge.
The campaign is geared at acknowledging that the suc-
cess of the Caddy Panel Van Range is largely due to the
entrepreneurs and owners of small and medium busi-
nesses who have chosen a Caddy Panel Van as their
business partner. Tapping into the entrepreneurial spir-
it, creativity and passion that the Caddy owners have
for their business, Volkswagen’s agency of over 30
years, Ogilvy Cape Town, in collaboration with their
Ogilvy Interactive team, created the Caddy Panel Van
Branding Challenge. The campaign engages the cre- Timken South Africa wishes to congratulate Hennie
ative side of these entrepreneurs through the use of an
interactive microsite (www.vwcommercial.co.za/desi- Groenewald for winning his fourth successive WesBank
gnacaddy). The site gives them the opportunity to win
personalised vehicle branding for their Caddy Panel V8 Supercar Championship in stunning style at
Van to the value of R30 000, thereby making their
hardworking Caddy Panel Van work even harder for Kyalami on the 17th October 2009
their business.

November 2009 13
 Cover Story

not just a business

AutoZone, Africa’s largest engine and service parts and accessories
retailer and distributor, offers more than simply a wide range of aftermar-
ket parts to service the market, AutoZone also offers a service to the
market that is unrivaled in the market place. This October, AutoZone had
a number of reasons to celebrate, most important of which was the fact
that it was AutoZone’s Birthday!

T
his dynamic business began with 30 multi-branded
stores over 10 years ago. The brands under the
umbrella ranged from Eddies, Elpar, and AutoZone
to Femo and Spareslink. This posed some challenges
in the AutoZone stable, as the business had no criti-
cal mass in terms of power with which to market this wide range
of brands. The re-branding and expansion journey for AutoZone
began in 2002 as we embarked on a journey to collapse all the
brands into one powerful brand, namely AutoZone. Now in 2009
as we sit and look back a couple of years, we saw the successful
launch of the AutoZone Member model in September 2005, the
expansion to a footprint of 90 wholly owned stores and an incred-
ible team of over 2000 people who form part of the AutoZone
Family. We also saw the evolution of a business and service in this
market that are truly unique and a business with a personality we
are proud of and are committed to growing.
Core to AutoZone is our Customer – no matter how big or small
they are, whether they are a long standing customer or the cus-
tomer who walks through our doors for the first time simply to
shop – and as such our offering to the Customer is crucial to our
success going into the future. AutoZone, Africa’s largest engine and
service parts and accessories retailer and distributor offers a com-
prehensive range of engine parts, service parts and accessories for
passenger as well as light and heavy duty vehicles in the South
African market. This range comprises of products from another
important stakeholder in AutoZone’s success, our local suppliers,
and is bolstered by the AutoZone House Brand programme. Our
commitment to our local suppliers remains unwavering and it is
through commitment and strategic relationships with these suppli-
ers that we will be able to continue focusing on offering the best
available product to our customers.
Having established and bedded down our core offering, AutoZone
strongly believed that there was still more they could do for their
customers in the market. As such the AutoZone House Brand
programme was launched. Every single one of our 5 brands was
born from the mindset that we needed to offer our customers a
genuine alternative product that is cost efficient. These brands,
namely Ampro, AutoKraft, Ecotech, Femo and Spirex, comple-
ment the local brands in the offering and make it unnecessary for
customers to look anywhere else to satisfy their product needs.

14 November 2009
 Cover Story

The AutoZone House Brands include:

AmPro - AmPro tools are a comprehensive range of top quality tools,
designed to last a lifetime. In fact, we have so much faith in AmPro Tools,
that we back them with a Lifetime Warranty! This incredible range of
tools is individually selected to ensure that AutoZone has every tool
required for both the professional and the D.I.Y handyman. The core cat-
egories for this range of tools includes socket sets and accessories, wrench-
es, screwdrivers, electric screwdrivers, pliers, specialty tools, and tool
chests. Why don’t you visit your AutoZone store today and stock up on
this top class range of tools?

AutoKraft - AutoZone has developed an exclusive range of accessories,

all under the AutoKraft range. These range from core categories such as
camping and outdoor equipment, to workshop equipment. This world-
class range even includes custom car accessories such as car seat covers and
wheel covers, all backed by our Hassle-Free returns policy.

Ecotech - The Ecotech range from AutoZone covers all automotive elec-
trical products, and caters for all types of vehicles from passenger vehicles
to light and heavy duty commercial vehicles. This range of exclusive prod-
ucts is the largest and fastest growing range of top quality electrical prod-
ucts available. The Ecotech range includes products such as starters, alter-
nators with their respective components, trailer plugs and sockets, electri-
cal terminals, and on/off road lighting. AutoZone ensures that all Ecotech
products are quality tested and vetted, ensuring that you get the most up
to date technology, without paying inflated prices. AutoZone backs this up
with their 12 month “hassle-free” warranty, offering you peace of mind.

Femo - Femo is a top quality range of internal and external engine com-
ponents, designed for a wide range of vehicle makes and models. This
broad range includes piston rings, valves, bearings, sleeves, water pumps,
fuel pumps and much more. The entire Femo range is also covered by
AutoZone’s 12 month No-Hassle Returns Policy.

Spirex – Spirex is AutoZone’s range of top quality automotive hard parts

and chemicals. This range of reliable, top quality products is affordable
and inclues a wide range of products from brake pads, brake drums, fil-
ters, wheel bearings, fan belts, batteries and C.V. joints to oils and other
chemical additives.

November 2009 15
 With the right products in the right places to satisfy our customers,
AutoZone set about getting to know all of our customers and defining what
else AutoZone could offer all of our customer types. These key ingredients
would differentiate AutoZone from other players in the field. From this
search for new offerings came the birth of a number of industry firsts:
• Technical Team – more affectionately known as “The Pit • V.I.P. Cash Customer Programme – AutoZone believes in
Crew”, this team of people offer free technical and fitment looking after all of their customers, not only the trade or
advice to all our customers. This team is available from 7am account customers. If you are a cash customer at any
to 7pm, 7 days a week on a toll free number 0800 200 993. AutoZone store, then you are eligible for the AutoZone VIP
Card. This card gives cash customers the ability to earn points
• 24 Hour Call Centre – the call centre is a hub of communi- and redeem them for exciting products. The best part is that
cation for AutoZone – whether it be in the form of inbound this card is absolutely free of charge!
calls from customers who need assistance and direction
or outbound campaigns to assess our levels of service to • Dedicated team programmes, retail management develop-
our customers. Our Call Centre can be contacted 24/7 on ment curriculum and a programme to grow AMBASSA-
086 11 22 111. DORS in our business and build our AutoZone family.

• We guarantee everything we sell, no hassle! – AutoZone
is proud of what we sell and stand behind everything we sell.
AutoZone is committed to always offering the best and
providing an excellent service overall to our customers which
includes an after sales service that is not equaled in the
market.
• Independent Spares Shops: Our pipeline to success –
These valued customers have supported AutoZone through
various changes in ownership and name, and continue to sup-
port us. The independent spares shops are an essential aspect
of our business success and we are committed to offering
them the best parts and service at all times.

16 November 2009
Thinking about the future, the AutoZone business is committed to overall excellence in
everything we do for our customers – excellence in product, excellence in relationships,
excellence in service and excellence in the AutoZone Family. No matter whether you are
an engineer, workshop, fitment centre, independent spares shop or an at home D.I.Y.
mechanic, next time you need a part, why choose anyone else? AutoZone is not just a
business, become part of this Family, enjoy our phenomenal service!
November 2009 17
 Auto Topical

NO NEED TO BE PASSIVE
by Tony Twine
ABOUT FOREX RISK
At the AIDC Automotive Industry Conference 2009, held in Port Elizabeth early in October, an old topic of indus-
try indigestion surfaced once again. It takes the form of dissatisfaction regarding the high level of instability of
the foreign exchange value of the Rand, and appeared to be particularly troublesome to local producers of com-
ponents trying to penetrate export markets. One can see their, and any other South African exporter’s point. Apart
from the rolling cycles and sharp random movements that can be seen in the indexed Rand prices of currencies
on a month end observation basis over long periods of time, depicted in the accompanying graph, the hurly-burly
of even single day trading ranges can make or break anything resembling a profit margin on any deal. A recent
example of this was the 24th October 2008, the day during which the crude oil price fell back below $60 per bar-
rel after climbing to $147 on 4th July that year. On that day, the Rand opened trading in South Africa at R10.91
to the US Dollar. By around lunchtime, it had touched R11.76, before returning to close at R10.26.

O
f course, the Rand has not
been the only currency with
significant levels of volatility
on a daily, weekly, monthly or
even annual basis during recent years.
Since it came into existence a dozen years
ago, at an initial exchange rate of $1.14 to
the Euro, the European currency has been
as low as $0.76 and as high as $1.48. The
example quoted above of Rand volatility
would have been bad enough if the Dollar
was the only currency in the automotive
trading mix, but other currencies tend to
move in directions that either compensate
or exaggerate the movements in the
Rand/Dollar rate over any period of time.
While that may appear to be a complicat-
ing factor at first glance, it may supply at
least part of a solution to the volatility
problems facing automotive component
exporters in particular, South African
exporters in general, when it comes to try-
ing to plan export pricing strategies that
will simultaneously be viable back home
and attractive to overseas customers. It
seems unlikely that any sudden medium or
long term stability will return to global
currency markets in the medium term
future, so the only answer for local
exporters is to use apparent disadvantages
to your maximum advantage.
The point is that exporters, at least for a
time, have assets that are denominated
outside of the Rand, and therefore the
controls of the authorities within the Rand
monetary area, namely the SA Reserve
Bank. As long as the asset is legally outside
of these controls it can be traded for other
currencies, which can act as a type of
hedge for the local exporter, until it is nec-
essary to bring the asset home, requiring it
to be converted to Rands. For decades, the
South African business man was not
expected to have these kinds of skills. As a
result, very few of them today have the
time or information resources, or indeed
the skill, to maneuver successfully around
international foreign exchange markets, let
alone other asset markets that may be nec-
essary to hedge against losses of value of
currencies in general. But there are spe-
cialists who can either advise or transact on
behalf of clients, often starting with an
exporter’s own bank.
At its heart, foreign exchange exposure for
any business with either import or export
interests, and sometimes both, is really just
another risk. Even within the constraints
of foreign exchange controls, South
African exporters have plenty of tools to
help turn possible overwhelming risk into
profit. We cannot expect the world to give
us a flat line exchange rate against any cur-
rency, but we can use the lumps and
bumps to our advantage.

18 November 2009
 Frankly Speaking

SA’s Motor Industry:

Some Food for Serious
by Frank Beeton
Thought
Although this column usually looks at issues in the global Motor Industry, it has
been known, on occasion, to divert its attention to the South African scene when mat-
ters relating to the interface between the local and international industries emerge.
Towards the end of 2008, for instance, when details of the Automotive Production
and Development Programme were first announced, I spent some time broadly sketch-
ing the history of light vehicle manufacture in South Africa, and making some sugges-
tions regarding directions that local industry participants might consider pursuing
after the APDP’s introduction in January 2013.

T
he general reaction to the APDP was positive,
endorsing its key elements of stable and moderate
tariffs, a Local Assembly Allowance for manufactur-
ers producing more than 50 000 units per annum, a
tradable Production Incentive providing duty credits
for local value added, and an Automotive Investment Allowance
amounting to 20% of project value. Early in October, however,
NAAMSA president David Powels, who also happens to be the
Managing Director of Volkswagen South Africa, made some inter-
esting comments at the SA Automotive Week conference in Port
Elizabeth. In a nutshell, he identified problem areas with respect to
low levels of local content, uncompetitive local logistics costs, and
government policy uncertainty. He predicted that, if these were
not addressed, the local motor industry may not survive beyond
the next seven to ten years.
How things have changed! Back in the bad old days of the Local
Content Programme, any suggestion that the local percentage
should be INCREASED would have been met with horror. The
problem with that mass-based programme was that to achieve a
higher local content level meant localising ever more complex
components and assemblies, with accompanying escalations in
the amount of investment needed. There was also the situation
where overseas plants may have been happy to delete increasing
numbers of components from their packing cases, but they cer-
tainly did not delete their profit margins from the accompanying
invoices! The South African vehicles may have been “protected”
by stiff tariff barriers, but the final price paid by the customer in
Eloff Street Extension became extremely high by world standards.
This call for higher local content must reflect the greater export-
orientation of the present industry, which has been fully integrat-
ed into global supply networks by its overseas parents. Cars
required only for local consumption under the APDP would sure-
ly be most effectively provided by some mix of local assembly,
low-tech local component sourcing and, as I previously suggested,
inter-brand co-operation to get the full benefit of the 50 000 unit
Local Assembly Allowance. The current pricing scenario does not
provide any clear distinction between imported and locally built
cars, despite the 30% import duty on fully built-up imports. It
seems logical that shipping in containers of Completely Knocked
20
Down components should always be more cost-effective than
shiploads of Fully Built Up Cars containing large volumes of very
expensive air! Surely, under these circumstances, local assembly
will always beat FBU imports, irrespective of the level of local
content.
Volkswagen SA has enormous experience of both importing and
exporting cars, so David Powels clearly knows something about
optimum local content levels that I don’t. I am quite happy, how-
ever, to accept his position on the competitiveness of local logis-
tics costs, and the lack of finalization of the APDP, which still
needs fleshing out in the area relating to component exports, and
in particular catalytic converters. This latter situation must be of
great concern to an industry subject to long decision lead-times.
The present government does not have a good track record when
it comes to reacting fast, and I think that the main message on
offer here is that it should not consider the continuing existence
of a local motor manufacturing sector as fait accompli. The
increasing militancy of local labour, and its propensity to strike,
will also not endear it to the overseas principals of local operations
who are desperately chasing viability in an increasingly more com-
petitive world market.
While there may be some qualitative issues that are currently pre-
venting Indian and Chinese manufacturers from dominating the
world stage, we can rest assured that these will not be around for
long. Once the burgeoning domestic Asian markets have been sat-
isfied, and start to stabilise, manufacturers in those countries,
with or without the co-operation of the major Western and
Japanese firms, will start to look very much more seriously at their
export prospects. Tata already has manufacturing capacity in
South Africa, and several other “investigations” into local assem-
bly by Chinese and Indian brands are proceeding. With their
huge domestic capacity, these companies will not invest in South
Africa unless the local industry, and its supporting logistic struc-
tures, can achieve world-class standards of efficiency, reliability,
quality and cost. They also do not have long histories of giving in
to the demands of militant unions, or providing social comfort to
their workers. This is something that local politicians and labour
leaders would do well to remember.
November 2009
 Engine Remanufacturing

Why Remtec?
When it comes to replacing an engine, the question is what is the best option? A new
engine for a vehicle that is over five years old is most probably out of the question,
because of the relative values. The answer seems to be a remanufactured unit, but at
what risk? You get remanufactured and remanufactured, so you need some reassur-
ance before parting with your hard earned cash. How do you play it safe? With Remtec
you play it safe.

R
emtec is basically an OE remanufacturing facility, as it
was originally the Volkswagen Remanufacturing facili-
ty, and renamed Remtec Manufacturing when
purchased by a Port Elizabeth based group in July
1995. With the majority of staff taken over at the time of
purchase, the OE genes are still there, and Remtec is now the
exclusive supplier of remanufactured engines to VW of SA,
General Motors South Africa, Ford Motor Company of Southern
Africa, Nissan South Africa and Land Rover South Africa. Thus
purchasing a Remtec engine comes with a significant pedigree,
which is great news for the greater automotive aftermarket.

With vehicle sales in a slump, and motorists hanging on to their

cars for longer, the demand for remanufactured engines is sure to
climb over the next few years, and automotive workshops will
need to satisfy this demand with reliable engines and a promise of
peace of mind. Remtec provides this. With their exchange policy
which keeps turnaround time to a minimum, a passionate com-
mitment to quality, the building of all units to OE specs, nation-
wide technical and warranty support, and a modern facility that
can handle increased volumes, Remtec is well placed to efficient-
ly handle the expected boost in demand. The demand has already
ratcheted up, and thus Remtec is in the fortunate position to
report that it has not had any retrenchments during the current
economic downturn. There are other benefits for the trade.
When fitting a remanufactured engine at such reasonable prices,
the workshop gains a customer for life, and that customer will be
David Pitt, Managing Director of Remtec Manufacturing, stands
next to an engine ready to be shipped to another satisfied customer
back time and time again, for services, tyres, brakes, and more.
There may be cheaper engines out there, but they are practically
guaranteed to be inferior, as Remtec has access to original parts at
competitive prices, and these are unlikely to be matched by other
rebuilders, unless they are buying down. Remtec’s quality is now
internationally renowned, and they have a growing export
business. Join the global Remtec family, because you should not
be asking why, you should be asking why not?

Every complete diesel assembly is dyno tested, and supplied with a dynometer certificate. Every petrol unit is hot tested
before shipment.

22 November 2009
 Much Brouhaha over a
Phantom Bailout
The second edition of the bi-annual South African Automotive Week, held in Port
Elizabeth from 7 – 10 October 2009, came with some unique challenges. We use
the word “challenges” not because ABR loves the word (in actual fact we believe
this is one of the overused words in South African discourse at all levels) but
because of the frequent use of this word by practically every single one of the
speakers at the AIDC conference. Maybe our attempt at incongruity backfires,
because this time the word was used with some justification.
A
s Andrew Binning, Chief Executive Officer of Inkanyezi
Event Organisers, the organiser of the event, put it in
his foreword to the Visitors’ Guide, “Planning over the
past two years has been complicated by one of the worst
global recessions in history. This has restricted international visi-
tors to the event.” An understatement of note, but Andrew did
have the opportunity to host the AIDC Automotive Industry
Conference as part of the week, which definitely was a master
stroke, and in the opinion of ABR, this event saved the SAAW,
and if we were Mr. Binning, we would be signing up this confer-
ence for 2011 right now. Another scoop was the appearance of the
much touted Joule on show, and hopefully when SAAW 2011
comes round, the Joule would have moved from concept to reali-
ty, and flying the South African flag both domestically and glob-
ally. Come rain or shine, ABR shall be there to reveal all.
The highlight of SAAW was, as we said, the AIDC Automotive
Industry Conference 2009, with some stimulating and insightful
presentations together with sharp repartee on the panel discus-
sions adding spice to an already loaded programme. ABR consid-
ers that the thrust and parries on display would have impressed an
Olympic fencer or even a busking sabre rattler. The first en garde
manoeuvre came from David Powels, President of NAAMSA,
whose day job is MD of VW. In his keynote address, titled “A
reflection on the first year of the economic crisis”, Powels took
government to task for not responding aggressively to the crisis,
unlike their international counterparts, who have introduced a
range of measures to assist their domestic beleaguered automotive
industries. He pointed out that whilst the global crisis began 12
to 18 months ago, the seeds of South Africa’s troubles started
three years ago, when vehicle sales hit a peak in 2006, based on a
heady mix of low interest rates, a strong currency, pent up
demand, and banks doing a credible impersonation of Father
Christmas. The industry geared up for a strong run of vehicle
sales, and therein lies the drama. With capital expenditure at
record levels, but sales back to 2003 numbers, it is feast or famine.
Thus the South Africa automotive industry is in a double bind,
having geared up for higher volumes, and now staring down the
twin barrels of a rather larger shotgun named recession and uncer-
tianty. The problem, according to Powels, and he stressed that he
was stating opinion rather than fact, is that current local content
is only at 35%, and that the challenge is to get this up to 70%
24
plus. Component manufacturers thus hold the key to the survival
of the industry, and of course government can play a role in this
dynamic. Another challenge is South Africa’s high cost base,
which is as much as 40% more expensive than countries such as
India and China. As if this is not challenging enough, South
Africa has the added burden of port charges 10 times higher than
China, and port productivity at shockingly low levels. Powels
called for more transparency and more collaboration from
Transnet, otherwise options such as the Maputo Corridor will
become increasingly attractive. He also appealed to government to
speed up the introduction of fuel quality standards, as our stan-
dards preclude the use of the latest engines, and thus the mooted
emission based tax is basically putting the cart before the horse,
and will unnecessarily increase car prices by two to seven percent.
As Powels put it succinctly, “Put enablers in place before punitive
taxes”. ABR translation: The emission tax is insanity! Powels
warned that the honeymoon period for South Africa is over and
that the silver bullets for survival are:
• Increased volumes per platform
• Higher local content levels
• Supplier competitiveness
• Support from the IDC and programmes such as APDP
for an “Industrialisation Strategy”
• Industry to improve productivity
• Massive investment in training and skills development
The response from government, in the form of Deputy Trade and
Industry Minister Thandi Tobias-Pokolo, in her keynote address
the following day, was “frank and honest”, and that there would
be “no further funding for the motor industry”, as the South
African government did not have the finances to provide extra
money for the sector, as there were more pressing priorities, such
as social spending (ed’s note: and rather large defence contracts).
David Powels, President of
NAAMSA, warns that South
Africa must wake up to the reali-
ty of international competition.
He predicts the demise of the
South African automotive indus-
try within seven to ten years if
appropriate action is not taken in
the next 12 to 18 months.
November 2009
Panel Discussions:
#1 Vision 2020 – is it a reality or a fantasy?
#2 Does the automotive industry deserve a bailout?
An excellent innovation at the Automotive Industry Conference was the introduction of panel discussions, involving industry heavy-
weights. This brilliant idea created inter-active participation and resulted in wide ranging discussions. After the discussions, the confer-
ence delegates got the chance to vote on the topics. The votes will not change the situation, but as a matter of interest, there were over-
whelming majorities in carrying the votes. Vision 2020, which is the target of 1,2 million vehicles manufactured in SA by 2020, was
perceived as a reality. Regarding the question whether the automotive industry deserves a bailout, the overall consensus was no! However,
the question was a little unfair, as no one in the industry is actually asking for a bailout – all that has been requested is assistance to see
the industry through troubling times.

ABR gives its readers some incisive quotes gleaned from the interaction:

Vision 2020 Brand Pretorius, CEO, McCarthy Holdings

“We are at a defining
moment of our history – the
Johan van Zyl, President &
CEO, Toyota Motors SA future is not an extension of
“The world is not the past”
waiting for South
Africa to play catch
up. We are a can-do Stewart Jennings, President, NAACAM “The
auto-
nation, and we need motive component industry is in a
to negotiate free severe crisis, and is a microcosm of
trade agreements with Egypt,
Morocco, Nigeria, etc, not China!” the employment and manufacturing
challenges facing South Africa, but
we are facing an unsympathetic eco-

Bailout? nomic and government environment”

The Panel consisted of, from left, Gavin Maile, KPMG; Shakeel Meer, IDC; Johan Cloete (who stood in for Irvin Jim of NUMSA);
and Mcebisi Jonas, Eastern Cape Province

Mcebisi Jacobs, MEC Gavin Maile, Partner, KPMG Africa

Eastern Cape Department
of Economic Affairs
Environment and Tourism “The industry does not
“Something want a bailout – it wants
more robust is
needed” support!”
November 2009 25
 SAAW may start a new trend

Bob Dylan could have been singing about SAAW 2009 when he sang that “the answer my
friend is blowing in the wind”. SAAW 2007 was the start of something great, but the exper-
iment of building a giant tent town to house the exhibitors was both expensive and imprac-
tical. The maze of exhibition halls made for a disconnected tour, and the real problem
was the “seasonal” Port Elizabeth winds. PE is known for its friendly breezes and its
windy season runs from January to December, so for SAAW 2009 the decision was taken
to host the trade show in a shopping centre’s parkade area. Going underground just got
a new meaning, and who knows, SAAW may have started a new trend.

A
nother trend that SAAW has already established is that it serves as a hook for other events. The AIDC chose SAAW
2009 for its annual automotive industry conference, NAACAM held its AGM during the conference, and a historic
breakfast for suppliers was hosted jointly by the major OEMs, simply because of the convenience of having all the major
stakeholders in the same place at the same time – government, OEMs, component suppliers, retailers, service organi-
sations, etc. It is for this reason that SAAW is the only national event supported by the three big industry associations;
NAAMSA, NAACAM, and the RMI.
26 November 2009
Networking –
Glitz, Glamour
and Gala Dinners
Networking was the name of the game at SAAW 2009.
Opportunities abounded to have one on one discussions,
group meetings both formally and informally, and of
course the exhibition hall itself was the place to find
things old and new, and to meet and make business
friends. And what is an automotive show without cars.

M
atchmaking was an integral part of SAAW2009, and this was
facilitated by a Match-making Meeting Programme and the pro-
vision of Matchmaking Meeting Rooms, available all through the
show, from Wednesday 7th October to Saturday, 10th October.
The Gala Networking Dinner was also a great success, where
guests from across the spectrum could let their hair down, and to
network in a relaxed environment.

November 2009 27
 Navigating the Storm through Development
The strategic focus of the AIDC is Supply Chain Development, Supplier Development,
and Skills Development and Training. To this end, day two of the automotive industry
conference was devoted to these three subjects. Space constraints do not allow
ABR to go into great detail, so we give you small bites of these mini-conferences:
Supply Chain Development – Creating a to have HR strategies in place, focusing on development, talent
winning global location strategy for retention and BBBEE. To close the skills gap, a holistic approach
South African automotive suppliers must be adopted. Absolutely critical to this strategy is the provi-
sion of training centres, comprising a main campus, shop floor
Gavin Maile, Partner - KPMG Africa centres and a commitment to continuous learning. Key aspects of
Automotive Practice Leader, presented this this holistic approach are quality of supervision, employee well-
paper and he said that the cycle of globalisa- being, morale and stability, communication, and company values
tion of automotive supplier operations is and ethics.
continuing, through suppliers expanding their operations across
borders, and even moving existing capacity across borders.
Despite this, or maybe because of this, this globalisation is done
in an ad-hoc fashion and cognisance is not always taken of both
the risks and opportunities, thus many companies exhibit a strat-
egy deficit. South African component suppliers can use an inte-
grated strategy that balances the competing drivers of growth,
costs, innovation and risks, and one that considers the advantages
and disadvantages of location decisions in the light of the intrin-
sic nature of a business.

Supplier Development – Tirisano Cluster Programme

Awards

Johan Erasmus, Managing Director of Automotive Training

Academy

The Tirisano (Working Together) Programme has been on the go

for quite a few years, and the results in cost savings and produc-
tivity gains have been impressive. Each year the AIDC presents
awards to the best performing companies, and this year was no
exception.

Skills Development and Training - Evaluating the Skills

Gap towards realising Vision 2020 HIV and AIDS Survey

Johan Erasmus, Managing Director of Automotive Training
Academy, gave some startling statistics in his presentation. The
age profile of artisans and technicians in the industry is well over
50. Compounding this reality is the shocking estimate that only
9% of the 2008 matriculants have been able to find formal
employment. Despite this, Johan warned that the work ethic
amongst the youth is low. His advice to companies in the sector is
The AIDC used the conference as an opportunity to conduct a
baseline study to get a snapshot view of the South African auto-
motive manufacturing companies’ awareness and responses to
the HIV and AIDS pandemic. The results of this survey will be
presented on a national basis, but disaggregated to show
employer responses per company size, skills level, and by
province.

28 November 2009
NAACAM not happy chappies
ABR met Roger Pitot, Executive
Director of NAACAM, at the NAA-
CAM stand, and asked his opinion on
the current crisis, and government’s
response to date. He said that whilst
bridging finance has been provided
through the IDC, and the Department
of Labour had announced a scheme to
assist employees on short time, this was not enough. Pitot put
it frankly, “We are disappointed. In February this year, I did
a survey and every government around the world had formu-
lated responses to deal with their distressed automotive sec-
tors and manufacturing in general, also implementing other
indirect measures, such as cutting rates. It seems our govern-
ment does not know exactly what to do to respond.” The sit-
uation is serious, and he added that OEMs insistence on
price reductions in this environment, together with delays in
payment, compounds the difficulties.

Boost for automotive suppliers

Supplier development in the automotive industry has been
given a R23,5-million boost through a partnership between
the Department of Trade and Industry (dti) and the United
Nations Industrial Development Organisation) UNIDO.
The funding – announced at the AIDC Automotive Industry
Conference 2009 at SA Automotive Week - will expand the
scope of the existing business partnership programme run by
UNIDO and the Automotive Industry Development Centre
(AIDC) since 2003. The funding has been committed over a
three-year period and is in line with UNIDO’s strength in
cluster development. “The SA automotive industry is our
leading manufacturing sector, but local component suppliers
are under continuous pressure to improve their performance
or lose business to competitors in other emerging economies
like Brazil, China and India. We aim to support these suppli-
ers in becoming globally competitive,” says UNIDO repre-
sentative Tom Kenyon. “In the past five years the AIDC has
implemented the Tirisano programme at over 45 companies,
training more than 4,000 shop floor workers on basic lean
principles and world-class manufacturing. The ultimate ben-
eficiaries of this project will be Tier 1 and Tier 2 SME and
BEE component suppliers in the SA automotive industry,”
says Barlow Manilal, AIDC CEO . “Speaking at the
announcement, National Association of Automotive
Component and Allied Manufacturers’ executive director
Roger Pitot challenged the provincial governments of the
Western Cape and KwaZulu/Natal to also provide support
for their local auto sectors.

November 2009
 Provincial Slugfest
The competitive spirit was alive and well at the SAAW 2009, and it was best illustrat-
ed by three regions slugging it out to catch the attention of foreign visitors and the
media. Each corner of South Africa wants its slice of automotive industry action, and
those who started a little late are playing catch up fast.

G
auteng has the most established supplier park in the
country, so it was no surprise to see the opening slot
at the AIDC conference go to Amanda Nair, CEO of
Blue IQ. Amanda set a positive tone for the confer-
ence with the announcement of BMW’s R2,2 billion investment
in its plant in Rosslyn (with strings attached), and she jokingly set
a challenge for other OEMs and component manufacturers to
“equal or better” this investment – in Gauteng, of course. BMW’s
decision was no doubt made easier by the Supplier Park infra-
structure right on its doorstep, and this must have served as a red
rag to a bull to the assembled delegations punting the East
London IDZ, the
Maputo Development
Corridor, and the Coega Charging Like a Buffalo
IDZ. ABR gives a brief
overview of these three East London may be the 90 pound weakling in the city stakes, but
initiatives, and will go it more than makes up for its size with enthusiasm and innova-
into far more depth in tion. Definitely the team with the best spirit at the SAAW, the
upcoming issues. East London IDZ also made the major announcement at the
show, by unveiling its innovative model for the automotive sector
Amanda Nair, CEO Blue – a multi-OEM assembly facility which has already attracted
IQ, challenged the indus- interest from companies in India, China and South Korea. This
try to “equal or better”
BMW’s investment. facility will help those companies who have not yet reached criti-
cal mass in terms of volume in South Africa, and of course the
bigger carrot is for this to be used as a springboard for export to
Europe and the USA, taking advantage of AGOA, etc.
No Harbouring of Doubts
When it comes to ports, Port Elizabeth is doing its New York,
New York thing. Not satisfied with one harbour, PE has gone
ahead and built a new state of the art port at the mouth of the
Coega River, just 20km up the coast from its Baakens River
brother. And it looks like the Coega Development Corporation
loves doing things in twos. It also has two zones for automotive
industrial development – the Nelson Mandela Logistics Park sit-
uated three kilometres away from the VW plant in Uitenhage,
and Zone 2 at the Coega IDZ at the Port of Ngqura. All part of
a multi-billion rand initiative aimed to position South Africa as a
platform for global manufacturing and export through foreign
and local investments.

Gustav Meyer, Business

Development Manager:
Automotive and Logistics,
Coega Development
Corporation, briefs guests
at the corporation’s
spanking new premises Tembela Zweni, ELIDZ Executive Manager: Business Development;
located in the Coega IDZ. Corrie Kotze, AIH Consulting; and Simphiwe Kondlo, ELIDZ
CEO, announce the exciting multi-OEM model

30
November 2009
Corridor of Certainty
Mpumalanga has relied in the past on its agricultural, min-
ing and tourist strengths, but now its geographical location
means that its future fortune is inextricably bound to the
success of the Maputo Corridor. With a drive for diversifi-
cation, under the rallying cry of Linking Opportunities,
Creating Growth, the Maputo Development Corridor
Flagship is one of the “big five” flagship programmes iden-
tified by the Mpumalanga Provincial Government for eco-
nomic growth, encompassing initiatives such as the Secunda
IDZ, Truck Stops, Priority Feeder Routes, Food Technology
Centre, Middelburg IDZ, Komatipoort Dry Port and Rail
Passenger Border Clearance Facility.

Blessing Manale,
CEO Maputo
Development
Corridor Flagship,
hosted a cocktail
evening, and at the
event made the offer
to host the next
SAAW and AIDC
Automotive Industry
Conference.

November 2009
 The Crown Joule
A star attraction at the show was the much hyped Joule electric car, which many South
Africans hope will become the crown jewel of our automotive industry. Kobus Meiring,
CEO of Optimal Energy, gave his well polished delivery of the many pros of the electric
car in his slot “Breakthrough automotive greening technology”, emphasising his belief
that batteries and renewables are the new oil. Kobus is a passionate flag bearer for the
electric vehicle, and he quotes Victor Hugo to make his point, “No power on earth can
stop an idea whose time has come”. If this is true, then South Africa can be at the fore-
front of this revolution, as there are many spin-offs to the electric vehicle.

The Joule in all its glory

Kobus Meiring, CEO Optimal Energy

Formula S gives university students a chance to show their talents

T
he Nelson Mandela
Metropolitan University
made its presence known
at SAAW, and if anyone
cared to dig a little further,
they would have found
out that NMMU is the only university in
South Africa that is planning to race at the
Formula S event in Germany in August
2010. Formula S stands for Formula
Student, and has no connection to that old
shaggy dog story of the customer who
orders a souped up VW Beetle with the
proviso that a large S be painted on its bon-
net. Upon taking delivery of the car, the
salesman enquired as to the reason for the
large S, to which the customer replied that
he wanted people to exclaim as he zoomed
past, “Did you see that S car go!” ABR is
very interested in this project, so after the
show we moseyed down to the university’s
south campus, to get more information.
We found that the Volkswagen South
Africa – DAAD International Chair in
Automotive Engineering had allocated
offices and furniture and equipment to the
Mechanical Engineering, and they have the
bitter sweet task to get a team of young
bucks to gel into a formidable unit, with
the goal of participating in Formula
Student Germany 2010 in Hockenheim in
August 2010. All very inspiring, and ABR
shall give our readers more details in
upcoming issues, and we shall also follow
the action on campus, and keep our stake-
holders up to speed (excuse the pun) on the
comings and goings of the little Schumis.
Mphathisi Colwana and Alison Richter are
two of the student engineers on the Formula
S team. Mphathisi is responsible for the
cooling system, suspension and brakes, whilst
Alison looks after the fuel tank, ergonomics
and safety aspects.
venture, and that students had been drawn
from various faculties to participate.
NMMU Racing’s two project managers are
Howard Theunissen and Trevor Stroud are
Trevor Stroud and Howard Theunissen, the project leaders for NMMU Racing.
lecturers in the university’s Department of

32 November 2009
 The Party Poopers
ABR’s Austin Gamble attended the AIDC Automotive Industry
Conference 2009, and he gives his unique take on the topics and pre-
senters, and his views on the punctuality and even worse, the non-
by Austin Gamble attendance of certain individuals.

I
’m a little old fashioned, and I little fib to make him look reasonably well On a lighter note, I have to admit that at
believe that if you have accepted mannered. I have drawn my own conclu- long conferences such as the AIC, the
an invitation to attend an event, sions, and they are not flattering. Take mind does wonder sometimes. I was
that once you have committed, these two questions submitted by the del- guilty, I’m afraid. It all started with a nag-
you should move heaven and egates for example: ging feeling that Johan van Zyl reminded
earth to meet this obligation. And me of someone famous. Eventually the
1. Why do the unions insist on wage
it doesn’t matter who or what you are. In penny dropped. Joachim Phoenix! Don’t
increases and benefits that make
actual fact, the higher your exalted posi- think so? Go and look at the movie
us less competitive – don’t they
tion, the higher the obligation! I also Gladiator, or Walk the Line. This got me
understand we compete globally?
believe that your performance on these going in a bad direction, and I started to
parameters is a very good indication of 2. Why do the unions go on so many have a good look at the other panellists on
your character and your trustworthiness. strike actions for wage increases so the Vision 2020 debate. See if you agree
much above CPI, and damage with me, by matching our brainy guys
On this premise, there were some unfor- South Africa’s image and turn with these actors/luminaries:
tunate slips of protocol perpetrated by away investment?
those who should know better. Or do they
Hot potatoes, which may have made Mr.
know better? I was not privy to the why,
Jim uncomfortable. I’m sure that he
who or where, but judging by the looks on
would have handled them with the pre-
the faces of some of the organisers, it was
dictable rhetoric, but why go through this
obviously last minute stuff, and in one
if you can just stay away? The problem is
particular case, this was confirmed inad-
that the panel discussion was the poorer
vertently. And taking my line of thinking
for it, and the delegates were short
a little further, maybe some of the non-
changed. Similarly, Minister Rob Davies
attendees had good reason for not attend-
bailed out at a late stage, leaving the
ing. Take Mr. Irvin Jim, the National
unpalatable stuff to his deputy, which
Secretary of NUMSA, for example. He
does leave a distinctly unpleasant odour.
was supposed to be an integral part of the
And the conference ran an hour late, not
panel discussion on whether the South
because of the tardiness of the organisers,
African automotive industry deserves a
but because of the late arrival of MEC
bailout. His absence left a gaping hole, as
Jonas, who was to do the official opening.
his participation in the discussion was a
Sure, the traffic was bad, but everyone else
vital element. Johan Cloete, an independ-
made it. The picture is becoming clearer,
ent consultant, was roped in at the last
much clearer. And to me, at least, it
minute, and whilst he did an admirable
explains many things, about Transnet
job doing his chameleon act turning from
lethargy, Eskom hubris, municipal rate
a hard working consultant to an Arthur
hikes, etc.
Scargill wanabe, he simply could not lend
credibility to the role, giving careful and
measured responses, a most ununion
thing. It also got me thinking that he was
in reality scab labour, oh heavens above.
And there were hard questions to be
answered, which Mr. Jim had convenient-
ly ducked. Not so convenient for the
organisers, who announced at the com-
mencement of the discussion that Mr. Jim
had phoned in 30 minutes earlier to give
his apologies. Extremely enlightening, as Irvin Jim, National Secretary, NUMSA.
the conference was running an hour late, For those delegates who were hoping for the
so either Mr. Jim had phoned in half an privilege of seeing him, this picture is a far
hour late, or the organisers were telling a from satisfactory substitute.
November 2009 33
 Yes We Can
After two jam packed days of information overload,
debate both sedate and intense, and introspective soul
searching, the 2009 AIDC automotive industry conference
ended not with a bang, but with a whimper. A visibly
exhausted Barlow Manilal, CEO of the AIDC, closed pro-
ceedings with a summary of the outcomes of the confer-
ence, of which the general consensus was that it had been
a worthwhile exercise, and that despite the negative eco-
nomic environment, the industry was down but not out, and
that it did have the ability to navigate the storm. In the
words of Barack Obama, it was agreed that “Yes we Can”.
The key points that came out of the conference were that
Barlow Manila, CEO of the AIDC, after
• The automotive industry is a key sector in the manufacturing sector of South an exhausting two days, brings the confer-
Africa ence to an end.
• The government has the responsibility to create an enabling environment for the
industry to go ahead and create growth and jobs
• Collaboration between government and the private sector is now needed more than ever
• It is now absolutely vital to grow and protect investment in the manufacturing sector
• Investment in the industry needs to be focused and prioritised

All good and well, but what is really needed is less talk and more action. The AIDC conference was an important and necessary talk
shop, but the benefits of the conference will only be clear when all the affirmations are realised. The key is government’s commitment
and its translation of words into action. Extremely concerning was the quote from the Deputy Minister of Trade & Industry, who made
the telling enquiry, “What makes our production special when compared to Brazil?” It may have been a rhetorical question, but the sim-
ple answer from all should be, “Because it is OUR production!”

Automotive Site Visits

A trailblazer berthed at Ngqura

O
n the 9th October, delegates At the VW Museum, some nostalgic speed and some nostalgic relaxation
had the opportunity to visit
the Volkswagen plant in
Uitenhage, the Nelson
Mandela Bay Logistics Park just a stone’s
throw away, and the Coega IDZ. ABR went
along for the joyride. Some of the high-
lights of the tour included a visit to the
Volkswagen Museum at the Pavilion, in
which one could indulge in a little nostal-
gia, and the sighting of a ship berthed at the
Port of Ngqura. At the time of the visit,
only two ships had visited the port since its
opening in October 2009, so this was
indeed an auspicious occasion.

34 November 2009
 What’s the Buzz?

BMW Looks Ahead

Following in-depth negotiations with government, the BMW Group has announced that it will invest an additional
R2.2 billion at BMW Plant Rosslyn, triggering the introduction of the newest BMW vehicle and production tech-
nology at the Plant and within its local supplier network. The investment will enable maximum plant capacity
to increase from 60 000 to 87 000 units, while securing production in South Africa for the future. The invest-
ment announcement follows the signing of a Letter of Commitment with the Department of Trade and
Industry (the dti), which will honour the investment under the new support scheme for the motor industry,
the Automotive Production and Development Programme (APDP). The APDP will replace the current sup-
port programme for the automotive industry, the Motor Industry Development Programme (MIDP), in
2012. At the same time, the German automaker announced a training program for 1,100 associates at Plant
Rosslyn. The BMW Group has a long history in South Africa, rich in major milestones, and has had a local pres-
ence since 1968. BMW Plant Rosslyn became the BMW Group’s first manufacturing facility outside of Germany
in 1975. The company was also the first South African car maker to adjust its entire production configuration to
begin an export programme in 1994, ahead of the announcement of the MIDP.

KenKen 3 X 3
How to Play:
Like Sudoku, even though difficulty may vary from puzzle to puzzle, the rules for
playing KenKen are fairly simple:
For a 3 x 3 puzzle, fill in with the numbers 1-3.
• Do not repeat a number in any row or column.
• The numbers in each heavily outlined set of squares, called cages, must combine (in any
order) to produce the target number in the top corner of the cage using the mathe-
matical operation indicated.
• Cages with just one box should be filled in with the target number in the top corner.
• A number can be repeated within a cage as long as it is not in the same row or
column. Answer on page 45

November 2009 35
 A series of articles on the rise of the Chery automobile
New Chery J1 Packs a Big Punch
at an Affordable Price
C
hery South segment of the market,” said Brett Soso,
Africa is set to Managing Director of Chery SA, a division
make an even of Amalgamated Automobile Distributors.
bigger impact “The Chery J1 is set to continue this trend
on the local and reinforce our commitment to provide
market with the value-for-money motoring to South
launch of its African vehicle owners moving into the
new J1 hatch- next segment of the market up from a
back. The range Chery QQ3.” The Chery J1 is certain to
consists of two models; the J1 1.3 TE and cater for those who have high expectations
the top-of-the-line J1 1.3TX. Starting at a in their daily vehicle. Its balance of style,
class-leading price of R109 900, both vehi- practicality and affordability will be
cles are equipped with power steering, air unmatched in the marketplace and it has
conditioning, alloy wheels, as well as criti- its sights firmly set on being a winning
cal safety items such as dual airbags and combination. “We believe the J1 is a super
ABS with electronic brake distribution. package and we haven’t compromised on
“We believe that since the brand was first specification and safety to get the price
introduced in South Africa in May 2008, it down,” said Soso.
has changed expectations in the entry-level
36
Designed in Italy, Chery J1 is the first glob-
al vehicle from the Chinese automaker and
is aimed at providing stylish, affordable
motoring to consumers in Europe, North
America, Asia and of course, South Africa.
It features a brand new fuel injected 1.3-
litre petrol engine, uniquely developed by
Chery that will beat off many of its key
rivals when it comes to power and fuel
economy. The new 4-cylinder Acteco pow-
erplant, which is Euro III compliant, pro-
vides 61kW at 6 000r/min and 114Nm of
torque between 3 800 and 4 500r/min,
while also ensuring less visits to the petrol
pump with an average fuel consumption
figure of just 6.7/100km. While a great
focus has been placed on providing the J1
with a potent and efficient engine, it is in
the specification that it truly excels.
November 2009
Large angel eye headlamps light your way
ahead at night, while safety is bolstered fur-
ther by the inclusion of ABS with EBD,
dual airbags, side impact protection bars
and high mounted brake light, many of
which are simply not usually available in
this class of vehicle. Reverse park control is
available as standard on the TX-derivative.
The J1 has also been subjected to rigorous
testing in line with international standards.
This includes numerous tests at the
National Centre of Supervision and
Inspection on Motor Vehicle Products
Quality in Shanghai. Extensive evaluations
have also been conducted in South Africa
to test the vehicle’s durability and quality
under local operating conditions. The
onboard computer keeps you informed of
all the essential information on your jour-
ney, while manual air conditioning keeps
you cool in summer and totally unaware of
November 2009
the chill in winter. The instrumentation
has been designed to be aesthetically pleas-
ing while also being fashionable giving a
more upmarket feel to the cabin ambience.
A CD-player audio system with USB port
is also standard on both models. Quality
materials pervade the interior with plush
carpets and door inlays, while the seats
have been ergonomically designed to pro-
vide maximum comfort for all passengers.
Power steering makes manoeuvring around
the city a breeze and a turning radius of
just 4.75m ensures effortless parking in
even the tightest of spaces. The J1 range is
equipped with central locking by remote
with the TX having the added ease of con-
venience locking. All the seats in the J1 can
be manually adjusted and the steering col-
umn’s rake can be adjusted to suit the driv-
ing position. In addition, the J1 1.3 TX
also has front and rear electric windows as
well as electric mirrors.
The Chery J1 1.3 TE retails at R109 900,
whilst the 1.3 TX comes in at R116 900.
The Chery J1 range has a 3-year / 100
000km warranty. Service intervals are at
15 000 km and the range has a 3-year / 75
000 km service plan as standard. Chery is
continuously aiming to provide customers
with a good value proposition, not just in
terms of their initial purchase, but also in
the overall ownership experience. The
company therefore has a well-established
dealer network in place, with over 30 full
service dealerships. This network is con-
stantly being expanded to give Chery com-
plete national representation and customer
convenience. Chery South Africa offers a
range of vehicles to suit the individual
tastes of the country’s motorists, and every
Chery car presents a combination of
unbeatable value and quality.
37
 Tony’s Take

The OYLEY Price of Oil

An article by Yoshiaki Nohara and Ron Harui on the Bloomberg finan-
cial news service, dated 6 October 2009, sent world currency
markets into near panic mode, with the SA Rand appreciating from
R7.63 the day before to R7.39 that evening (both SA time). The news
quoted the UK based Independent Newspaper, saying that the Gulf
by Tony Twine, states might be considering quoting oil prices in a combination of
Senior Economist,
Director – Yen, Yuan, euro and gold. Effectively, this would become an artifi-
Econometrix (Pty) cial currency, which we could christen the Oyley, derived from Oil
Ltd price in a combination of Yen, Librae, Euro and Yuan.

W
hy Librae, you may
ask? The Librae is a
singular version of this
old measure of weight,
also called a tower
pound approximating 32 grams, close to a
Troy ounce, which is the unit of measure of
traded gold. That is from where the styl-
ized letter L, previously employed to
denote Pound Sterling, was derived.
The graph shows smoothed index values of
a composite artificial currency made up of
equal weights or proportions of the gold,
euro, yen and yuan prices of crude oil dur-
ing the current decade. The first bad bit of
bad news for the artificial currency plan-
ners is that such an equally weighted artifi-
cial currency would not have produced
anything resembling a stable currency for
the price of oil.
The next thing for them to consider would
be how to create the artificial currency, or
OYLEY. If it is based on gold and the other
currencies, every OYLEY unit that they
wished to create, even if it was only created
on paper, would have to be backed by the
proportion of the base currencies from
which it would be derived. This would be
in setting up a central bank for the OYLEY,
which would hold reserves of the com-
modities and currencies upon which the
OYLEY was to be based. We could antici-
pate some costs in this regard.
Suppose that all that was done, and foreign
oil buyers could purchase OYLEY’s from
the OCB (OYLEY Central Bank), with
which to settle their liabilities to the oil
suppliers. The oil suppliers would then sit
with large amounts of OYLEY’s and may
even be able to pay taxes to their respective
governments in those self-same OYLEY’s.
But then comes a snag – if they want to buy
anything outside of the OYLEY currency
market, they have to exchange OYLEY’s for
an internationally accepted currency. The
most commonly accepted means of inter-
national trade and capital movement settle-
ments is the US Dollar, so an exchange
mechanism between the OYLEY and the
Dollar would quickly emerge. If the
OYLEY was not exchangeable, it would be
about as useful as the Zimbabwe Dollar.
Of course, the OYLEY would come to
reflect all the pressures present from time to
time on the constituent items like the Gold
price, upon which it is based. With settle-
ments in Dollars, the Gold price of oil is
capable of fluctuating very substantially, so
the OYLEY price of oil would be subject to
similar fluctuations, driven by the Gold
portion of the OYLEY base. It seems like
an awful amount of trouble to achieve
virtually nothing.
But the fun would only just be starting at
that point. Private banking systems would
very quickly find ways to multiply the
numbers of artificial currency units that
they may come to hold. Derivative traders
would begin writing options and futures
contracts from the exchange rate of the
OYLEY against most major and minor cur-
rencies around the world. We could expect
then, just as there has been in the history of
the Euro, tussles between the oil producing
governments regarding the rates of
creation of units of OYLEY currency.
Out of the fried chicken pan, into the oil
fire.

38 November 2009
 weighty issues

TRUCK SHOWS
by Frank Beeton
– A THORNY ISSUE
On Wednesday, September 30th, 2009, representatives of the com-
mercial vehicle industry, their suppliers, and the specialist
press, made their way to the Tshwane Events Centre (you may
know it better as the Pretoria Showgrounds) to attend the
launch of The HeavyWeight Expo. This event, scheduled to run
from 23rd to 26th March, 2010, was described by organis-
ers TSHWABAC as an “exhibition-cum-conference dedicated to
the heavy equipment sector in South Africa”. The target
universe was defined as “the heavy vehicle, bus, construction
plant and equipment, special and agricultural vehicle sectors”.

I
n South Africa there has been
much recent debate over the rele-
vance of truck shows. There is a
body of opinion that views partic-
ipation in the Johannesburg
International Motor Show (JIMS)
or its Auto Africa predecessor, as less than
ideal for heavier commercial vehicles, pri-
marily because that ten day exhibition is
shared with the light vehicle community,
takes truck people away from their day
jobs for too long, and exposes (expensive)
exhibits to wave upon wave of “tyre kick-
ers” and brochure collectors. The alterna-
tive of adding a truck section to the more
trade-focused Automechanika Johannes-
burg early in 2009 clearly did not work,
particularly as it was held only a few short
months after JIMS, so no obvious solution
has emerged up to now. The organisers of
HeavyWeight Expo obviously believe that
they can offer the ideal compromise, in a
year in which there will be no JIMS event.
The chosen venue is a lot less intimidating
than the vast halls of NASREC, but can
easily accommodate the truck and bus sup-
pliers, body and trailer builders and allied
suppliers that make up the target market.
However, it is significant that this event car-
ries the endorsement of the Retail Motor
Industry (mainly dealers), and not the
National Association of Automobile
Manufacturers of South Africa (NAAM-
SA), who now “own” the JIMS show. This
raises the question whether NAAMSA will
have a benign attitude to Heavyweight
Expo, or if they will see it as a threat to their
own event.
My own hands-on experience with truck
shows goes back to the Royal Agricultural
Show in Pietermaritzburg during the
Nineteen Sixties, and extends through vari-
ous Sugarmechs, Timbermechs, Rand
Shows, ITEC Shows and Auto Africa exhi-
bitions. Contrary to popular belief, very
few large fleets of trucks are sold off show
stands in spontaneous “walk-on” deals,
although this myth has been carefully per-
petuated in countless press releases. The real
value of shows is to provide relaxed interac-
tion between suppliers and their clients,
who are shipped in to enjoy hospitality on
the stands. Exhibitors also use the opportu-
nity to build their image by showing off
new technologies not yet available on the
local market, although most of their star
customers would already have seen these on
hosted overseas tours.
Despite the valid concerns about the suit-
ability of Auto Africa and JIMS for truck
and bus exhibitions, there can be no doubt
that the standard of displays has risen per-
ceptibly since these shows have catered for
both light and heavy vehicles. Truck-only
shows have a tradition of being more of the
“boerewors-and-beer” pattern, which was
clearly not compatible with car exhibits fea-
turing plush carpets and squads of scantily-
clad young ladies. The incidence of profes-
sionally-built truck stands, with imported
displays, has increased markedly since
ITEC gave way to Auto Africa, and in those
cases where light and heavy vehicles are dis-
tributed by the same organizations, there
has been plenty of scope for the sharing of
facilities. Out-of-town based industry exec-
utives have also valued the opportunity to
attend one show that covers both aspects of
their business. It is a moot point whether
distributors can justify supporting truck
shows every year, so if HWE is successful, it
could impact on the trucking side of JIMS.
Exhibitors will need to decide which format
suits them best, but there is likely to be con-
siderable pressure from NAAMSA on their
members (most of the major manufacturers
and brands) to continue supporting JIMS.
In the past, where certain companies have
chosen not to participate in the major
shows, their competitors have been more
than happy to point out their absence to
mutual customers. A further complication
lies in timing, as it is unlikely that major
new product launches will always be able to
coincide with events timed by show organ-
isers to suit their own priorities. In the past,
major manufacturers often organised stand-
alone events at more appropriate times, and
also to ensure closer control of their visitors.
After all, anybody attending a show wants
to look around, irrespective of who paid for
his travel to the show or his entrance ticket!
There are many issues to consider, and it
will be intriguing to see how this dynamic
plays out. In the particular atmosphere of
2009, with vehicle sales still near the bot-
tom of the cycle, costs may be a crucial fac-
tor, but it is likely that the long-term out-
come will be dictated by strategic issues.
Time, alone, will tell!

40 November 2009
 health
An update on Moto Health Care
You may recall that in the July edition of ABR Roseanne Da Silva, Moto Health Care’s
consulting actuary gave us an insight into the process followed to determine the ben-
efits and the budget for the following year. I am pleased to announce that this review
process has now been completed for 2010.
S
adly the Scheme is expected to
incur an underwriting deficit for
this year. The key contributor to
this deficit is the Classic option.
This deficit would be substantially larger if
it was not being mitigated by an improve-
ment in the position of the Custom
option. The Hospicare and Optimum
options are also operating at deficits.
Further there has been a reduction in the
total membership for the year to date of
11% largely brought about by a clean up
of data conducted by the current adminis-
trator, loss of employment and affordabili-
ty, a direct consequence of the economic
downturn.
The Trustees adopted the following princi-
ples to determine the benefits for 2010:
• To offer a comprehensive range of ben-
efits;
• To ensure that the options are distinct
in their benefit offerings;
• To minimise the risk of buy-down by
higher claiming members;
• To achieve a breakeven financial result.
Guided by the above principles and after
many meetings the benefit design team has
proposed the following amendments to
the current benefits:
Optimum. This option is aimed at
high income earners and offers a compre-
hensive range of in and out hospital bene-
fits. The adjustments for 2010 are as fol-
lows:
• Cover for in hospital specialist costs
will be at 200% of the National
Reference Price list;
• A R850 co-payment on specified scope
procedures except where the member
uses a Designated Service Provider
(DSP);
• The limit on maternity benefits will be
removed;
• Inflationary adjustments to all finan-
cial limits;
• The DSP providers must be used for
treatment plans for chronic patients
(for the 26 chronic disease list (CDL)
conditions)
42
care
Hospicare. This option is targeted at
younger, middle-income members who do
not require out of hospital benefits. In
order to contain costs on this benefit
option the benefits are accessible through a
network of Designated Service Providers
(DSP). The adjustments for 2010 are as
follows:
• Cover for in hospital specialist costs
will be at 100% of the National
Reference Price list;
• Members will be required to use a
Classic. This option has been restruc- Designated Service Provider (DSP) for
tured in line with trends in the market for in-hospital treatment and for their
those targeted at middle to high income chronic benefit treatment plans (for
earners looking for comprehensive cover the 26 chronic disease list (CDL) con-
and flexibility in their benefits. The cate- ditions). A25% co-payment will apply
gory B limit has been converted to a sav- for other providers;
ings account basis. The level of annual • The maternity benefit limit will be
savings is equivalent to the current level of removed.
the category B limit and the savings struc-
In next month’s article I will deal with the
ture has the advantage of members being
Custom and Essential options and share
able to carry any unused portion of the
with you the key elements of the 2010
benefits forward to the next year for their
budget. At the time of writing this article,
own use. Members will also have greater
a road show is being planned to introduce
flexibility in determining how they use
the new benefits for 2010 to stake holders
their out of hospital benefits. The adjust-
and to receive input from them. I trust
ments for 2010 are as follows:
that at least some of you will have made an
• Cover for in hospital specialist costs effort to attend one of the road show
will be at 150% of the National presentations.
Reference Price list;
• Chronic cover will be extended to
include 8 additional conditions (with a
limit of R2675 per beneficiary and
R5350 per family on these benefits);
• There will be a R850 co-payment on
non PMB (Prescribed Minimum
Benefits) in hospital procedures except
where the member uses a DSP;
• The maternity benefit limit will be
removed;
• Out of hospital benefits will be paid
from a savings account where 22% of
contributions are allocated to this;
• Appliances and prostheses will be cov-
ered by the Fund with inflationary
adjustments to the limits:
• The DSP providers must be used for
treatment plans for chronic patients
(for the 26 chronic disease list (CDL) Barry Canning, Chairman Board of
Trustees - MOTO Health Care
conditions).
November 2009
 MISA Update
– STATEMENT TO CONTRIBUTORS –
MOTOR INDUSTRY
RETIREMENT FUNDS
(Administered by : MIFA (Motor Industry Fund Administrators (Pty) Ltd.)
Recently, Mamodupi Mohlala the former Pension Funds Adjudicator
publicly introduced a ‘so-called’ SCORE-CARD against which she
rated 290 of the country’s 13 000 registered retirement funds, in
an attempt to gauge their performance.
T
he Adjudicator was not appointed to usurp the func-
tions of the FINANCIAL SERVICES BOARD, the
Body that regulates the Retirement Industry, but mere-
ly to deal with member complaints against their funds.
This limited role of the Adjudicator was publicly acknowledged in
the press by Mr. Jurgen Boyd, the Deputy Registrar of Pension
Funds, who further stated that the retirement industry is in good
health and that the threat issued by the Adjudicator that funds
performing poorly in terms of her scorecard, “could have their
licences revoked”, is a non-issue, as Pension Funds were not
licensed entities. Funds were merely required to register with the
Financial Services Board for regulatory purposes.
However, the TRUSTEES responsible for the management and
administration of the MOTOR INDUSTRY RETIREMENT
FUNDS were appalled to learn that the Motor Industry Pension
and Provident Funds had been included in her list of 20 “most
poorly rated funds”.
Her public utterances and rating of the industry have been poor-
ly researched and unfounded. They are both damaging to the
retirement fund industry and irresponsible. A public apology and
retraction would be appropriate.
The Motor Industry Pension Fund was merged some four years
ago with two other pension funds to create a closed pension fund
of some 8 000 pensioners. At the same time the Motor Industry
Provident Fund was established currently with some 40 000
members. Both funds function extremely well and are closely
monitored by the TRUSTEES, the Fund’s ACTUARY, separate
firms of EXTERNAL and INTERNAL AUDITORS and most
importantly THE FINANCIAL SERVICES BOARD in its role
as regulator. The MIFA Management and Board support sound
governance principles and ongoing monitoring by the FSB, valu-
ing the impeccable relationship developed over the years.
44
MIFA administers two Pension Funds (defined benefit Funds)
and two large Provident Funds on behalf of the retail motor
industry employees. The total active membership is 200 662.
During the past twelve months no less than 38 000 claims were
successfully finalised by the Funds’ Administrator. Any attempt by
Insurance Brokers/Agents to capitalise on the score-card publicity
must be seen as pure opportunism.
It is a fact that frivolous cases are often referred to the Office of
the Adjudicator. It is also a fact of life that nobody has any con-
trol over the submission of a frivolous complaint, totally devoid of
substance. Both the Funds and the Office of the Adjudicator sim-
ply have to deal with it and inform the complainant of his/her
legal rights and benefits available in terms of the rules of the rele-
vant fund.
Even if all known complaints, whether frivolous or not, are taken
into account it would represent only 0.12% of the entire mem-
bership served by MIFA! Most importantly, the
Pension Fund’s Adjudicator has not found it necessary to issue a
single determination against ANY of the Funds administered by
MIFA over the past two years! Over the past ten years only one
determination went against us!
The TRUSTEES are deeply disappointed that the outgoing
Pension Funds Adjudicator, in her enthusiastic attempts to pro-
mote her “score-card” legacy, made public utterances, damaging
to the good reputation of our Funds (earned over some 56 years)
without proper prior research. We refute in the strongest terms
the inclusion of any of the Funds administered by MIFA in her
list of twenty poorly rated Funds.
Issued by the BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF MIFA AND
TRUSTEES OF THE FUNDS UNDER ADMINISTRA-
TION BY MIFA.
November 2009
 Benteler
Automotive
brings
investment
and jobs to
Uitenhage
Benteler Automotive has
announced a R178 million
investment, which will bring with it 250 jobs, into the Nelson Mandela Bay Logistics Park in
Uitenhage. The company is the ninth investor into the Park, and will directly supply to next door
neighbour, Volkswagen of South Africa. Benteler Automotive will produce dashboard carrier pan-
els and body parts, front and rear bumpers and chassis parts to VW of SA. “Benteler’s supplier
status forms part of Volkswagen of South Africa’s business strategy to increase the local content of
vehicles manufactured for both the domestic and export markets. The company’s all-out initiative
is to achieve 70% local content in its South African produced vehicles,” said VW of SA Managing
Director, David Powels. “In addition to the local content benefits the company’s investment
brings to VW of SA, it is also beneficial to the region due to the skills transfer that will take place
from a multinational such as Benteler. We welcome and congratulate Benteler on their invest-
ment in the region,” continued Powels. Construction of the company’s 19 125m2 facility started
on 1 October, and the scheduled date of completion is June next year. The company will start to
install its equipment in March, and it expects to start production by mid-June. The total size of
the company’s property is 50 000m2.

OVER INFLATION COSTS TYRE

LIFE, TRACTION
Over-inflating your car’s tyres will cost you money and could affect your safety on the road,
according to SA tyre maker Bridgestone. Romano Daniels, General Manager of Group
Communications and Marketing, explained that tyres are designed to function best when correct-
ly inflated. “If tyres are pumped too hard, they start to bulge in the centre of the tread,” he
explained. “That means the shoulders are no longer in proper contact with the road and that the
centre of the tread has to carry the entire load of the tyre. This is why over-inflated tyres wear so
much faster in the middle,” he said. Daniels also explained that the reduced contact patch can
have serious safety implications. He said that the tyre’s resistance to road debris might be reduced;
meaning a sharp stone or nail might puncture the tyre more easily. He also said that the road hold-
ing of a car with over-inflated tyres would be compromised. Daniels recommended that motorists
check their tyre pressures at least once a week and inflate them to the manufacturer’s recommend-
ed values using an accurate tyre gauge. “Consult your owner’s handbook to ensure the pressures
are correct – you’ll be extending your tyre life and ensuring that your car handles safely and pre-
dictably,” he concluded.

Answer
from page 35

November 2009 45
 Schaeffler Shorts

The Timing is Right

INA was founded in 1946 by Dr. Georg Schaeffler, together with his brother Wilhelm, in
the town of Herzogenaurach (near Nurenberg) in Germany. Three years later, Georg
Schaeffler put INA on the world map by developing the needle roller bearing with cage
assembly, which made the needle roller bearing a reliable component for automotive and
industrial applications. In 1965, INA invested in a new company named Luk (Lamellen und
Kupplungsbau GmbH), which was situated in Bühl, near Baden-Baden in south western
Germany. INA eventually took full control of LuK in 1999, and in 2001 it continued with
its acquisition activities with the acquisition of FAG Kugelfischer Georg Schäfer AG,
Schweinfurt. FAG (Fischers Aktein-Gesellschaft) is an iconic brand registered in 1905,
and Friedrich Fischer, the first man to manufacture absolutely round steel balls, is cred-
ited as the man who gave Schweinfurt its status as the ball bearing capital of the world.
In 2002, FAG, INA and LuK were merged to form the Schaeffler Group.

The Schaeffler Team, left to right: Cavin Hearne, Product Manger Bearings; Phillip Erasmus, Customer Service Manager;
Daniel Wolff, Business Development Manager, Engine Componentry, Schaeffler Group Automotive Aftermarket;
Tim Langdon, General Manager Automotive Aftermarket

T
he reason for this historic introduction is because
whilst the South African automotive industry is
fully aware of the LuK and FAG brands, the INA
brand has tended to take a back seat in our neck
of the woods, primarily through historical cir-
cumstances. This oversight has meant that the
INA brand’s worldwide status and recognition, and its extensive
product range, are not well known in this country in the
Aftermarket . The Schaeffler Group has decided to correct this
anomaly, and as part of this INA awareness programme it recent-
ly sent Daniel Wolff, Business Development Manager, Engine
Components, Schaeffler Group Automotive Aftermarket, to visit
our shores, to begin a series of initiatives around the INA brand
and product range. ABR met with Daniel at the Partinform held
at the East Cape Training Centre, Port Elizabeth on the 13th
October, to learn more about his mission. Daniel confirmed that
INA has a global presence in the original equipment and automo-
tive aftermarket in passenger cars, LCV and commercial vehicles,
represented on every continent, and with vehicle manufacturers
throughout the world relying on application solutions developed
by INA. INA is particularly strong in Europe, whilst also being a
significant player in Asia and the Americas. INA’s product range
for timing belt drive transmission systems and front end accesso-
ry drive systems (FEAD) trains is extensive and includes clutch
release bearings (well known in South Africa), hydraulic bucket
tappets, finger follower and hydraulic pivot elements, tripod
rollers, axial and radial bearings, tripod rollers and much more.
Chassis, gearbox and engine transmisson products have grown
over the years, and INA is now at the forefront in providing
mature solutions for the engine, such as hydraulic and mechani-
cal bucket tappets, rocker arms, finger follower and hydraulic
pivot elements as well as water pump bearings and other innova-
tive products. In addition, a large number of timing belt drive
components are available: idlers, mechanical and hydraulic belt
tensioners or overrunning alternator pulleys, et al. With a market
share of 55%, INA is the market leader in supplying timing and
front end accessory belt drive components to car manufacturers
and the aftermarket, and it it is with this heritage behind them
that Schaeffler South Africa is launching a local timing and front
end accessory belt tensioner range to create a footprint in South
Africa. The initial range will cover 90 part no’s, but will be grad-
ually rolled out to eventually cover the 700 applications for our
car parc. Daniel Wolff says that there is room for this product in
the aftermarket in South Africa, and it fits into the Schaeffler
strategy of finding the right time for INA products. Service and
availability will be the focus in a targeted marketing campaign to
specialist workshops, the wholesale trade and retail shops, to get
the market to accept the INA name and to expand the range in
the future, as it takes its rightful place alongside the more estab-
lished LuK & FAG brands.

46 November 2009
1

by Marcus Haw
Tyres
At this time of the year, a number of “events” usually take place
which have a direct effect on tyres and road safety.
I
n this issue we would like to take a
look at a few of these and warn fleet
controllers about the possibilities.
Fleet costs can rise rapidly if these
factors are ignored, but with a little
thought, can easily be contained.The most
regular and obvious is the start of our
Gauteng summer rains. These bring all
the diesel and dirt from the dry winter
months to the surface and more damaging
to tyres, they quickly result in the develop-
ment of hundreds of potholes. No roads
are exempt from this. Highways, back
roads and urban and suburban roads are
all affected.
Our roads also tend to get busier around
this period, possibly due to reps putting in
some hard work to reach their targets
before year end. Seriously though, as the
year gets into it’s final haul there seems to
be a rush of business with daily inter city
travel on the increase. The breaking up of
the roads is therefore made even worse. So
52
and Their
Contribution to
Safety in Motoring
we have an increase in daily mileage, on
rapidly deteriorating roads, and to add to
the adventure of the season the smooth
tyres start showing up as the roads get slip-
pery. Fleet controller’s nightmare has
arrived!
Amazingly this all happens every year.
More amazingly people ignore it every year
and end up with smooth tyres as the first
rains arrive. This was graphically illustrat-
ed to us recently when we did an
impromptu survey of a small fleet. The
fleet was made up of the director’s car, the
sales manager and his three rep’s cars and
four hardworking bakkies. The average
remaining tread depth between all the
tyres on all these vehicles was below 4mm.
The director’s car was fitted with four
month old tyres so you get a picture of
how bad the rest were. This example is not
as unusual as one would hope. Next time
you are at your favourite shopping centre,
just take notice of the tyres on the cars
parked around you. While doing this keep
in mind that once standing water exceeds
or equals the depth of your tread you will
ride on top of the water not though it.
Remember too that tyres are THE ONLY
things between you and the road. Once
you are on top of the water all control is
lost. After a good downfall it is very com-
mon to find patches of water deeper than
5mm almost everywhere. Why do people
insist on taking chances? They die on our
roads every day. They know these facts,
they are not hidden.
For the fleet controller, this ignorance,
apathy or stupidity of the average driver
must be a nightmare. The cost of new tyres
is no longer a piddly consideration. But
when compared to the cost of panel beat-
ing, funerals and training new staff they
are a bargain. But to monitor the tyres in a
big fleet is a considerable undertaking, and
relying on the drivers to be responsible
is taking a chance to say the least.
November 2009
The only answer is put controls in place
which somehow highlights the “tyre
change time” per vehicle. And then disci-
pline the drivers to heed the rules.
In the previous issue we spent some time
on the fact that more and more vehicle
manufacturers are choosing lower and
lower profile tyres for their latest offerings.
As mentioned, they are needed for the
handling precision required by today’s
cars.
We however need to understand the pit-
falls and manage our resources. Low pro-
file tyres do need some thought and man-
agement where potholes are involved.
Understand that as good as these tyres are,
and as strong as they may be, they are
never the less very much more rigid, and
less flexible than tyres with higher profiles.
Damage through pothole impact is often
fatal to a tyre, and the instances involving
total destruction of the tyre are higher
with extremely low profile tyres. We wit-
nessed recently, while driving through a
badly potholed area how people react. The
car in front of us slowed down to about 40
km/h, as we did, and was weaving in and
out avoiding the potholes. The driver was
driving an X registration (very new vehi-
cle) executive saloon with accessory rims
and ultra low profile tyres. But after about
a kilometre of slow driving, his patience
ran out and he sped off into the sunset,
obviously with no feeling for his expensive
car or it’s equipment. More likely, it was a
fleet car. But the worry is more the safety
aspect. The way he was driving he was
going to damage both tyres and rims.
There’s just no way they could have with-
November 2009
stood those holes. We certainly wouldn’t
have done what he did not even in a 4X4
with huge off-road tyres.
This is a problem that both fleet owners
and tyre dealers share. When tyres are
treated in this way, and they fail, there is
just no chance that one will get the truth
out of the driver. They all blame the tyre
and usually want to change brands. A tyre
dealer can tell if the tyre has been abused,
and can refuse to claim the tyre. But how
does the fleet owner/controller react to
these lies and excuses from those he works
with. There’s no way he can prove what
happened to the tyre, and even if experts
are consulted, it remains their word
against that of the user. But his costs are
going to skyrocket if he can’t take control.
It makes a very good case for tyre pressure
monitors though. At least if the tyre’s pres-
sures are correct, they have a better chance
of resisting pothole damage. As we have
previously discussed tyre pressures are so
neglected that the chances of anyone con-
sidering that they should take extra pre-
cautions because of road breakup is high-
ly unlikely. But a buzzer screaming in their
ear might actually force some reaction out
of them.
Whatever method is used, one should be
found to maintain the pressures and force
the drivers to take more care of their tyres.
As already mentioned if the road death
toll doesn’t get them thinking, nothing
will. And so, all the vehicles in a fleet
could have smooth underinflated tyres
just when the rains start. As I said, a fleet
owner’s headache!
The above rhetoric is given in the hope
that all readers, both fleet controllers and
private users get to understand the safety
concerns involved here. While it tends to
be worse during the coming period, these
are factors which should be of concern at
all times in all areas. It is impossible for
the fleet owner to be in total control of all
aspects of all his vehicles all of the time,
but it is in his interests to at least get con-
trol of his tyres. The safety of his staff and
all road users depends to a large extent on
all those in charge of fleets taking respon-
sibility for the safety aspects of the vehicles
in their control. Just the same as we are
responsible for the safety aspect of our
vehicles, so should all road users be for
their vehicles.
Especially during the current economic
climate, costs are an enormous considera-
tion, although safety should still be a
higher consideration. Maybe the purchas-
ing of those tyre gauges mentioned before
should be done really quickly now, and
maybe serious consideration should be
given to pressure warning systems. They
may just be the best investment you’ve
ever made.
Travel safe, Think Safety
– Think Tyre Safety!
www.bridgestone.co.za
53
 Diamond Dialogues

Editorial
Partnership
Giel Steyn

In this series of articles ABR discusses with Giel Steyn of Grandmark International the four significant factors that should be taken into
account when purchasing automotive parts - Technology, Quality, Safety and Value for Money. These four characteristics are inter-related, and
each cannot stand on their own, and together they become a motorist's best friend. Similarly, diamonds are also judged on four characteristics,
known as the “four c's” - carat, clarity, colour and cut; and of course, diamonds are a girl's best friend. Grandmark International, as a dis-
tributor of automotive parts, is keenly aware of the need to source only the best in Technology, Quality, Safety and Value for Money, and
therefore it is appropriate that this series of articles is titled Diamond Dialogues.

Opening the Doors of Perception to

Standards and Controls
In 1954 Aldous Huxley explored “the doors of perception” in an iconic book, and a title that he
borrowed from William Blake, looking at mankind’s confusion with the real and perceived world,
and the inability to see the big picture because of the narrow crevices of observation. From an auto-
motive aftermarket perspective, Aldous Huxley could also have been writing about the SABS, and
people’s perception of what actually the SABS is all about. To clarify this and to clear the uncer-
tainty is very important, because it impacts strongly and has an effect on the diamond dialogues of
technology, quality, safety, and value for money. Thus, Giel Steyn, who for years carried the man-
tle of responsibility for policing quality and standards in the retail motor industry, wishes to open
the doors of perception on standards and controls.

T
o kick off, Giel Steyn would like primary purpose of protecting the con-
to compliment the SABS for the sumer, and serving a national need.
role it has played and continues Initially, both standards and the regulation
to play – in the past, in the pres- thereof were managed by the SABS, and
ent, and in the future. Standards bodies this did tend to cause confusion and even
like the SABS play an essential role and are the perception of a conflict of interest.
assets to any country, because as Giel puts This was solved by a new Act for the cre-
it, “no country or organisation without ation of a National Regulator of
standards has a long term future”, and Compulsory Standards, independent of
organisations such as Grandmark the SABS, which is now covered by a
International are proud of the quality stan- revised Standards Act. To take this line of
dards that the SABS maintains, and are thinking further, the SABS consists of two
proud to be associated with these stan- major entities: a Standards Division, to
dards. In addition, the SABS mark, which fulfil its primary role, and a Commercial
guarantees a high level of consistent quali- Division, which runs on a profit motive
ty, performance, safety and durability, and and charges for its services. The Standards
is conferred by the commercial division of Division creates, establishes and maintains
the SABS, is strongly accepted, and once standards, in conjunction with industry
again Grandmark International proudly and consumers. It has a very broad man-
uses this mark on certain important prod- date, covering an incredibly diverse and
uct categories such as glass and lamps. broad canvas of product and services, rang-
ing from automotive, buildings, paraffin
The question on many people’s minds may stoves, condoms, even the grading of
still be. “What exactly does the SABS do?” tourism facilities It has marketing and
This question may apply to automotive commercial functions, and as part of these
product, it may apply to domestic appli- activities it has set itself up as an interna-
ances, and it may apply to many other tional standards body with representation
things that we use in our daily lives. on the international ISO committee, and
Irrespective of what the product is, the operates various testing facilities which are
principle remains the same. The SABS internationally (SANAS) accredited. The
originally served twin functions under one Commercial Division assists industry in
Act of Parliament; known as the Standards meeting these standards, but with a com-
Act, including the regulation of compulso- mercial edge.
ry specifications. Thus the SABS was an
institution created by Parliament, with the More on this in the next issue of ABR.

54 November 2009
 Personal
INTERVIEW INTERVIEW WITH DARRYL JACOBSON –
MD OF BURCHMORE’S
When you think of vehicle auctions, only one name comes to mind. Burchmore’s. When
you think Burchmore’s, only one man comes to mind there as well. Darryl Jacobson.
Despite the World and South Africa being in recession, Darryl and his team have
turned Burchmore’s into a company that is the jewel in the crown of the McCarthy
Motor Holdings Empire.
Q: You are one of the old style motor
men?
A: Yes – my policy is you are in the motor
business to sell cars and to give service to
your customers. Stick with these two basics
and you will be successful.
Q: How long have you been in the
motor business in South Africa?
A: For the last 24 years.
Q: Where did you start?
A: I started off in the motor business with
Currie Motors as a Financial Accountant.
They and I soon realised this was not for
me and I started selling cars in Pretoria and
ended up as a Dealer Principal for them.
In 1985 I joined the McCarthy Group
with City Motors selling Mazdas in the
centre of the city.
Q: What got you into auctioneering?
A: Errol Richardson, who was a heavy at
McCarthy’s, offered me a job in 1992 to
head up Burchmore’s, which had become
part of the McCarthy Motor Holdings
Group. Since then it has been my life. We
have expanded successfully from Sandton
to Durban and Cape Town. Generally we
56
profile
Q&A
have two auctions per week in each of these
centres.
Q: Burchmore’s are specialists?
A: Yes, we specialise in selling motor vehi-
cles only, unlike some of the others, who
are all things to all people. We are a true
motor car auction group which has now
expanded into selling off the floor which is
a unique worldwide concept. In essence a
customer can buy off the floor or on auc-
tion.
Q: You don’t only sell to the Trade?
A: No, we sell to both the trade and pri-
vate sector off the floor and on auction.
We auction Bank repossessions and also
McCarthy trade-ins to help the McCarthy
branches to move stock that is not part of
their franchise. Besides that, we are the
biggest Dealer for the Chinese Chery
brand in South Africa, which is also start-
ing to do well for us and will expand in the
future.
Q: How do you find the current car
market?
A: There is a sensitivity to price. People
want value for money and this is what we
give them. Thus the concept of wholesale
to the public.
by Roger McCleery
Q: Are the banks helping you sell these
days?
A: Lately they seem to be loosening up
and we are fortunate that we sell at market
prices. Thus there is more equity in the
deal.
Q: Where did you grow up?
A: I am a Yeoville boy, born and bred. I
went to King Edward School and played
cricket and did some competitive swim-
ming.
Q: What did you want to be after
school?
A: My first choice was hotel management
but was persuaded to do accounting by
protective parents.
Q: After school?
A: I did my National Service and then
obtained a degree at Wits University but
the Board exam caught me out.
Q: Are your two children ambitious?
A: Kelly, my daughter is a BA.LLb and
Adam, my son, is studying for his Masters
in Actuarial Science. They are far cleverer
than me.
Q: You have another ten years or so to
go before you retire. What would you
like to do?
A: Consult in the Used Car Industry,
which is probably the most important part
of the motor industry.
Q: Other ambitions?
A: Go to the U.K. and become a full-time
professional fan of Tottenham Hotspurs
Football Club. I have always supported
them.
Q: Mentors in your life?
A: There have been a number. Harold
Bromberg of Currie Motors, Ray
Nethercott who was my Principal
at Burchmore’s and obviously Brand
Pretorius, CEO of McCarthy’s.
November 2009
 Alert

There are many issues confronting the automotive industry, most of them impacting on
all the players across the spectrum. The automotive aftermarket segment of this
dynamic and complex industry plays a vital role in the mobility of South Africans, and
matters of concern are relevant to the industry as a whole. Automotive Business
Review has introduced a monthly column, titled AAMA Alert, to bring to light the
pros and cons of specific matters impacting the industry.

A Volatile Rand
L
isten to any news bulletin on the radio, or watch the
news on TV, and you’re bound to learn what you’ll be
paying for an ounce of gold or a barrel of oil on that
particular day. All important, because our psyche is
inextricably bound to the fortunes of gold, and our
economy is inextricably bound to the ups and downs of black
gold. You’ll also be apprised of how the stock markets are faring
across the globe, because the wealth of nations rides on the whims
of speculators like a demented roller coaster. And definitely, you’ll
be informed how many Rands you’ll need to part with to purchase
one US Dollar, or one Euro, or other important currencies in
which we trade, such as the Japanese Yen, the British Pound, or
the Zimbabwean Dollar. My apologies, scratch the last one. The
reason why we are fed this information, ad nauseam, on the hour,
is that the way our currency performs across the globe is impor-
tant to many people, not least the businesses importing and
exporting product, and in the case of the automotive industry
many businesses’ very existence depends on it. At the very least, a
volatile currency can make planning an absolute nightmare.
Many executives must yearn for the good old days, when curren-
cies were pegged as per the Bretton Woods Agreement, and
Reserve Bank Governors and Finance Ministers were consigned to
ceremonial roles. Investment decisions and procurement policies
were based on cast in stone currency values, and not the hit and
miss affairs that characterise today’s long term planning meetings.
South Africa is particularly vulnerable to the whims and fancies of
the arbitrage cowboys, as our currency is one of the highest trad-
ed on the planet. The Rand ebbs and flows on the neap tide of
Dow Jones and FTSE indices, commodity booms and busts,
political shenanigans, and even (pathetically in the case of New
Zealand) the fortunes of rugby and cricket teams, and the gender
of its athletes. The sporting analogy may be taking it a bit too far,
but there is no doubt that domestic and international events play
a significant role in the performance of our currency, and that the
speculators have a field day when big news is about to break, or
breaks, or even may never ever break. It is all a crazy St. Vitus
dance egged on by the suits in corporate suites and opulent offices
in Wall Street, or Throgmorton Street. Great grist to the mills of
Fleet Street, and headline grabbing stuff for the financial fourth
estate, but gut wrenching poison for those involved in the legiti-
mate business of manufacturing, trading and servicing. These
poor slobs are desperately looking for some certainty, so they
indulge in hedging to try to inject some sanity in their plans, but
even hedging has become something of a slippery slope to nego-
tiate, and many high profile businesses have been gored on the
horns of an injudicious gamble, not least being SAA.
From AAMA’s perspective, this horror story is the scenario facing
the executives responsible for the financial performance of auto-
motive component manufacturers and traders in the South
African automotive aftermarket, day in and day out, and particu-
larly for those who are subsidiaries of multinationals, and who are
expected to make investment decisions and to deliver a decent
return on that investment, not in Rands, but in the particular for-
eign currency of the head office of the multinational. It all makes
for a wild river ride akin to a number six rapid. ABR shall look at
this subject in more depth in the December 2009 issue. In the
interim, we suggest that you take a look at Tony Twine’s article on
page 18.

58 November 2009
 Customer C.A.R.E.

Customer Relationship Management

– some grasp the value
Theo Calitz has been
but most companies seem
working in or involved
in the motor industry
for the last 16 years.
A Mechanical
to miss it altogether or
get it wrong!
Engineer by
profession, he is pas-
sionate about customer
care and his company,
T-R-M specialises in
automotive CRM for CRM is definitely a concept that has become part of our everyday
the automotive indus- lives. Some of our encounters are actually quite pleasant (which
try and has been doing is what it is supposed to be!) and some of the interactions are
it for nine years.
downright irritating.

L
et me illustrate. One of the first elements of a
CRM programme is to build a database about
your customer in order to understand them
better and meet them at their point of need.
Sometimes this is great, like the Amazon.com
experience. By tracking my buying patterns
they know what type of books interest me. The
information they share with me is therefore
great and relevant. Although not as sophisticated I also find value
from the things Fanatics (the Exclusive Books Loyalty
Programme) does. It also seems that the banks (especially the
smaller ones like Investec and BOE) seem to get it right with their
private clients.
to cheap ways to communicate with them (like e-mail) does not
mean that people should be harassed. One always wonders where
they get your details…
Because of this phenomenon the authorities are finding it neces-
sary to implement legislation in order to protect the public and
the pending Consumer Protection Act of 2009 is a pivotal exam-
ple. This is an extensive piece of Legislation (380 pages long!) and
to my knowledge the largest Act ever to be promulgated. There
are now more laws governing the rights of the customer rights
than laws governing the health profession! This indicates that
something is going wrong – very wrong and I somehow feel that
the inappropriate application of CRM principles is responsible….

Unfortunately it also seems that a lot of companies who do not
understand these concepts or do not want to make the proper
investment to do it right jump on the bandwagon. Consequently
we all get these endless streams of irritating SMS’s, e-mails and
phone calls about some product which I do not need (like a cell
phone contract – how can that be useful if I am already locked
into a 2 year contract!?). Sometimes the experience borders on
harassment. Having information about your customer and access
The positive thing here is that the unscrupulous elements are
being managed better and that the companies that do understand
and apply the elements correctly will not be affected by these laws.
The concept of free choice for the customers and opting into
being contacted is healthy and right.
With the necessary checks and balances in place where customers
are only contacted for the right reasons, maybe CRM can take its
rightful place again.

www.t-r-m.co.za
T 0861 TRM TRM
F 086 686 8382

60 November 2009

MODULE SIX – STEP # ONE :
COMMITMENT TO YOUR CUSTOMER
We discussed the problem of LIP SERVICE in chapter five, and
the failure to live up to promises and commitments.
I promised that we shall look at ways of avoiding this, and to
explore the first steps to creating a customer care
culture in your company.
Y
ou may have
noticed that in the
previous modules I
addressed the short-
comings of compa-
nies in the art of
customer care, with
a strong touch of
hyperbole. Such an observation is correct.
I have tended to go over the top, and to
over-dramatise both the situation and my
reaction. Why do I not approach the situ-
ation dispassionately, and clinically dissect
the facts, with a detailed plan to address
the shortcomings in a structured, unemo-
tional and rational manner? As a well-
trained manager, I should analyse the situ-
ation, define the objectives, assess the
resources and logistics, prepare a plan, ini-
tiate the recommendations, review the per-
formance, implement corrective action,
etc. etc. etc. I agree. You are correct.
Customer Care should be treated as a
management discipline, and a very impor-
tant one at that. It should be subjected to
the same checks and balances as, for exam-
ple, production management, or financial
management, or personnel management.
You are right, but so am I. Customer Care
policies, of course, must be exposed to the
same management scrutiny as all the other
activities in the company. Someone once
62
Customer C.A.R.E. Programme
– sponsored by Federal-Mogul
Well, I do keep my promises.
said that “Customer Care is a Science, not
an Emotion”. Once again, I agree, but
with an important rider. Customer Care IS
a science, not an emotion, but it MUST be
treated with PASSION! That is why I
repeat over and over again that CUS-
TOMER C.A.R.E. is the intellectual and
EMOTIONAL understanding that
C.A.R.E. means CUSTOMERS ARE
REALLY EVERYTHING.
There is a lot to be said for treating other
disciplines with passion, and maybe one
day some lateral thinking accountant ( do
they exist? ) will come up with some pro-
gressive and innovative new GAAP’s.
Imagine an accounting tome with the title
“Perspiring over the Double Entry”, or “I
got spanked on the bottom line”. In the
same vein, what do accountants use for
contraception? Their personalities!
Enough of this bean counter bashing -
some of my best friends are accountants.
We have just indulged in what may seem
to be some irrelevant and irreverent banter.
However, it is not irrelevant, because a
sense of humour is an important attribute
for any job, and it is vital for the correct
treatment of customers. I quote Victor
Borge, “Laughter is the shortest distance
between two people”. This, I heartily
endorse. So, we have established that pas-
sion is OK in customer care, and we’ve also
established that a sense of humour is not a
bad thing. What we are really saying is that
you must have fun in the workplace. Enjoy
what you are doing, and gain sustenance
and growth from it, be enriched by it. You
are spending most of your waking life at
work, so why waste your life? We’ll come
back to this important point in later issues.
But back to what I promised, and have
been threatening to do for some time - to
tell you how to create a customer care cul-
ture in your company. It’s easy - and it is
only the first part that could be tough for
the chief executive. As I’ve said frequently,
customer care begins with the chief execu-
tive, so we have to start there.
STEP # 1
The first step is for the chief executive to
acknowledge that customer care is impor-
tant to the company, and important to
him/her. I don’t want shallow behaviour
here, we are talking true blue commit-
ment, and something akin to a born again
experience. Therefore, we need a “ public
“ ceremony. By public I mean in-house,
where every single employee is present. At
this ceremony, it is important that the
chief executive publicly acknowledges
his/her sins of the past, and to promise
that from this day forth, the customer will
take precedence over anything else.
November 2009
 Customer C.A.R.E. Programme
– sponsored by Federal-Mogul
This is not an extraordinary promise, for in a true customer care culture, all
activities in the organisation would always be customer orientated anyway. I
recommend the laying of a wreath at the tomb of the unknown customer. An
DISCUSSION
actual physical monument should be erected for this occasion, as a reminder
of this very auspicious moment. This is to recognise the fact that many cus-
POINTS
tomers have been lost because of past misdeeds, but more importantly, it is to
atone for these sins, and to publicly symbolise the commitment to never for-
1. Tell a joke about your profession,
get who the most important person is in everyone’s working life - the CUS-
e.g. if you’re an engineer, let’s
TOMER! Heavy stuff, but symbolically important. If you believe that this is
hear one about engineers.
all a bit rich for your company, then come up with something else, which is
2. Why is it important to be able to
more suitable for your culture, or personalities. But a heavy symbolism is nec-
laugh at life, and particularly, to
essary, as it carries a certain weight. Don’t pooh pooh what I am saying;
be able to laugh at yourself?
remember the over the top funeral for Princess Diana, which was taken
extremely seriously by billions of people. Or, closer to home, the public adula-
3. Do you think that it is demeaning
tion of President Mandela on his 90th birthday. Everyone loves icons, and a bit
for senior management to “dirty
of pomp and ceremony. Now that you have made a public spectacle of your-
their hands”?
self, the process begins where everyone else is subjected to the same treatment.
Everyone has to make this commitment to the customer, in front of his/her 4. You may not like the idea of hav-
peers. Remember that at this stage everything is still symbolic and in-house. ing a tomb for the unknown cus-
You are still a long way from telling your customers how wonderful you are. tomer, or the wreath laying cere-
mony.
In the next module, we shall continue the saga of the unknown customer.
What suggestions do you have for a
physical reminder, and a ceremony?

64
November 2009 65
 Q&A

by Roger McCleery

Roger McCleery asks the questions

See how many of these 20 Questions you can answer.
1. Name the driver who has led the Formula World Championship all year.

2. Who is his closest competitor?

3. What does CC mean on the latest Volkswagen luxury sedan?

4. What driver has won the South African Off-road Championship for the second time this year?

5. Who makes a motor car called “Linea”?

6. Who is the number 1 driver for Team Timken in the WesBank V8 Supercar Team?

7. What car manufacturer from Europe is going to establish an office in South Africa?

8. Name the two biggest motor retail groups in South Africa.

9. Who is the new Chairman of Renault in South Africa?

10. Who is the new MD of Motorsport South Africa?

11. Who are the likely drivers for Ferrari in 2010?

12. Who is the VP of Sales and Marketing at General Motors in South Africa?

13. What company imports Hankook Tyres from Korea into the country?

14. What make of car finished 1st and 2nd at the Le Mans 24-hour Race in 2009?

15. How many years has Volkswagen officially been in motorsport in South Africa?

16. What company manufactures the Renault Logan?

17. How many years has the Hi-Q Tyre Retail Group been in operation in South Africa?

18. What engine was voted – “Engine of the Year” in 2009?

19. What company has supplied 125 buses to the new Gautrain feeder fleet?

20. How many Mini’s have been produced since BMW took over the brand in 2001?

Answers on page 86

Dunlop/Apollo’s Schramm confirmed
as a keynote speaker for Tyrexpo
Africa’10 conference
A leading figure from the African tyre industry has agreed to speak at next year’s
TyrexpoAfrica conference in Johannesburg. Georg Schramm, head of marketing and
sales for Apollo Tyres South Africa (Pty) Limited, will be a keynote speaker at the
inaugural event next March.
M
r Schramm is responsible for all
marketing and sales for the
Dunlop brand in South Africa
as well as Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and
Swaziland. He will provide an expert
insight into tyre manufacturing in the
African market. He will be joined at the
conference by Dr Etienne Human, chief
executive officer of SATRP, the South
Africa Tyre Recycling Programme. Dr
Human will outline the work and remit of
the not-for-profit organisation that was
established to tackle the waste tyre prob-
November 2009
Show
lem in South Africa and support a sustain-
able waste tyre producer industry.
Members of the body include Bridgestone,
Continental, Dunlop and Goodyear,
Michelin, Pirelli, Maxiprest and Trentyre.
“We are delighted with the support we’ve
received from the industry in putting
together the conference programme,” said
ECI managing director Paul Farrant. “In
Georg Schramm we have a senior figure
from one of the country’s major tyre man-
ufacturers, while Dr Human will provide
an update on how the industry is respond-
ing to the challenge of dealing with the
scrap tyre issue that affects all producers
and distributors.”
Further speakers for the one-day confer-
ence that will run alongside the exhibition
will be announced in the coming months.
In other news, South African exhibitor
Tubestone will be showing a new range at
the exhibition for the first time, following
the announcement by managing director
Pieter Kruger that the company is set to
distribute the well-known Taiwanese
brand, Nankang. A full range should be
available by the time of the show. ECI has
also confirmed that visitors and delegates
can now use their online pre-registration
service at www.eci-international.com to
guarantee fast and hassle-free entry to the
show. Exhibition hours have been struc-
tured to include late night opening on
Friday until 8.00pm, allowing conference
delegates and visitors to attend after busi-
ness hours. The last day of the exhibition
will be a Saturday, offering further incen-
tive for those unable to attend during the
Time
working week. By the beginning of
September, floor space for Tyrexpo Africa
2010 was more than 65% occupied and on
track to meet targets set by the organisers.
There is a current balance of 40% nation-
al to 60% international companies exhibit-
ing, with strong representation from
China, India, south east Asia, the Middle
East, Europe and the US. Commenting
on recent developments, Paul Farrant,
said: “It’s clear from the response we’ve had
from exhibitors that tyre businesses are
taking a very positive approach to 2010,
expecting that the worst of the economic
squeeze will have passed. Despite the slow
down, Southern Africa remains an attrac-
tive place to do business for international
buyers and sellers.”
Tyrexpo Africa 2010 will provide trade vis-
itors with direct access to tyre suppliers
including Stamford, Infinity, BKT,
Tandem, Techking, Tubestone and SA Tyre
Distributors, while those involved in
retreading will be able to do business with
the likes of Elgi Rubber Company and
Treadsdirect. Garage and workshop
equipment will be well represented by sup-
pliers such as Leaderquip, Hofmann
Megaplan, Rema Tip Top and Steinbichler
Optotechnik, for optical measurement and
sensor technology. A full list of exhibitors
can be found on the ECI website at
www.eci-international.com.
The third staging of Tyrexpo Africa
will take place at the Sandton
Convention Centre, Johannesburg
(SCC) on 4, 5 and 6 March 2010.
67
 Robert Bosch

ESP® Basics
ABR discussed the significance of ESP® (Electronic Stability Programme), in both the
technological and safety implications, in its September 2009 issue, and we promised
to revisit ESP® and to have a closer look at the technical aspects. The subject is
vast, so we shall discuss this revolutionary invention in broad strokes, as whilst
ABR tries to be all things to all people, we cannot claim to be a technical journal.

B
efore we go any further, some clarification, if you
please. ESP® is the most commonly used acronym,
but there are different names for the same safety
benefit. 80 percent of vehicle manufacturers in
Europe use the acronym ESP® for the Electronic
Stability Programme. Some carmakers market the
ESP® under different names, such as DSC (Dynamic Stability
Control), VSA (Vehicle Stability Assist) or VSC (Vehicle Stability
Control). The functionality and operation of the ESP®, as well as
the gain it provides in driving safety, is the same. The rationale
behind these systems is clear. Skidding is one of the main causes
of road accidents. International studies show that at least 40 per-
cent of all fatal traffic accidents are caused by skidding. ESP®
could prevent up to 80 percent of all skidding accidents. ESP®
recognises if skidding is imminent and intervenes at lightning
speed. The driver stays in control of the vehicle and does not get
into a skid provided that the physical limits are not exceeded.
ESP® is always active. A microcomputer monitors the signals from
the ESP® sensors and checks 25 times a second, whether the dri- 1. Hydraulic modulator with attached control unit – the
ver's steering input corresponds to the actual direction in which modulator executes the commands from the control unit and
the vehicle is moving. If the vehicle moves in a different direction regulates, via solenoid valves, the pressures in the wheel
ESP® detects the critical situation and reacts immediately – inde- brakes. The modulator is the hydraulic connection between
pendently of the driver. It uses the vehicle's braking system to the master cylinder and the wheel cylinders. It is located in the
"steer" the vehicle back on track. With these selective braking engine compartment. The control unit takes over the electri-
interventions ESP® generates the desired counteracting force, so cal and electronic tasks as well as all control functions of the
that the car reacts as the driver intends. ESP® not only initiates system.
braking intervention, but can also intervene on the engine side to 2. Wheel-speed sensor – the control unit uses the signals from
accelerate the driven wheels. So, within the limits of physics, the the wheel-speed sensors to compute the speed of the wheels.
car is kept safely on the desired track. Two different operating principles are used: passive and active,
both measuring the wheel speed in contact-free mode via
ESP® substantially reduces the complexity of the steering process magnetic fields, with the emphasis on active, identifying both
and lessens the demands placed on the driver. ABS, TCS, and the direction of rotation and standstill of the wheel.
ESP® were all introduced to the market by Bosch, and the contin- 3. Steering-angle sensor – the task of the steering-angle sensor
uous development of the Electronic Stability Program ESP® by is to measure the position of the steering wheel by determin-
Bosch engineers offers a variety of hardware variants and software ing the steering angle, and thus, combined with the vehicle
functions tailored to the requirements of different types of vehicle speed and the desired braking pressure or the position of the
i.e. passenger cars or light commercial vehicles. In addition, ESP® accelerator pedal, the driving intention of the driver is calcu-
is the future enabling technology: By networking the ESP® with lated (desired state).
other systems in the vehicle Bosch realises a new dimension of
4. Yaw-rate and lateral-acceleration sensor – the yaw-rate
driving safety. The Bosch CAPS (Combined Active Passive Safety)
sensor registers all the movements of the vehicle around its
networks ESP®, the airbag system as well as driver assistance and
vertical axis. In combination with the integrated lateral-accel-
vehicle communication systems. The fundamental task of ESP® is
eration sensor, the status of the vehicle (actual state) can be
to prevent skidding. The possibilities offered by the ESP®, howev-
determined and compared with the driver’s intention.
er, go far beyond this. As ESP® can build up braking pressure
independently of the brake-pedal position, a series of so-called 5. Communication with engine management – via the data
value-added functions can be realised with ESP®. These provide bus, the ESP® control unit is able to communicate with the
additional driving safety and allow the driver to experience engine control unit. Thus, the engine torque can be reduced
enhanced driving comfort and driving agility. ABR shall look at if the driver accelerates too much in certain driving situations.
this in future issues. Similarly, it can compensate for excessive slip of the driven
wheels provoked by the engine drag torque.

68 November 2009
 A series of articles on the versatile FSA 720/740/754 series

The Golden Triangle – KTS, ESI[tronic], and FSA

In the October 2009 issue of ABR, South Africa’s premier automotive aftermarket publi-
cation, we began a real life examination of how the golden triangle of the KTS Compact
Control Unit Diagnostic Tester, the ESI[tronic] Service Information System, and the FSA
Engine Management System Analyser; work in sync with a qualified and experienced tech-
nician to solve a diagnostic teaser. We continue where we left off.

T
o recap briefly: the owner of a five year old BMW 535i
(e39) brought the car in, complaining of hard starting
and no oomph. Carlo du Plessis, proprietor of Cencar,
and a fan of the golden triangle procedure, had pro-
gressed to identifying that the problem definitely did not lie on
the power supply side, using Bosch equipment and a judgement
call based on experience. The detective work continues, and the
next step is to look at the trouble codes (anything from one to
twenty codes) as identified by the KTS via a physical print-out.
This print-out also has another important function, in the realm
of customer care, which is to keep the money paying customer in
the loop. Once this vital function is completed, the next thing
that Carlo does is to clear these trouble codes, and to repeat the
procedure. If one or two codes don’t clear this indicate that some-
thing is definitely wrong, and this is where the focus now moves.
If all codes clear, then Carlo recommends a test drive to build up
the codes again, because the codes that are left after the repeat
procedure are the most likely culprits, and they are causing all the
other error codes. Thus the hunt is on in a focused way.
to define the trouble codes around spark plugs, a relative compres-
sion test utilising the FSA to get an indication of the mechanical-
ly sound status, or go on to an air flow meter to measure air flow,
and as a corollary Carlo adds that he defines the lambda sensor as
the nose of the modern mechanic, as it smells trouble if there is
any trouble around.
Interestingly, in this case, the technician’s nose can also play a role,
as the odour of fuel is a telltale sign, and with this problem, the
whiff of something strange did lead Carlo to the eventual prob-
lem (but we will leave this for later). The modern car uses lamb-
da sensors to do the sniffing, as it is these sensors that detect
unburnt fuel or lack of fuel residue, which is used for feedback to
the ECU, and this clever little computer then regulates fuel and
air supply to bring everything back into balance.
Incidentally, the perfect ratio for the lambda sensor is 14,7 : 1 for
the perfect burn mixture, for reasons which we may go into in the
future.

A trained and qualified technician together with the Back to the problem.
golden triangle makes for an unbeatable combination. Everything is still check-
ing out okay, so the
sleuthing continues,
which we shall cover in
the next issue of ABR –
once again, watch this
space.

Step number three for Carlo is to look at the

fuel pressure, utilising the FSA and his expe-
rience. The usual suspect if the car is jerking
will be the spark plugs, whereas intermittent
jerking and power loss indicates to Carlo a fuel
problem. Now with the golden triangle Carlo has
an embarrassment of riches. He can use the KTS

November 2009 69
 Insights

Capricorn Society – an Effective Marketing

and Sales Tool in the Automotive Aftermarket
Supply and Service Chain
South Africa has an increasingly diverse car parc of over eight million vehicles plying its congested roads. Over five million
of these vehicles are passenger vehicles, and together with their larger cousins, they are a veritable goldmine for the purveyors
of automotive parts and service. The problem is that this goldmine is not just a few shafts in one location. It is spread across
the width and breadth of our vast country. Granted, 71% of this car parc is concentrated in just three provinces; Gauteng,
the Western Cape and KwaZulu Natal, but this is still a substantial area. And the other 29% spread more thinly over the
other six provinces cannot be ignored. Irrespective of where you find these vehicles, the vast majority of which are in daily
service, either private or commercial, they do need to be kept on the roads in serviceable condition, and this is where the
greater automotive aftermarket supply and service chain plays a vital role. Capricorn Society Limited is an integral part of
this supply and service chain.

T
he Automotive Aftermarket is huge and diverse,
and no one has come up with a definitive number
of the participants, but the accompanying box
provides a reasonably accurate guideline of who’s
who in the aftermarket zoo. Over 15 000 estab-
lishments; small, medium and large; who have to
be communicated with on a regular basis, which is a daunting task
no matter the size of the organisation. Magazines such as
Automotive Business Review can play a respectable role in com-
municating with the automotive aftermarket, but for day to day
interaction an army of representatives is required, which is simply
not economically feasible. Organisations thus have to make do
with varying levels of resources and utilise a range of procedures
and actions to get their message across, and to create demand for
their products. ABR caught up with Malcolm Perrie and Chris
Hillier, CEO and Sales & Marketing Director respectively of
Federal-Mogul Aftermarket Southern Africa (Pty) Ltd, at the
Midas/NAPA Conference held recently at the Emperors Palace,
Gauteng, on the 24th October 2009, to discuss one such support
mechanism, the Manufacturer Alliance Partner Programme of
Capricorn Society Limited. This programme is a vehicle created by
Capricorn to allow manufacturers and suppliers to cost effectively
get their message across to the Capricorn members, and very
importantly, to provide goods and services. The verdict from both
gentlemen was loud and clear – the Capricorn Preferred Supplier
Loyalty Programme is a winner. It allows suppliers such as Federal-
Mogul Aftermarket (FMA) to manage their supply chain and to
create demand pull right through the chain via incentives such as
reward points through the Capricorn Reward Points scheme.
The Automotive Aftermarket
• 4400 garages and fuel stations (most with service
workshops)
• 1800 specialised repairers
• 1350 new car dealerships
• 1580 used vehicle outlets
• 300 component manufacturers
FMA can purchase additional reward points to increase the incen-
tives on specific promotions, which allows them to target specific
customer groups, leveraging off the Capricorn data base. There are
many benefits to this, says Malcolm Perrie, not least the access to
a “phenomenal network of workshops”. Malcolm says that it is a
win-win situation, as the product is pulled through the tradition-
al distributor/wholesaler/retail channels, thus benefiting the entire
supply chain, and not being a threat to FMA’s distribution part-
ners. In addition, it creates a marketing platform for promotions,
branding, and awareness campaigns. And it even uplifts the work-
shops, as with the extra reward points they can offset against pay-
ment towards their account thus freeing up capital in the business
to purchase such necessities as tools, uniforms, etc. Malcolm and
Chris are in agreement that “it is another string in our bow, and it
sustains a great partnership, which is built on trust and respect.”
The peripatetic duo of Malcolm Perrie and Chris Hillier,
respectively CEO and Sales & Marketing Director of Federal-
Mogul Aftermarket Southern Africa (Pty) Ltd
• 150 “other” manufacturers
• 1700 tyre specialists and retreaders
• 480 engine reconditioners
• 170 body builders
• 2770 parts dealers
• 180 farm vehicle and equipment suppliers

To join Capricorn Society Limited call Rob Mildenhall on

083 654 2094 or e-mail him at
rob.mildenhall@capricorn.com.au or visit their website on
www.capricorn.com.au

70 November 2009
Marching to Pretoria
Mark Ratzer describes himself as the proud owner of Pretoria Diesel Centre cc. Not
in an arrogant way, but rather in the confident and self-assured manner befitting
someone of his background and training as a Bosch Diesel Technician, which has given
him the tools and ability to solve any diesel problem thrown at him.

P
retoria Diesel Centre was estab- partners are prime, and the support struc-
lished in 1968 by Mark Ratzer’s ture is prime. Pretoria Diesel Centre was
father-in-law as a Bosch Service already a high value business in 2004; now
Centre under the auspices of with the e-CAR connection its value has
Diesel-Electric (Transvaal). Diesel-Electric increased substantially.
South Africa looked after the interests of
the Bosch brand in those days, before
becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of
Robert Bosch South Africa in 1983. In the
1960’s and 70’s Pretoria Diesel Centre did
a lot of work for the mines and the defence
force, with the army being only too happy
to march to Pretoria whenever specialised
diesel repair work was required. Today the
clientele is far more diversified, and it was
on this basis that Mark decided to join e-
CAR as a Gauteng pioneering member on
9th September 2004. Mark realised that to
secure his future he needed to belong to a Mark Ratzer is a pioneer in his field.
strong national network, and when e-CAR The first company in Pretoria to offer EDC
was introduced by the Diesel-Electric (Electronic Diesel Control) repairs, the second
e-CAR in Gauteng, and the first e-CAR
organisation, based on a successful with a Diesel Pump Room
European format with a few South African
tweaks, Mark had no hesitation in joining Five years later, Mark has no regrets, only
this “new” concept in South Africa, as he plaudits. He has the legendary Diesel-
was familiar with the model and had even Electric support, access to Bosch training,
suggested some ideas suitable for the and the flexible marketing package avail-
Potgieter Street is one of Pretoria’s busiest
South African market. He also saw it as a able to e-CAR members which allows for streets, which puts Pretoria Diesel Centre in
homecoming as an ex Bosch outlet, and he local marketing campaigns designed just a prime position. With over 40 000 cars
had confidence and trust in the Diesel- for Pretoria Diesel Centre, over and above streaming past every day, this welcoming
the national marketing initiatives. Mark e-CAR sign pulls in 70% of PDC’s clients
Electric philosophy of building up a net-
off the street, which is an amazing statistic,
work for the good of all parties, i.e. not a sees this as an all round package ideally
and testament to the pulling power of South
one sided deal. suited for him, as his locality is prime, his Africa’s fastest growing workshop concept

To join the fastest growing workshop network in South Africa and to add a new dimension to your business,
contact Wilfried Langenbach at 0860 003 227 (0860 00 ECAR)

November 2009 73
 MIDAS moment
Midas NAPA Convention Ends on Emotional Note
The 2009 Midas NAPA Convention, held at Emperors Palace, Gauteng, on 23rd/24th
October 2009, was despite the straightened economic times, a vibrant affair. Over 400 del-
egates were unanimous in their praise for the content, the organisation, the entertainment,
the presentations, and the all encompassing family feel. Poignancy did creep in during the
final stages at the Gala Awards Dinner, when CEO Gordon Odgers “handed over the
baton” to Warren Espinoza, incoming COO. Gordon is staying on as Ceo, but passing on the
day to day responsibilities to Warren, thus allowing him time and space to play a key
strategic and consulting role for the Imperial Group with regard to future opportunities
in the automotive aftermarket. The Imperial Group received in early October approval from
the Competitions Board to acquire 56% of the Midas Group.

In an emotion charged atmosphere, Gordon Odgers ceremonially and formally hands over the baton to Warren Espinoza. Warren later
revealed that he was offered his first job at Midas by Gordon in 1997, over a beer in Port Elizabeth. Who says that beer is not good for you!

I
n a rare concession to emotion, Gordon Odgers wiped away
a tear as he bid adieu to 12 years at the helm of Midas, which
he had joined in 1997 in a tough turnaround role, being sec-
onded from the Dorbyl Group, which in those days held the
controlling interest in Midas. Gordon described the bumpy ups
and downs during his tenure (which he describes as the best job
he has ever had), and acknowledged that Midas was at times on
the precipice during the early part of his stewardship, but its
inherent strengths saw it through, buttressed by the support of a
strong and committed team, and the invaluable guidance of
Chairman Chris Ransome. Gordon thanked each executive indi-
vidually for the role they played in taking Midas to the heights
where it is today, and passed on ten principles to his successor,
which he has always lived by:
1. The Customer is King, Queen and Prince.
2. If in doubt, go with what the market needs.
3. Respect the Business Model, only alter a pillar if the market
has illustratably moved on.
4. Respect the Midas Associates. Tough love encompasses the
required philosophy.
5. Value our Partner Suppliers by exceeding their market share
aspirations.
6. Don’t bet the farm, too many lives are at stake.
For more information on the Midas Napa 2009 Convention, please see insert in this magazine.
Also available at www.abrbuzz.co.za under the Aftermarket section
74
7. Respect the Shareholders, its their money at risk and the
Group does not belong to the Management.
8. Participate in Industry initiatives and illustrate responsible
market leadership.
9. Leave the environment in a better place than you find it.
10. Finance is only a consequence but requires attention in detail,
focus on controls and a diligent forward look to ensure the
necessary platform is in place for the Group’s needs.
Warren Espinoza, in his acceptance speech, graciously accepted
the values which Gordon had instilled in Midas, and committed
to their continuance. He acknowledged Gordon as his mentor,
and praised him for his long list of achievements, and mentioned
that many pundits had over the years underestimated the success
that Midas has achieved. He pointed out that Gordon’s stature in
the industry was exemplified in his receiving the RMI Person of
the Year award in 2007, an award that only comes with immense
personal sacrifices. He described Gordon as a Supreme Strategist,
a Clear Thinker, and most importantly, a Nice Bloke. Warren
thanked Chris Ransome for the confidence shown in him, and he
assured the convention delegates that he takes the responsibility
bestowed upon him seriously, and committed to maintaining the
Midas culture, which facilitates personal growth, and encourages
debate from a diverse range of personalities.
November 2009
 A series of articles on Launch Technologies SA (Pty) Ltd

Launching Customers
for Life
Launch Tech Co was established in Shenzhen, Gaungdong Province, China, in 1992, a
scion of a small computer company of the same name that had been manufacturing per-
sonal computers since 1987. Launch Tech Co blossomed, riding on the back of the
surging Chinese automotive industry, and is today the leading Chinese company in
automotive diagnostics and a global supplier to the automotive aftermarket. South
Africa has been a beneficiary of this growth.

L
aunch Technologies SA (Pty)
Ltd. was registered in South
Africa in 2000. Launch’s Head
Office is based in Jet Park,
Johannesburg, Gauteng, and it has a
branch in Durban, KwaZulu Natal, and
distributors in Cape Town, Western Cape,
and Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape. These
distributors, together with a network of
sales agents throughout South Africa, have
allowed Launch to become a major suppli-
er of automotive aftermarket service
equipment to the automotive and allied
industries in Southern Africa. The quality
range of Launch equipment and products
are fully backed-up and serviced by in-
house after-sales service teams.
Launch Technologies is committed to
keeping its customers for life, and this
philosophy extends to offering trade-ins
and upgrades at very good discounts, soft-
ware upgrades, and hands-on training that
focuses on how to use the equipment.
Launch also recognises the need to take
this training one step further, and one of
the many projects it is working on is the
proposed establishment of franchised
quick repair shops, to facilitate further
training on how to take diagnosis and
trouble-shooting further, on actual repair
techniques.
perspective in that Jackie Li, the CEO, has
direct contact, and is in daily contact with
Launch Tech Co Ltd’s head office in
Shenzhen. Jackie Li spends a lot of time at
Launch’s head office, and has his own
office at headquarters, and his close rela-
tionship with the President allows him to
stay abreast of all the latest developments
and projects, and gives him favoured sta-
tus as an international ambassador for
Launch. In actual fact, he is merely a
phone call away from the President, and
this special relationship
translates into extra
special service
for Launch’s
S o u t h
Launch is acutely aware of African
customers.
the need for workshops to
have access to finance and
Therefore it
credit for both capital
is no wonder
requirements and opera-
that of the
tional costs and working cap-
workshops in
ital, so it is a preferred supplier
South Africa
to Capricorn Supplier Limited, a
using Launch
forward looking cooperative that offers
equipment, that 70% of
a range of innovative business assistance
their requirements are met by Launch
packages.
Technologies.
Launch Technologies SA is also in the
relatively unique position from a global

76 November 2009
 Howard Keeg follows the action

Algoa Bay Welcomes Partinform

In 1799, a fort was built on a hill overlooking the mouth of the Baakens River, as a
lookout for enemy ships, and cannon emplacements were in place to repel anyone
foolish enough to set foot ashore. A lighthouse was also built on the Donkin Reserve
some time later to warn the ancient mariners that they were too close to shore. Not
very friendly, but Port Elizabeth is today a far more welcoming place, and Partinform
was warmly welcomed at the ETC Training centre at the entrance to the Ibhayi suburb
on the evening of 13th October 2009.

ABR Readers Strike Gold

ABR’s readers had to wait a long time, but it was worth the wait, particular-
ly for those who struck gold. At the Port Elizabeth Partinform event, four
winners were drawn from the hat, to join the eight others at the Forza Racing
Ferrari Track Experience on 19th November 2009. These readers have been
sending in their entries since early this year, and the four that came out of the
hat in Port Elizabeth were:

• Denise Darlow, Associated Brake and Clutch, Port Elizabeth

• Keshin Govender, Kapico South Africa, Krugersdorp
• Marius Crous, City Council of Matlosana, Klerksdorp
• Prean Govender, Diesel-Electric Vaal, Vereeniging

In a big coincidence, Andre

Rossi of Associated Brake &
Clutch, soon to be trading as
CBS Port Elizabeth, was
present at the draw, and he
was quickly on the phone to
give an incredulous Denise
Darlow the good news. ABR
asked Andre how excited
Denise would be to drive a
Ferrari, and he assured us

T
he reason for this friendliness was not just a
manifestation of the modern Port that Denise is “up for any-
Elizabethan character, but an acknowledge- thing”. He also wistfully
ment that Partinform was the purveyor of added that she seemed to have a propensity for winning competitions – but
important news, and a message that will resonate with then you have to enter to win, which is what Denise did, folks, so remember
anyone in the automotive trade who has pride in their this when the competition comes around next year.
work, pride in their tools, and pride in their commit-
ment to fitting only quality parts. Quality parts equals
branded parts, quality parts equals professionalism,
quality parts equals safety, quality parts equals value
for money, and quality parts equals customer care.
This message was on display at every single stand at
Partinform and this message was on display in the
exciting competition held to find a winner for the
Forza Racing Ferrari Track Experience, which will take
place on Friday 19th November 2009. The responsi-
bility of each and every participant in the logistics
chain of providing these quality branded parts comes
down to keeping South Africa’s car parc in pristine
condition. The modern motorist is feeling the pinch,
and with the car par aging, the onus rests on the auto-
motive aftermarket to provide superior levels of serv-
ice in all its aspects; from the provision of decent
product at realistic prices, to the provision of after
sales support in technical and warranty prolongation.
78 November 2009
 The big winner of the night was Leslie
Kretzmann of Triple L Plant Hire, Port
Elizabeth. Here Leslie is seen exhaling in
surprise as the magic briefcase opens in
his favour. Leslie will be joining the other
11 winners at the Forza Racing Ferrari
Track Experience on 19th November 2009.

November 2009 79
 ropolitan
elson M andela Metrm, to intro-
e N fo
ators for th p at Partin show.
h e Proje ct Coordin roject made a pit sto to see what was on nissen
T p nd eu
Formula S rm guys, a oward Th
University lves to the Partinfo AMA Chairman; H form Chairman
se in
duce them t, Malcolm Perrie, A olin Murphy, Part
h C
Left to rig r Stroud, NMMU;
and Trevo

An international flavour was added to the evening with the

attendance at the Schaeffler stand of Daniel Wolff, Business
Development Manager, Engine Componentry, Schaeffler
Group Automotive Aftermarket. Daniel was visiting South
Africa in his capacity as an INA specialist.
The Schaeffler Team, left to right: Cavin Hearne, Product Manger
Bearings; Phillip Erasmus, Customer Service Manager;
Daniel Wolff, Business Development Manager, Engine Componentry,
Schaeffler Group Automotive Aftermarket; Tim Langdon, General
Manager Automotive Aftermarket

80 November 2009
 Commercial vehicle Update

South Africa’s Toughest

Warrior By Richard Macaskill

“The name Warrior was established in 1997 for our tough-as-nails bus range.” This
is what Paul Richardson, DFM Warrior’s national sales manager, has to say about the
brand’s etymology. The DFM comes into the name because of the relationship that
Warrior formed with Dongfeng Motors; which is one of the three giant automakers in
China according to Richardson.

T
he bold statements continued when Mr Lee of DFM the day’s luncheon: “It will be China’s leading heavy duty truck on
Commercial Vehicles in China stated, “In a few years, the basis of its reliability, safety, comfort and economic efficiency.”
DFM will be the number one commercial vehicle
brand to come out of China.” Bold statements “Warrior has been assembling, marketing and selling DFM com-
indeed, especially considering the harsh conditions mercial vehicles in South Africa since 2002,” notes Richardson. The
that trucks are forced to deal with in South Africa. However, these
statements were made with good reason on this occasion. The occa-
sion was the launch of what DFM Warrior claim to be a notorious-
ly tough truck, the Kinland.

The official launch of the vehicle is 20 October 2009, but major

clients were invited to Gerotek for a day of information sharing and
vehicle testing one week earlier. While the Kinland range is new to
South Africa, it has been operational elsewhere since 2006 and is
said to have returned nothing but benefits. In fact the Kinland,
marking DFM’s foray in to the heavy duty segment, has enjoyed
record-setting growth, being pegged as the fastest growing vehicle
measured in the same market. The Chinese vehicle hosts a French
engine from Renault under its cabin, but this seems to be a multi-
national partnership that really works. According to Richardson,
DFM’s Kinland range went through rigorous testing, going
through myriad road and weather conditions ranging from -40° C The new DFM Warrior Kinland carries maximum load with
to 40° C, and did so for over a million km. no problems.

That said, Gerotek’s testing grounds should have proved no prob-
lem, and true to the Kinland form, they didn’t. The rigs were fully
laden, some weighing up to 59.3 t. Technically an overload given
the legal limit of 56 t, this was not an issue at Gerotek, and also not
an issue for the Kinlands. Customers were invited to experience the
thrill of a high-speed trip around Gerotek’s oval circuit in the
Kinland, and none left unimpressed.
The vehicles were put through their paces in front of customers’
eyes, and this only served to further entrench the toughness of
DFM Warriors, the Kinland specifically, in their eyes. Testament to
the vehicles versatility though, is what Mr Lee said in conclusion at
manufacturer itself though, has been in operation since 1969, and
it has experienced substantial growth over the past 40 years. Today,
DFM’s assets are in excess of 15 billion Yen.
However, despite this massive growth, Richardson comments that
the most important things to DFM are caring and being both reli-
able and professional. “The customer is at the centre of DFM’s
focus,” he states. This is clearly illustrated through the products that
the Chinese manufacturer offers. The DFM Warrior Kinland,
while living up to the DFM traditions of quality, safety and effi-
ciency, also proves that it is tough enough to bear the Warrior
name.

82 November 2009

Going slowly, but
going somewhere
All over the world people
are going ‘green’.
Companies sing praises of
their carbon neutrality,
corporate social responsi-
bility has moved almost
exclusively to preserving
our environment and
vehicle manufacturers, of
course, punt their new,
fuel-efficient and environ- One of Nissan's new Euro 2-compliant engines in the flesh, sure to keep the environ-
mentally-friendly vehicles.
N
ot to take anything away from the aforementioned
categories; many people have invested millions of
Dollars in looking after our environment, and they
should be commended. But doesn’t it feel like South
Africa didn’t get an invitation to the green party? One hears of the
Euro 5 and 6 regulations that are coming into play in Europe, yet
in South Africa we are only on Euro 2 – and that’s not even all
vehicle segments.
Heavy duty trucks, for example, were excluded from the Euro 2
compliance made mandatory in 2008. Why, you ask? Why are we
so far behind our northern counterparts? The fact of the matter is
that South Africa is just not ready yet. Our fuel is not up to
scratch - we got an invitation to the party alright, we just didn’t
bother to dress up and go.
“We have Euro 4 and 5 technology available that we could bring
to South Africa tomorrow,” notes Rory Shulz, general manager of
corporate planning and marketing for Nissan Diesel. Things are
moving forward in South Africa though, and Nissan Diesel is at
the tip of the spear. The Cradle of Humankind was an appropri-
ate venue for the manufacturer’s Euro 2 presentation held on 6
October. From 1 January 2010, all vehicles in South Africa must
comply with Euro 2 regulations, this time including heavy duty
vehicles.
Said the guest speaker, Lloyd Christie, senior associate and an
environmental specialist at Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs:
“Transport has a significant impact on the environment, and this
has led to it having to be regulated.” In order to comply with the
November 2009
green News
By Richard Macaskill
ment green as well as keeping your fleet on the street.
pending regulations, Nissan Diesel used the opportunity to
launch a new series of engines, ones that will be Euro 2 compli-
ant even when coupled with the heaviest of trucks.
“We have to listen, first and foremost, to our customers require-
ments, but we also have a responsibility to bring in products that
comply with legislation,” states Shulz. According to Shulz, we are
only on Euro 2 because fuels in South Africa are not of a high
enough quality yet to power engines that are Euro 4 and 5 com-
pliant; the vehicles would not work. “We want to offer customers
a vehicle that will work equally well in Johannesburg and
Potchefstroom,” Shulz added, “but because of the fuel quality we
can’t do this yet.
“We are a developing country, and we don’t have the luxuries that
developed countries do.” Shulz further noting that it is important
to develop the technology at a reasonable rate. “This technology
is affordable; there’s no big price increase.” This is a critical ele-
ment of developing green technology in South Africa.
It is simply not realistic to develop too much too quickly in a
country such as our own – the technology will become more
expensive and less reliable due to the lack of infrastructure.
Christie mentioned that the automotive industry as a whole has a
responsibility to work with the South African government to
develop our environmental conscience at a reasonable rate, not
too slow and not too fast.
So it’s true, we may have missed the bus to the green party, but at
last, we’re on our way there now.
83
 LIFE GOES ON

Power GM Trio Briefs the Media

Saturday, 19th September 2009 was an auspicious and epiphanetic* day for
me. I had been invited third hand to a function at GM’s Woodmead offices,
and not having the benefit of knowing what exactly the function was all
by Austin Gamble about I, unlike Jane Austen, went with very little expectations. As the offices
are a mere five km from my home, it was still 50/50 that I was going to attend
a mere 30 minutes before the function. Wow, was I glad that I went along. It provided great
grist to my Life Goes On series mill, as three men with great responsibilities, one in the past,
and two in the future, gave a wide ranging overview of the South African and global auto-
motive industry, and one was left with a sense that GM is in safe hands.

S
teven Koch, until recently the GM President of African
Operations & GMSA Managing Director, was the voice
from the past, and his successor, Edgar Lourencon, togeth-
er with Nick Reilly, General Motors International
Operations President and parent company General Motors Vice-
President, were the voices of the future. Steve Koch is still a young
man, but because of the recent upheavals at GM, a window of
opportunity vis a vis retirement, had opened up for his generation,
and it would have been financially imprudent for him not to avail
himself of the generous option. It was thus a bitter sweet farewell
for him, because as he pointed out sincerely, the last two years had
been for him the best time of his life. The times were challenging,
but GMSA had come out of the crisis in good shape. Labour rela-
tions are as sound as they could be, dealer satisfaction levels at an
all time high, the relationship with dealers ditto, positive cash
flow, a big investment in the Parts Distribution Centre at Coega
showing confidence in the future – and this during trying times!
Steve said that whilst there was still a long way to go, the platform
has been laid for a bright future. As he put it, “Keep your eyes on
GMSA”. From a global perspective, Nick Reilly says that GM is
in survival mode with an overwhelming sense of humility. The
global downturn and the Chapter 11 humiliation had been
instructive for all, and have made him question everything he
does. GM’s cost levels in America are down to such an extent that
they are in a position to make money at industry levels of 11 mil-
lion unit sales. Historically, 16 million units have been the norm
and they will go back there. Even in 2010 they should be at 12 to
13 million units, so as long as GM can turn around market share,
2010 should see some profits. The big challenge is the company’s
image, which GM is working assiduously in improving via a
provocative marketing campaign. Apart from Europe, GM is
doing well in Asia, South America and other emerging markets.
South Africa is looking good, and from a micro perspective Nick
says that GM is working very hard with the suppliers, as localisa-
tion is very important. In a final aside, Nick says that the number
one priority for GM in America is to pay back the government
loans by the end of 2010 and to go public again, and in so doing
to thank those who have made sacrifices and to pay them back by
surviving and staying humble.
Edgar Lourencon hopes to bring some Brazilian flair to South
Africa (maybe he can assist with Bafana Bafana), and his vision is
to see South Africa emulate Chile, where GM has been top dog for
27 years. Edgar’s primary experience has been in South America,
and he says that his experience of the Argentinean that should help
him, as it is of a similar size and similar conditions. Edgar is real-
ly looking forward to his time in South Africa, and acknowledges
that he is having to fill some big shoes and has a great responsibil-
ity in keeping GMSA on the right track. This responsibility he rel-
ishes and he also regards himself as a lucky man, being at the helm
during the Soccer World Cup. His last three assignments have
been Chile, Argentina and South Africa, and as he say, “three
beautiful countries, and all making great wine!”
More on this wide ranging discussion in the December issue
of ABR.
*a nod to Words in action

84 November 2009
 Corporate Conscience

Midas Scores Way Above Par

By Richard Macaskill
Yes, you did read that correctly. Although it was a golf day, birdies and pars
were not the order of the day, because Midas was way above par at its annual
charity golf day held at the Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club on
15 October 2009. Midas’ golf day alone raised over R100 000 for charity,
including three schools and hospices nationwide. Donations on other days put
the total closer to a quarter of a million Rand.

The golf was good... but the fund raiser was definitely the
highlight of the day.

T
he schools are the Dias Farm School in Port Elizabeth,
the Phaphamani Primary School in Durban and the
Madibatlou Middle School in Olifantsfontein, plus of
course, the hospices. So while these entities benefit
from the charity, these are passed on to the less fortunate people
that fall under their varying umbrellas, meaning that hundreds
of people will reap the benefits of Midas’ 2009 charity golf day.
“The sole reason for this golf day is to raise funds for charity,”
said Warren Espinoza, COO of the Midas Group. “This is
Midas’ primary charity event of the year.” With a focus purely on
raising money, it is no surprise that Midas’ fourth annual chari-
ty golf day was such a vast success. Importantly though, Midas
does not just raise the money and give it away. “It is more than
just the money,” stated Espinoza, “Our focus is to uplift the
community.” This is done through performing community proj-
ects and improving not only the schools and hospices that Midas
helps, but improving the lives of those involved as well.
Facility improvements, bursary programmes and feeding
schemes are just some of the ways through which Midas further
aids its charities.
The focus of the evening was more about fun than formality,
and this was a hugely successful formula. From auctioning off
insulting t-shirts for more than original Bulls rugby jerseys to a
golf trip to the United Kingdom being sold for a phenomenal
R60 000, Midas managed to make people not only feel good
about donating to charity, but to have one hell of a good time
while doing it.
Although no-one won the Harley Davidson on offer for a hole
in one at the fifth, everyone truly enjoyed themselves. Months of
hard work paid off, and no-one will be happier than those whose
lives are positively affected by Midas and its charity. R100 000
later, it seems Midas has its slogan right then – because there
really is more to Midas.

November 2009 85
 Corporate Conscience

The Tree Bears Fruit

For close on a year, ABR has been banging on about the Herculean
efforts of Patrick Latouche, CEO of Sparepro, in bringing change to the
culture of the organisation. There has been a hidden agenda in these arti-
cles, which is to prove that employee morale and motivation, together
with committed customer care, charged with energy and focus, and all
based on sound business principles and a sincere corporate conscience
spiced with community and social initiatives , can have remarkable results.

A
ll of the ideas and projects initi-
ated by Patrick Latouche are
closely aligned with the princi-
ples that ABR espouses to, so
there has been a significant amount of
champing at the bit to reveal the results of
these efforts, whilst also appreciating that
the changing of a culture takes time and
persistence. The good news is that Patrick
has finally relented, and during our
October interview he disclosed that since
June 2009, the business has consistently
performed above targets, culminating in
the month of September 2009 which was a
record month for Sparepro, in sales, mar-
gins, and bottom line. Working as individ-
uals, and more importantly working as a
team in a friendly but competitive envi-
ronment, every single member of the 14
person sales team achieved their targets,
whilst seven broke their all time sales
records, resulting in Sparepro’s sensational
September results. The truly heartening
aspect is that this was done without ridicu-
lous prices, which may have been the
modus operandi of the past in business
generally, and is testament to the growing
sophistication of the automotive aftermar-
ket traders and customers, who are becom-
ing increasingly savvy, and who no longer
get excited about unrealistically low prices
– conversely, the savvy trader gets suspi-
cious, and rightly so, as there is no such
thing as a free lunch. The perception of
value is changing for the better, and respect of your employees, your customers
Sparepro’s customers no longer look at and your competitors, and the key to it all
pricing as the be all and end all. Customer is dignity.
service, customer relationships, and cus-
tomer loyalty is gaining traction. The cus-
tomer is now starting to equate delivery
performance; warranty support; supplier
commitment, empathy and reliability with
value for money. The customer is also
starting to support the set of overall values
that the business stands for.
Patrick says that this has been a long term
process. He compares it metaphorically
with the planting of a tree. Once you plant
a tree, you need to water it, fertilise it, to
nurture it, even to take a leaf from Prince
This avocado tree was nurtured and
Charles’ book, and talk to it. This energy nourished, and these efforts bore fruit.
and nourishment will eventually bear fruit,
and Sparepro’s September performance is
living proof. Patrick’s surname is indeed
appropriate, as his light touch in making a
point rather than a heavy handed
approach, has produced the results with
appreciative acknowledgement. He says
that the days of aggressively attacking the
competition and starting price wars are
long over, as these tactics have short term
effects with detrimental long term conse-
quences. The light touch involves finding
the right balance between market share
and acceptable returns on investment,
based on solid strategies and sound busi- This avocado tree was left to fend for
itself, and whilst it has survived, it has
ness principles. This is the foundation to a yet to bear fruit.
successful business, capped with the

Answers From page 66

1. Jensen Button 11. Alonso and Massa
2. Rubens Barricello 12. Malcolm Gould
3. Comfort Coupe 13. Tiger Wheel and Tyre
4. Duncan Vos 14. Peugeot
5. Fiat 15. 25
6. Hennie Groenewald 16. Mahindra in India
7. Citroën 17. Ten years
8. McCarthys and Imperial 18. Volkswagen 118 kW 1.4 TSi Engine
9. Mannie da Canha 19. Mercedes Benz
10. Francois Pretorius 20. 1.5 million.

86
November 2009
 SABAT HOSTS THE 7th
ANNUAL POWER WHEELCHAIR RACE AT
KYALAMI DURING THE VODACOM POWER
TOUR ON THE 17th OCTOBER 2009
SABAT hosted 30 quadriplegics from the QuadPara Association of South Africa (QASA) for the Annual Power
Wheelchair race around one kilometre of the Kyalami circuit on Saturday 17th October 2009.

T
his was the seventh year the event, the
Errol Innes pres-
only one of its kind in the world, was ents Arie Seirlis
held. 30 quadriplegics lined up at the of QASA with a
bottom of Mineshaft at one hour after commemorative
midday and raced to the finish line at the end of picture.
the main straight at Kyalami to see who would be
crowned "The fastest Quad". The event is open to
both men and women, who all use SABAT batter-
ies to power their appropriately prepared wheel-
chairs. SABAT have an ongoing relationship with
QASA, sponsoring all members who use power
wheelchairs with a pair of batteries per annum to
keep them moving and mobile. "This project
enables quadriplegics the opportunity to remain
mobile through the use of SABAT batteries and
thus save hundreds of Rands. The race event gives
those of us who use power wheelchairs an oppor- Quads hit the
track
tunity to re-discover the joy of competitiveness
and feel the adrenalin, often lost through disabil-
ity" says Ari Seirlis, National Director of QASA.
30 000 Kyalami spectators were on hand to cheer
the participants on race day, while top speeds of
16 km/ph were achieved by the front runners.
Power Wheelchairs cost between R20 000 and
R100 000 and these essential mobility aids allow
quadriplegics the freedom and independent Corne Strydom
movement they deserve. QASA encourages quad- of Powertech
riplegics and paraplegics to participate in sport Batteries chats
and hobby activities and the SABAT POWER to Ari Seirlis of
QASA.
WHEELCHAIR RACE is a perfect platform for
the users of power wheelchairs to demonstrate
their toggle driving skills and to enjoy the thrill of
some wind in the hair competition.

November 2009 87
 Show Time

First HeavyWeight Expo

attracting great interest
from industry
Great interest has been shown by potential exhibitors in the country’s first national
exhibition dedicated to the latest products, services and concepts in the heavy vehi-
cle industry, which will be staged at the Tshwane Events Centre in Soutter Street,
Pretoria West from March 23 to 26 next year (2010). “The Tshwane Events Centre is
proud to host this first ever confex dedicated to the heavy equipment sector in South
Africa. We have identified this exhibition-cum-conference as a need within the industry
which was confirmed by major role players,” says Wim du Toit, CEO of TSHWABAC,
organisers of the event. Tshwane Events Centre and HeavyWeight Expo Director, Fanie
Fourie, is excited about the enthusiastic response received since the HeavyWeight
Expo was announced earlier in September. “We are expecting around 80 representa-
tives of the heavy vehicle, bus, construction plant and equipment, special and agri-
cultural vehicle sectors to attend the official launch function of the inaugural
HeavyWeight Expo,” said Fourie.

“All the major players have expressed an
interest and once we have fully briefed
them on what the show will offer them,
we will be getting into the hard marketing
of the exhibition. The excellent response
we have received so far reinforces our
belief that it is time for a show of this
nature, that will showcase the heavy vehi-
cle industry, which is a key sector of the
transport business,” Fourie added. Three
of the biggest exhibition halls at the old
Pretoria Showgrounds have been made
available to exhibitors. Halls C, J and L
will provide around 17 000 square metres
of exhibition floor space and in addition
there will be a further 30 000 square
metres of outside space. While the
HeavyWeight Expo, which is endorsed by
the RMI, will provide a unique platform
for the leading manufacturers, suppliers
and service providers to display their
products and do business with existing
and new customers, industry related busi-
ness conferences and workshops will be
organised by Omega Investment
Research. Exhibitors will also have access
to the services of Total Relationship
Management (TRM), specialists in cus-
tomer relationship management in the
automotive arena. TRM provides a range
of services aimed at enhancing customer
care and customer satisfaction strategies
and boosting customer relationship initia-
tives.
Jeff Osborne, CEO of the RMI, com-
ments: “The RMI, which is in its 101st
year of existence, is pleased to offer the
HeavyWeight Expo its full support. We
enjoy a world class automotive industry in
South Africa, as was evidenced by last
year’s Johannesburg International Motor
Show. We believe that the creation of an
additional show dedicated to showcasing
the heavy vehicle industry is entirely
appropriate and we urge all players in the
industry to give HeavyWeight Expo 2010
their full support. It is being organised by
enthusiastic professionals who enjoy an
impeccable track record and, I am sure, it
will be a great success.”

88 November 2009
 Show Time

t T e am behind
The fifth annual Workshop and Aftermarket Technology Show
yweigh
(WATS) will run in tandem with the HeavyWeight Expo for two The Heav E xp o and WATS
of the four days. The 120 or so WATS exhibitors will occupy one
weight
of the three exhibition halls. The 6th WATS Expo – Workshop
Aftermarket & Technology Show has been extended to two days
the Heavy
(24-25th March 2010) thus bringing an exciting variety of
Manufacturers, Distributors and Agents of Heavy Duty Vehicles,
Plant, Agricultural Equipment, Automotive Parts, Garage
Equipment, Tools, existing & newly released Diagnostic Scanning
Equipment with live demonstrations, Parts Suppliers, Aircon sup-
pliers, IT Accounting/Workshop Control & Job Tracking
Software. For the very first time, Mechanical, Auto Electrical &
various other Automotive Training Centres together with RMI,
SDF’s ( Skills Development Facilitators ) & MerSETA will be on
hand, to advise you on all your training & up skilling needs.
Training is Crucial in ensuring that your business becomes a suc-
cess story to be proud of. “The timing of the Expo’s is perfect,”
adds Osborne, pointing to the potential upswing in the economy
& the forthcoming 2010 FIFA World Cup Soccer as big incen-
tives for visitors & exhibitors alike. “The RMI feels that the com-
bination of these two shows makes practical sense and we’re look-
ing forward to what they have to offer.

“We need to train up our new and existing technicians to compre-

hend and master the new technologies entering our markets on a
daily basis in the form of sophisticated new products, technolo-
gies and vehicles,” says Johann de Bruyne, organiser of the WATS
Show & Managing Director of Kigima Auto Electrical Training
Centre. In addition to the shows, WATS will host a number of
mini 30min workshops between 6 & 9pm on 24th & 25th March
and the Heavyweight Expo will host a series of 4, half day work-
shops & conferences over 23-26th March addressing a number of
vital issues pertinent to stakeholders in the automotive aftermar-
ket and heavy commercial vehicle and machinery sector. Stands
for exhibitors @ the WATS Expo Hall “L” - total cost for the
2days, R4,950.00 + Vat for a basic 3x3m stand. Space for
exhibitors @ Heavyweight Expo starts at R140 per sq meter (open
flooring).

November 2009 89
 Intelli-Driving
INFORMATION ON AARTO
IMPLEMENTATION
T
here has been so much confusion regarding
the implementation of AARTO and mis-
representation by some, albeit well meaning
individuals. The following we hope will
serve to clarify matters as it emanates from
a reputable and well known expert on these
matters. Please feel free to call us for infor-
mation on the Advanced Driver AARTO
programme – a must for any organisation wanting to protect and
enhance their drivers’ (and sales personnel) effectiveness. AARTO
is an Act of Parliament. It must be implemented by way of a
proclamation signed by the President. If AARTO is implemented
in a new area, it will also be done by way of a proclamation. The
only proclamations that have been published thus far have imple-
mented the Act in the municipal areas of Johannesburg and
Tshwane. The CEO of the RTMC, Mr Rakgoale, has issued an
extensive press release addressing all the issues that news paper
reports raised over the last few weeks. You can have a look at the
information about the RTMC on their website www.rtmc.co.za.
AARTO information is available on www.aarto.co.za. The Points
Demerit System cannot be implemented without a notice in the
Government Gazette implementing regulation 24 and schedule 3,
column 7 of the AARTO Regulations. Information is published
weekly in the Government Gazettes to inform when there is a
notice in the Government Gazette concerning the implementation
of AARTO in further areas. When you receive a notice for a traf-
fic infringement and have to sign for it at the Post Office, you have
to deal with the ticket in terms of the AARTO system. When you
receive it by standard mail it is issued in terms of the Criminal
Procedure system. Note: Old tickets in Johannesburg and
Tshwane were also issued in terms of the criminal system. If a
notice is served to you in person and it states AARTO 01 – it is an
AARTO fine, if it states section 56 – it is a criminal offence. News
paper reports cannot stop the AARTO Act from being functional
in a specific area. A person must act on the notices to avoid fur-
ther notices being sent to him or her.
Commuter Stress and Road Rage
So-called "road rage" runs the gamut from cranky drivers laying on
the hooter to full-on assault with a deadly weapon. And yet "road
rage" is a relatively new term. Could the use of it be reckless in
itself? By some accounts, up to 90% of us will encounter road
rage, either as a victim or as a witness, at one time or another in
any given year. But overseas law enforcement officials and experts
in public safety emphasise the importance of making a distinction
between aggressive driving and road rage. What is the difference
between road rage and aggressive driving? There is no scientific
definition for road rage, but many road safety experts agree that it
is a criminal matter, not a threat to road safety. It occurs when a
traffic incident escalates, resulting in a far more serious situation,
such as if someone overreacts to an event and retaliates with vio-
lence... So, the term should be used to classify intentional acts of
violence and assault that happen in the context of driving. In other
words, assault is assault no matter where it takes place. Aggressive
90
driving, on the other hand, is a whole
cluster of bad or inconsiderate driving
behaviours. These are the more com- by Eugene Herbert
monplace, but negligent, driving
habits, including rude gestures, blowing the hooter, speeding, tail-
gating, failing to indicate, driving on the shoulder (emergency
lane) to pass other cars, and unsafe lane changes. Of course, any of
these behaviours could also result in a situation where retaliation
turns violent. But more often, no physical harm is done. Often it
is a case of stressed, frustrated drivers taking a mistake too person-
ally and reacting without thought to consequence. Could that be
called "rage"? Perhaps, but calling it thus could fuel fears and
undermine the seriousness of those confrontations that turn into
assault. What are the characteristics of a likely "road-rager"?
Studies abroad show that, on a statistical level, men under 30 are
most often the offenders and the victims of road rage. But anyone
could be struck by road rage. The difference is that most people are
able to suppress urges to react. What can I do about my own road
anger or frustrations?
Don't get into the driver's seat angry. "High-anger" drivers share a
habit of taking their everyday aggressions into the car. Avoid this
recipe for rage by planning ahead. Give yourself plenty of time to
get where you're going. Steer clear of high-traffic routes, or pull off
the road for a break when you feel angry or overwhelmed. Notice
if certain conditions - rainy or overcast days, construction obstacles
- seem to trigger your temper and avoid them when you can.
Don’t judge other drivers. Unless a fellow driver puts you in immi-
nent danger, why would you expend any mental effort condemn-
ing their driving skills? Does it really matter if that guy forgot to
indicate his turn or that some lady slows down to get a closer look
at a street sign? Give the benefit of the doubt; it's not always an
inconsiderate driver, just a momentarily distracted one. And
remember that we all make mistakes now and then.
Remember, it's usually nothing personal. People prone to road rage
are often more sensitive to perceived attacks on their self-esteem.
They may see bad driving as disrespectful or as a personal insult.
But keep in mind that your fellow drivers have their own prob-
lems, their own worries, and their own agendas that have nothing
to do with you.
Seek treatment. Be proactive about handling your anger and frus-
tration. Training in relaxation and coping skills have helped some
people deal with anger and impulse control. You might also try a
course in driving instruction to pick up some tips and tricks for
dealing with tense moments on the road.
Set a good example for children. If you have children in the car
with you, consider everything you do a possible example of how to
act behind the wheel. This includes your negative reactions to
other drivers and the comments and gestures you make. Wouldn't
you prefer a future of alert yet level-headed drivers on the highways
to one filled with irate cranks flipping each other the finger?
November 2009
 From the Cockpit
Highveld Storm Washes
the Blues Away
It had been, in the words of Hennie Groenewald, “a long year, but you couldn’t have
wished for a better finish to the season”. An exciting finish was provided for by per-
sistent rain at Kyalami on the 17th October 2009, when the final two races of the
season were held, and the rain blessed Team Timken’s Talent and Team Timken’s
Tenacity in the WesBank South African V8 Supercar Championship.
Hennie Groenewald and Richard Pinard – a racing duo of note
G
oing into the Kyalami meet, Marc Auby in his ELT
International Jaguar was the favourite to take the
championship with a five point cushion, and with the
knowledge that he had led the championship from
the start of the year. Hennie Groenewald had other ideas, and was
hoping to cap an incredible comeback in his Team Timken
Holden, after a year characterised by bad luck and administrative
snafus. The fairy tale ending was set up at Killarney on 26th
September when Hennie made up 24 points on Marc, whose luck
had turned and who only managed to garner one point in two dis-
appointing races. Hennie, who was looking dead and buried
before Killarney, suddenly had the momentum with him, and he
could literally smell his fourth successive WesBank V8 Supercar
Championship after holding on to win the first heat in wet con-
ditions, with Marc Auby second and brother Brandon third.
Hennie Groenewald leads the way through a corner
92
The championship all came down to the second heat, from an
inverted grid, and Groenewald, sitting in ninth position, had the
task of passing the Auby’s who were at sixth, seventh and eighth
respectively. Hennie realised that he was to receive no favours, so
he decided to take the bull by the horns, despite atrocious racing
conditions. Hennie told ABR after the race that the conditions
actually favoured him, as his daring driving in treacherous condi-
tions caught everyone napping. Cars were aquaplaning which
required a cautious approach, and Hennie barrelled past two of
the Auby’s on the outside of turn one, then nipped past the third
Auby on the inside before turn two. His audacious approach then
took him past the rest of the field, and after an astonishing half
lap of brilliant driving; he was in first place by turn six!!! Not that
the other guys were not trying, it was just an irresistible whirlwind
and orange blur that had gone past them. In front of all this
action, Hennie’s team mate Richard Pinard had also shown his
racing prowess by going to the front, but when he spied the
orange Holden in his rear view mirror he gave away the racing line
to allow Hennie through. By so doing, Richard showed his value
as a team man, and this allowed Hennie to build up a sizeable
cushion, which allowed him to hang on despite tyre problems,
taking the checkered flag to cap an amazing season.
Danie Coetser, Managing Director of Timken South Africa, had
showed his faith in his racing team by inviting 90 guests to the
Timken boma, and they were there to celebrate with Danie and
his team. Hennie revealed that their prayers on the day were
answered, and he and Richard Pinard reiterated their thanks to a
support team who never wavered in their faith, and praised
Timken for their generous sponsorship, and their commitment to
motorsport in South Africa, under trying conditions.
November 2009
 Fast Wheels
ANOTHER CLOSE FINISH
TO THE FORMULA 1
SEASON COMING UP
Some people say they gave up watching Formula 1 Grand Prix racing on TV
during the Schumacher era due to the predictability of the results and
lack of passing. A dearth of passing remains this year despite a committee
being formed to try and correct this, except in the pits. Seeing the smart
work by the various teams of mechanics in the pits getting their men all
fuelled and equipped with new rubber in a few seconds adds a bit of inter-
est. It is not really exciting.
R
eal passing, however, does take place on the real
Grand Prix circuits that don’t feature tight 90º cor-
ners and chicanes. Lately the Grand Prix races on
classics like the Belgian circuit at Spa or in Italy at
Monza, or the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka are
the best. The old Kyalami track would have done the same. The
Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paolo always brings high speed racing
and lots of drama. This could be the scene of another world cham-
pionship decider with its fast straights, high speed corners and ups
and downs.
Circuits like Valencia which is a dressed up harbour and the
Singapore Grand Prix with street lighting, does nothing for what is
supposed to be the pinnacle of motor sport. Grand Prix racing
should test the drivers and cars to the limit. Let’s hope the brand
new track at Abu Dhabi which will conclude the 2009 season is
not another Middle Eastern track like Dubai or Qatar (for the
bikes). These are just flat featureless tracks, have stop-start racing
and almost no passing for the small audience they attract to their
stands. Predictability? Not this year for sure. Brawn GP cars were
on their way to win everything when suddenly the rubber they
were using wouldn’t warm up sufficiently whilst all the other teams
without this problem made whoopee and caught up. It can’t only
have been the diffuser box behind or below the Brawn cars that did
it. It seemed to come right at Monza when Barricello and Button
came home in 1st and 2nd spots but went away again at Suzuka
where they looked average. It does, however, add to all the excite-
ment and blows predictions out of the window for the last two
rounds of the championship. These are going to be worth watch-
ing. We hope all this close competition will happen without the
intervention of the race stewards. It seems the instructions come
from the Race Director to penalise competitors during a GP. This
is wrong. They can almost manipulate the results of any race.
If there is an infringement, give the penalty at the end when both
sides of the story have been heard. For instance, Rosberg lying 2nd
in Singapore went over a white line coming out the pits. He gained
no advantage but was virtually banished to being a tail-ender and
out of contention. They must have been spitting blood in the
Williams pit. What about all the people who had come to see
Rosberg and Williams racing? Stupid rules like this that can wreck
94
by Roger McCleery
the entertainment value of Grand Prix racing, which is badly need-
ed. It is not helped by the English commentators always justifying
any little mistake at high speed with “rules are rules”. The enter-
tainment value for the public, who pay huge money, is often lost,
thanks to this anonymous bunch of officials.
Have you noticed how few competitors have been caught speeding
in the pits lately after it was mentioned to the FIA that their tim-
ing equipment could be inaccurate. The timing was used to
enforce drive-through penalties which also wrecked the races. The
one exception was Webber who drove through the pits and went
on to win the German Grand Prix.
The normal musical chairs have started for the driver line-up for
2010. Alonso is driving for Ferrari with Massa, if he is fully recov-
ered from his injuries. Kimi Raikkonen could be joining Toyota.
Robert Kubica is also penned in for this team, despite rumours of
the withdrawal of Toyota from the sport. Kubica could also be
going to Renault. Talk is that Raikkonen will replace fellow-Finn
Kovalainen at McLaren. Other drivers’ seats opportunities haven’t
been mentioned yet but there are quite a few vacant seats with lots
of talent to fill them. Renault desperately needs to win again,
although their engines do well in the Red Bull cars. The Renault
chassis seems to be a dog despite the brilliance of Alonso. They
have lost their manager, Briatore, who has departed the scene,
although Bernie Ecclestone says that decision was pretty harsh.
Watch developments on that one.
Prost, who has replaced Briatore at Renault, in my book might be
French and a four-time Formula 1 World Champion, but his pre-
vious attitude and experience running his own team came to
nought. A great team like Renault will go the same way. Nobody
seems to want to drive for them. Interesting months lie ahead.
The plea to the FIA is to give us racing with lots of possibilities of
cars passing each other. Let’s have less of your behind-the-scenes
politics in offices and at race tracks. This appears to be a pointless
fight over power and greed.
We have supported and watched your Formula 1 GP Racing from
the start, so let’s have it back as the pinnacle of motorsport as it
should be.
November 2009
 The
A selection of light hearted humour from
various sources …
This one I got from the SAAW Times, issued
during the SAAW in PE early in October.
Question: What is the truest definition
of Globalisation?
Answer: Princess Diana's death.
Question: How come? Answer: An
English princess with an Egyptian
boyfriend crashes in a French tunnel,
driving a German car with a Dutch
engine, driven by a Belgian who was
drunk on Scottish whisky, (check the
bottle before you change the spelling)
followed closely by Italian Paparazzi, on
Japanese motorcycles; treated by an
American doctor, using Brazilian medi-
cines.
This is sent to you by an African, using
Bill Gates’ - (an American) technology,
and you're probably reading this on
your computer, that use Taiwanese
chips, and a Korean monitor, assembled
by Bangladeshi workers in a Singapore
plant, transported by Indian lorry-driv-
ers, hijacked by Indonesians, unloaded
by Pakistani men, and trucked to you by
Mexicans ...and now being read by a
person sitting in ???? who should be
working instead of wasting time like
this!
That, my friends, is Globalisation. Ed’s note:
and Diana’s son was chummy with a
Zimbabwean girl who studied in SA.
Some phonetically challenging teasers
for those with nothing better to do:
• Police were called to a day care where a
three-year-old was resisting a rest.
• Did you hear about the guy whose
whole left side was cut off? He's all right
now.
• The roundest knight at King Arthur's
round table was Sir Cumference.
• The butcher backed up into the meat
grinder and got a little behind in his
work.
• To write with a broken pencil is point-
less.
• When fish are in schools they sometimes
take debate.
• The short fortune teller who escaped
from prison was a small medium at
large.
• A thief who stole a calendar got twelve
months.
• A thief fell into wet cement. He became
a hardened criminal.
• Thieves who steal corn from a garden
could be charged with stalking.
• We'll never run out of math teachers
because they always multiply.
• When the smog lifts in Los Angeles,
U.C.L.A.
• The math professor went crazy with the
blackboard. He did a number on it.
November 2009
Last Writes by Baron Claude Borlz
• The geology professor discovered that
her theory of earthquakes was on shaky
ground.
• The dead batteries were given out free of
charge.
• If you take a laptop computer for a run
you could jog your memory.
• A dentist and a chiropodist fought tooth
and nail.
• A bicycle can't stand alone; it is two
tired.
• A will is a dead giveaway.
• Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a
banana.
• A backward poet writes inverse.
• In a democracy it's your vote that
counts; in feudalism, it's your Count
that votes.
• A chicken crossing the road: poultry in
Dear beloved Boss!
motion.
• If you don't pay your exorcist you can
get repossessed. Please take the attached picture
• With her marriage she got a new name and frame it in your office so you
and a dress.
will know why I’m always late at
• Show me a piano falling down a mine-
shaft and I'll show you A-flat miner. work. I WILL BE LATE
• When a clock is hungry it goes back four AGAIN ON MONDAY. (I am
seconds.
• The guy who fell onto an upholstery
in the white car?)
machine is now fully recovered.
• A grenade fell onto a kitchen floor in Regards
France, resulted in Linoleum
Blownapart.
• You are stuck with your debt if you can't
For Everyone Who Has Ever
budge it. Missed A Deadline...
• Local Area Network in Australia: The
LAN down under.
• He broke into song because he couldn't
find the key.
• A calendar's days are numbered.
• A lot of money is tainted: 'Taint yours,
and 'taint mine.
• A boiled egg is hard to beat.
• He had a photographic memory which
was never developed.
• A plateau is a high form of flattery.
• Those who get too big for their britches
will be exposed in the end.
• When you've seen one shopping centre
you've seen a mall.
• If you jump off a Paris bridge, you are in
Seine. Ed’s note: and those who don’t
believe anything and fall into a Cairo
River, are in denial.
• When she saw her first strands of gray
hair, she thought she'd dye.
• Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead to
know basis.
• Santa's helpers are subordinate clauses.
• Acupuncture: a jab well done.
95