http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1327
Police have warned would-be car sellers to be aware of conmen who are fleecing motorists of their vehicles, Hawks spokesperson Musa Zondi said on Tuesday.
A number of cases where motorists, who had advertised in car magazine Auto Trader were conned of their cars, had been received.
"The syndicates peruse these adverts. At random they contact the sellers and arrange to meet," Zondi said in a statement.
Usually the conmen would arrange to meet for the handover of money and the car after work or on weekends.
Dud cheques
"Owners have been given dud cheques which purport to be bank cheques. On presentation to the bank, they then realise that they are fake when banks refuse to honour them."
On one occasion, a motorist drove from the southern Cape to Johannesburg to sell her car after a prospective buyer expressed interest.
A few days before they met, the buyer claimed he was busy and could not see the motorist, but would send his driver to meet her at OR Tambo airport.
"This is one of the signs according to the police. The exchange was made and she flew back to George, a ticket that was bought by the buyer.
"On arrival, she deposited the cheque. It bounced and she was informed that it had been stolen in Pretoria."
Signs to look out for
The woman was left R395 000 poorer - the value of the car. Her insurer repudiated the claim.
Zondi said sellers should be careful of buyers who wanted to meet after hours, buyers who "get busy" just a few hours before the meeting, those who arranged to meet the seller at petrol stations or on major roads and those who paid by bank-guaranteed cheque.
"It has been found that some of the vehicles that are stolen like this have been used in the commission of crime, especially business robbery.
"So before you sell your car to a person from this sort of advertising, the seller needs to really check the background and insist on being paid upfront before they can release the car, otherwise they will lose the car and the money," said Zondi.
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Lazy 'dog walker' loses licence
http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1328
An English dog-owner has been fined after taking his pet for a stroll while driving next to him in his car.
Prosecutors said Paul Railton was spotted driving at low speed along a country lane in December, holding his dog's leash through the car window as the animal trotted alongside.
Railton pleaded guilty on Monday to not being in proper control of a vehicle. His lawyer, Paul Donoghue, said 23-year-old Railton acknowledged "it was a silly thing to do and there was an element of laziness" while exercising his lurcher.
Railton was ordered by magistrates in Consett, north east England, to pay a £66 fine, plus costs.
He also received three penalty points on his licence and, due to existing points, is now barred from driving for six months.
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No local recall for Nissan
http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1329
Nissan SA has confirmed that no local vehicles are affected following its latest global recall.
The latest in a spate of recalls to hit global car manufacturers relates to partially disengaging brake pins and, on vehicles with higher mileages, inaccurate fuel gauges.
No accidents or injuries have been reported, and Nissan assures that all vehicles currently being sold are free of these problems.
Nissan South Africa on Wednesday issued a statement saying none of the vehicles sold locally are affected.
“We would like to assure our customers that the recall pertains to vehicles sold predominantly in North America,” said Nissan SA Sales, Marketing and Aftersales Director, Johan Kleynhans.
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Mansory G-Couture
http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1330
Mansory's tuning team is at it again, this time taking their brash designs to the Mercedes-Benz G-class. The Mansory G-Couture began life as a Mercedes G 55 AMG, before receiving an impressive power upgrade.
Engineers boosted horsepower by nearly 147 kW to 515 kW. The already torque heavy engine sees figures rise to 880 Nm from 700. To achieve these results, the company says they replaced "the majority of the components with high-performance components from the Mercedes-Benz SLR."
The vehicle's new exterior is now made of carbon-fiber, including the roof, but excluding the windows (of course). Mansory claims the material was compressed in a "special pressure chamber," and now "no more air inclusions remain in the material. Normally, this processing method is only used in aviation and aerospace, as it is very cost-intensive." The big machine now rides on 23-inch one-piece rims wrapped in Pirelli Scorpion high-performance tires.
Inside, occupants ride in four individual seats with a center console running the entire length of the cockpit. Leather and python skin make up the interior, with aluminum pedals and sports steering wheel also thrown in.
The Mansory G-Couture is now on display at the Geneva Motor Show.
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2010 World Car & Performance Car of the Year
http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1331
A panel of 59 journalists have selected their finalists for the World Car of the Year, Performance Car, Green Car and Design of the Year. Of 30 World Car of the Year entrants, the jurors selected the Mercedes-Benz E-Class, Toyota Prius and Volkswagen Polo.
Although the journalists span the globe, they are hardly distributed evenly. Only one panelist is from the African continent, and one represents all of South America.
Only cars produced in a minimum of 500 units are able to be nominated for any of the awards. To be eligible for the overall World Car award, the contender had to be in production, and sold, on at least two continents during 2009.
The group chose the Audi R8 V10, Ferrari California and Porsche 911 GT3 for the Performance Car award. For the Green Car award, three alternative fuel experts created a short-list for the full jury to vote on. In the end, the panel chose the Honda Insight, Toyota Prius and entire Volkswagen BlueMotion range. Here they cheated a bit, by choosing the Golf, Passat and Polo BlueMotion vehicles.
Of course, one wonders why the Ford Fusion Hybrid and the Lexus HS 250h were not picked.
Similar to the Green Car award, the Design of the Year short-list was first created by several design experts. The jury than voted in the Chevrolet Camaro, Citroen C3 Picasso and the Kia Soul.
The winners of the seventh annual awards will be announced in April at the New York International Auto Show.
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SpeedART BTR II 650 EVO Pumps Porsche 911 Turbo
http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1332
German firm SpeedArt have released their latest tuner job of the Porsche 997 Turbo facelift. The SpeedArt BTR-II 650 EVO features a horsepower boost of 150 PS (110 kW / 148 hp), and torque increase of 150 Nm (111 lb-ft).
This brings output to 650 PS (478 kW / 641 hp) and up to 650 Nm (479 lb-ft) of torque. If the overboost function is still available, that could potentially raise torque to a maximum 699Nm. These power figures were achieved by changing the engine's computer, and using larger VTG turbochargers. New headers, catalytic converters and tailpipes are part of the sport exhaust. A new air filter and bigger intercoolers were also used.
The result is a 0-100 km/h time of 3.2 seconds, and a new top speed of over 330 km/h (205 mph).
Needless to say, these speeds mean the brakes might run a bit hotter when used. For that, the company designed a front bumper that provides more air to the brakes. Also attached is a new front spoiler, side skirts, rear diffuser, and adjustable rear wing.
Engineers installed an adjustable sport suspension. To reduce weight, the company used Light Spoke Competition (LSC) forged twin-spoke wheels. The wheels measure 8.5x20" front and 12x20" rear, and are available in several different colors.
Other available options include a new steering wheel with paddle shifters to control the PDK transmission. Carbon fiber sport seats are availble in fabric, leather, and Alcatara, with the textiles available for other parts of the interior. Carbon fiber trim is also used.
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Abt Announces Power Upgrade for VW Golf R to 228kW
http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1333
Abt Sporstline has unveiled a more potent version of the Volkswagen Golf R which has a standard 199kW TSI engine displacing 2.0-litres.
"The compact car is really good fun, particularly on corners", says Hans-Juergen Abt.""VW gave the Golf dynamism when it was in the cradle - it defines sportiness in its class. And the Golf R is the champion of fast Golfs."
Abt has thus endowed the car with new powers going up to 228kW. It is now capable of going from 0 - 100km/h in 5.2 seconds and has a top speed of 261km/h.
Body installations from the previously announced Abt Golf VI GTI include a front skirt, a front lip spoiler, Abt daytime running lights and wheels measuring between 18-inch and 19-inch in size.
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