14 From Little Acorns

22 On Your Bike, Otto

50 Eco-Friendly Vehicles
58 Fewer, Bigger, Better
65 Logan’s Run
72 Cadillac Man
 The Phoenix

Take any situation at any point in history and take everything at face value, or look at it in
black and white, and the whole thing looks cut and dried. But look at the underlying
strengths and weaknesses, which cannot be readily seen, apply some shades of grey, and the
situation changes dramatically. History is full of these anomalies, not least the recent Iraqi
War. This situation also applies when looking at the future potential of individuals, institu-
tions, companies or mergers and acquisitions. If the imponderables are taken into account, the
long term consequences of such decisions could radically alter these decisions. The best
decision maker is hindsight, which unfortunately comes after the event.
Size, or relative size, tends to skew the analy- would declare bankruptcy in the first decade reference to the Boardroom Edition of RMI
sis. For example, if an alien power arrived in of the new century, primarily because of their 101 (see details under this editorial), and the
our solar system and took a rudimentary bloated corporate structures and gung ho reaction to this memorable memento. The
look at our planet, using size as the yardstick, deals with the unions? Similarly, H.G. Wells response to this endeavour has on the whole
they would quickly come to the conclusion relied on our fear of things big and powerful been enthusiastic, with the majority of those
that the sperm whale is the dominant species to scare the bajeezus out of us with his “War approached realising the significance of the
on earth. A more detailed analysis would of the Worlds”, only to bring us and the project, but there are a few companies,
quickly uncover the fact that they are being Martians down to earth via the intervention thankfully in the minority, with rich and
harpooned out of existence, or at least they of a small and unknown enemy. And, if the honourable pedigrees that have decided not
are always under this existential threat. A truth be told, it was not the big muskets that to participate, mainly because of the current
closer look would rapidly reveal that the brought the New World to its knees, it was economic circumstances. This is most unfor-
groot meneer on the third rock from the sun, firewater and smallpox. This has been a long tunate, as their absence would not only
by a country mile, is homo sapiens. Even and convoluted introduction to get to the diminish this publication, it will be a snub to
closer analysis would show that this strange point of our cover illustration – David vs. the founders of the organisation and a disre-
species seems hell bent on wiping itself out, Goliath, and the suggestion that everything gard of the pioneers in forging its growth. It
by varying depths of hedonism, materialism is not always as it seems. Size is relative, and also reveals a dangerous mindset. Dangerous
and selfish behaviour. Apart from this self growth comes from small beginnings and big in that it is a form of self fulfilling prophecy.
destructive behaviour, what really terrifies decisions, and sometimes from unexpected I appeal to the current custodians of these
the human race does relate to size, but not quarters, this is the message of our cover, and organisations, “don’t laager yourself into
the big whales, rather the small bugs. And it of our cover story. Go to page 14, and make oblivion”. Honour your founders, honour
goes back a very long time. The history of your own conclusions and hypotheses, both your pioneers, honour their ideals, and hon-
mankind has shown decimations on a large in the macro and micro sense. This disserta- our your histories, and look forward to the
scale, and the usual culprits cannot be seen, tion on size is also relevant to my second next 101 years. Don’t come to regret a short
be it smallpox, bubonic plague, Aids, point, which is that size or longevity can also sighted and short tem decision.
Spanish Flu, and lately Swine Flu could be lead to complacency or even a touch of arro-
the next pandemic– this is what terrifies us. gance. Large or well established companies And finally, take a look at the heading for
Yet, from a foreign policy viewpoint or cor- should celebrate their roots, and honour this editorial – this is indeed WORDS IN
porate policy sense, we seem to have a blind their founders. This acknowledgement of ACTION, saying many things, whilst letting
spot, and size does seem to impress us and to humble beginnings, and remembrance of the reader see more than one message. This is
dull our senses. Who would have predicted what made a company great, is an integral one of ABR’s ideals, and hopefully some-
in the halcyon post war decades that behe- part of the continued success, or even exis- thing to celebrate in the future.
moths such as General Motors and Chrysler tence of that company. I make particular

w w w. a b r b u z z . c o . z a
Boardroom Edition
of RMI 101

T
rilogy Publishing has been com-
missioned by the RMI to produce
a prestigious edition of the history
of the RMI, and a history of the
companies that contributed to the develop-
ment of the South African automotive
industry, in all its forms, over the past 101
years. Scheduled for publication in
November 2009, the RMI 101 serves the
primary purpose of celebrating the cente-
nary of the Retail Motor Industry
Organisation, whilst also informing the
automotive community of the role the
organisation plays today. The RMI 101
issue has another exciting purpose – to pro-
vide a forum for the who’s who of the auto-
motive industry to tell their stories, and to
contribute to this rich tapestry of our pio-
neering history. The editorial copy shall be
written by highly qualified and esteemed
journalists assigned the task by Trilogy
Publishing, with the welcome participation
of the companies involved. The compilation
of RMI 101 shall commence in August
2009, and is scheduled for completion in
October 2009, and distribution is planned
for November 2009, as it will serve as a
wonderful year end gift. We shall only be
allowing 101 companies, basically first
come first served, so we recommend that
you indicate as soon as possible whether you
wish to be involved in this venture. Trilogy
Publishing and the RMI will truly appreci-
ate an enthusiastic response from the indus-
try in compiling an accurate and magnifi-
cent acknowledgement of the pioneers of
the automotive industry in our country and
something worthwhile to serve as a memo-
rable memento of our wonderful history.
Please contact Stanton Porter Marketing
at 012 654 2745; or Graham Erasmus at
083 709 8184 or bigheart@iafrica.com
for more details on how you can partici-
pate at incredibly low rates. Don’t delay;
this opportunity only comes once every
101 years!

4 July 2009
 Contents

8 10 12

4 The Phoenix Goliath vs David

8 What’s the Buzz

12 Focus on Forsdicks Forsdicks Approved Repair Centre

14 Cover Story From Little Acorns …..

18 Frankly Speaking Painting Your Wagoner into a Corner

20 MISA Minutes

16 Auto Topical On your Bike, Otto!

24 The Chery Story Keeping the Cost of Motoring Down

26 Health Care Managing Your Health

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

Trilogy Customer C.A.R.E. Programme

34 Managing the Risks Under Pressure

36 Weighty Issues The Rapidly Disappearing Truck Market

38 Tony’s Take Economic Recovery or Alphabet Soup?

42 AutoZone Update A Comprehensive Service Offering

43 AIDC Automotive Industry Conference 2009

44 Personal profile Q & A with Stanley Anderson

46 Tyre Safety Tyres’ Contribution to Safety in Motoring

Publishing Editor Intelli-Driving Editor Gamble, Austin Advertising Sales:

Graham Erasmus Eugene Herbert Keeg, Howard Stanton Porter Marketing
083 709 8184 082 941 3785 McCleery, Roger Werner Kolver
Twine, Tony Tel: 012 654 2745
Commercial Vehicle Editor Correspondents Wilde, Fingal Cell: 082 577 8411
Alwyn Viljoen Beeton, Frank e-mail: abr@stanport.co.za
082 458 9332 Borlz, Baron Claude Published by:
Burford, Adrian Trilogy Publishing

6
 Contents

14 56 72

48 Diamond Dialogues The Importance of the Automotive Aftermarket

50 The Tipping Point Eco-Friendly Vehicles

52 Industry Update Life Goes On

54 From the Cockpit Groenewald Shows his Class

56 Innovation See What You Mean

58 Capricorn Insights Fewer, Bigger, Better

60 AIDC Quiz 20 Questions

61 Wilde Things A Call to Alms

62 Robert Bosch 30 years of safe braking with Bosch

64 e-CAR The Deep Roots of the Goldfields

65 Burford on Brands Logan’s Run

66 Partinform Partinform Blooms in Bloemfontein

72 Vehicle Evaluation Cadillac Man

74 Corporate Conscience It’s More than just Business #2

75 Road Safety DWD as bad as DUI

76 Fast Wheels The Brawn Formula One Team Rolls On

77 The Last Writes

The publisher and contributors have done their best to ensure the accuracy of the articles and cannot accept responsibility for any loss or inconvenience sus-
tained by any reader as a result of information or advice in Automotive Business Review. The information provided and opinions expressed in this publica-
tion are provided in good faith and do not necessaraly represent the opinion of the publisher. No article may be reproduced in any form without the prior
written permission from the publisher, except for the quotation of brief passages in reviews.

Editorial Office: Subscriptions and Data Design and Reproduction: Printing:

81 Alma Road Management: j. Kraft Information Design cc Business Print Centre, Pretoria
Wendywood Trilogy Trading & Promotion Tel: 012 997 6946
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Fax 27 11 802 3979
e-mail: bigheart@iafrica.com 7
 What’s the Buzz?

Hyundai and Kia Score at FIFA

Confederations Cup 2009
On 5 June 2009, Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Motors
Corporation, official Automotive Partners of the FIFA Confederations
Cup 2009™, performed the Official Vehicle Hand Over Ceremony to
FIFA and the 2010 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee South
Africa at the MTN Expo Arena and Conference Centre at Nasrec,
Johannesburg. The Confederations Cup serves as a dress rehearsal for
the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™, and as the official
Automotive Partners Hyundai and Kia are supplying transportation
for the players, officials and VIPs for both events. The handover also
marked the launch of the right hand drive version of the Hyundai
Universe luxury coach in the South African market. Both Hyundai
and Kia see Africa as an important market, and they also see football
as a core element of their marketing strategies and as an efficient way
of communicating with customers by sharing their passion for football
and connecting emotionally with them.

The Subaru Impreza WRX sedan is back Bentley South Africa

and Deccan Chargers
VIP Cocktail Evening
The IPL Cricket Tournament may be over, but the
buzz continues. The Deccan Chargers IPL Cricket
Team, winners of the tournament, marked the
Bentley South Africa VIP Cocktail Evening hosted
at Bentley Motor’s Johannesburg Flagship, Pearl
Automotive, as thé function of the year. Fittingly,
the Chargers (whose franchise fees cost a whop-
ping US$ 107 Million!!), were guests of honour.

Subaru Southern Africa is going back to its roots, introducing a Subaru Impreza WRX in four-
door guise. The change to a four-door version of the WRX also signals a realignment of the
Impreza range, now rationalised to comprise a 2.0R sedan, WRX sedan and STI hatchback. The
updated Impreza range now comprises the 2.0R sedan 5-speed manual, which is expected to be
launched from R249 000, 2.0R 4-speed automatic from R259 000, the WRX sedan from R349
000 and the STI at R545 000. Pricing includes a three-year, 63 000 km full maintenance plan.
The 2.0R models continue largely unchanged apart from detail exterior changes, and ergonom-
ic improvements to the interior which further enhance its functional and user-friendly nature.
Under the bonnet is the free-revving 110 kW/196 Nm 1 994 cc DOHC Boxer engine, which
uses just 8.9 litres/100 km in mixed driving. The 2009 WRX gets a significantly more power-
ful 2.5-litre DOHC Boxer engine: the kW rating climbs from 169 to 195, while torque increas-
es by 23 Nm. Automotive Business Review will review these vehicles in more detail in next
month’s issue. Herschelle Gibbs and Chaminda Vaas were
the night’s Bentley Boys

8 July 2009
 What’s the Buzz?

Made in Thailand
Exhibition
18 – 20 June 2009
The Made in Thailand Exhibition was
held at the Sandton Convention Centre
from 18 to 20 June 2009, the ninth con-
secutive year that this convention has been
held. A little known fact is that Thailand is
an automotive assembly hub for south
eastern Asia, with assembly plants varying
from BMW to various Chinese manufac-
turers. Of interest to the South African
motorist, is that the Mitsubishi Triton and
the Mazda BT-50 are assembled in
Thailand. Thailand has a distinctive repu-
tation as a quality service provider at com-
petitive prices.

TDAFA Awards
recognises tyre
industry
excellence
The Tyre Dealer and Fitment Association,
a constituent association of the Retail
Motor Industry organisation, held its
Inaugural 2009 Industry Awards function
Acclaimed local comic Dr. Riaad Winners: 2009 Equipment Supplier of the Year Award - Received
at the Bryanston Country Club recently.
This follow up event of the initial concept Moosa provided light-hearted punctu- by Neville Stevenson of SNAP ON / JOHN BEAN; 2009 Tyre
launch in May 2008 has in 12 months ation to the proceedings, acting as Supplier of the Year Award - Received by Mr Dustine Gascoyne,
gained substantial momentum, with an impromptu Master of Ceremonies Marketing Director of Goodyear SA; 2009 Dealership of the
excess of 200 guests including VIP’s of and introducing each of the evening’s Year Award - Received by Mr Imtiaz Tayob, CEO of the MALAS
Industry and Associated Businesses, speakers by inducing applause from Group; 2009 Non Rubber Supplier of the Year - Received by Mr
Government Officials, MEDIA, and vari- the assembled guests. Errol Innes of WILLARD Batteries
ous other Dignitaries. The TDAFA is fast
establishing itself as the relevant body
with regards to tyre and related issues
directly representing some 600 dealers The Bryanston Club has many private
and indirectly a further 1000 dealers. The meeting rooms – The Phoenix Room was
process administered in arriving at the of particular significance to ABR
final winners included an Independent
Survey Company individually phoning all
TDAFA members for nominations in the
various categories. “Our members are the
end users and distributors of the product
range, there are no better judges than
them!” said Vishal Premlall Director
TDAFA, and Consumer Affairs Manager
of the RMI. He went on to say that the
2010 Awards Ceremony will include two
more categories i.e. Industry Person of the
Year and Tyre Importer of the Year.
Luminaries of
Premlall said that he was confident the note attended
awards would encourage the tyre industry
to continuously “elevate standards from the function
the top down” thereby adding value to
consumers. “TDAFA’s awards evening is
fast becoming the most prestigious event
on the tyre industry’s calendar.” For more
information on the TDAFA please con-
tact Vishal Premlall at Tel 011 886 6300;
e-mail vishal.premlall@rmi.org.za; web
www.tdafa.co.za

July 2009
10
 Focus on Forsdicks
A series of articles on
Forsdicks Sandton

Forsdicks Approved
Brand Pretorius, CEO
of McCarthy Limited Repair Centre

F
orsdicks is a member of the causes greater surface hardness, it also
McCarthy Group, South enhances the car’s resistance to environ-
Wide range of
Africa’s leading motor retailer, mental factors such as acid rain or bird
services
and in the words of Brand droppings. Forsdicks Approved Repair Centre not
Pretorius, CEO of McCarthy only offers body and paint repairs, but
Limited, “is a valuable member of the work such as wheel alignment, aircon
group, and our BMW approved collision repairs, and windscreen fitting is also done
repair shops represent a particular centre of in-house. All equipment conforms to
excellence because of their single minded BMW's stringent panel shop requirements
focus on quality, service and customer sat- and even the emissions are controlled
isfaction”. Forsdicks Approved Repair within BMW’s strict specifications to
Centre in Linbro Park, Johannesburg is a ensure a cleaner and healthier environ-
state of the art facility, designed after ment.
extensive research and planning, and
implementing some of the best practices
available at the time. From the offices to
the workshop, the design and equipment
layout was done to ensure the most effi-
cient output and workflow to the benefit
of the customer. Therefore, it is not sur-
prising that this facility is approved by all
major insurance groups and receives much
of its business from referrals from BMW
dealers and fleet owners. It is also not sur-
prising that for many years Forsdicks Wheel alignment
Approved Repair Centre has consistently
scored above 95% in the South African
Motor Body Repairs Association (SAM-
BRA) assessment.
Advanced paint
technology
BMW is committed to using environmen-
tally friendly, technologically advanced
processes to enhance the quality of paint-
work, both in terms of appearance and The Naja Electronic Body Measurement
functionality. While traditionally environ- Machine utilises main reference points to
mentally unfriendly organic solvents have check that the chassis is straight
been the number one ingredient in con-
ventional paint recipes, the paint used at
Forsdicks Approved Centre are water-
based which means that four-fifths of the
solvent is replaced with water. This means
that when the paint dries, the water that
goes back into the atmosphere contains a
minimum amount of solvent emissions.
Using the water-based paint provides just
the right conditions for applying the two-
component clear paint just before the car is The BMW DIS Machine reprogrammes
polished. The clear paint not only results the engine management system
in better gloss and brilliance, but because it
12 July 2009
 Cover Story

From Little Acorns …….

If one is looking for an apt phrase to describe the Imperial Holdings Group, “mighty
oaks from little acorns grow” readily springs to mind. The acorn in question is Percy
Abelkop’s service station in Main Street, Johannesburg, which opened in 1946.These
humble beginnings belie what is now a group “with substantial scale in long-term,
sustainable sectors of the South African economy, weighted towards the transport
needs of individuals and businesses”.

The Chrysler Imperial, which served as the inspiration for the Imperial Group’s name. This is the 1960 model.

P
ercy Abelkop opened his service station after returning
from the North African and Italian campaigns in
World War II. He graduated to selling used cars, and
in 1959 he opened a Pontiac dealership, and in 1963
serendipity played a role when he acquired a Chrysler
dealership, trading at the time as “Barney’s Super Service Station”.
Even though Percy Abelkop could not have envisaged the current
Imperial Group in his wildest dreams, he was prescient enough to
realise that whilst Barney’s would make a great name for a circus,
it would not exactly bring a horde of prospective Chrysler owners
beating a path to his door. The new name he chose for this deal-
ership was Imperial, which was the flagship vehicle of the Chrysler
range. This, from a historical perspective, can be safely taken as
the birth year of Imperial Holdings. Things did not go as smooth-
ly as Percy would have liked, with the nascent company having to
navigate some stormy seas in the late sixties and early seventies,
and he and his recently appointed Group Administrative
Controller, an Irish émigré named Bill Lynch, took the brave deci-
sion to take on the then unfashionable franchise for Toyota vehi-
cles. A long and arduous path followed, as the seventies presented
many challenges, not least being the 1973 oil crisis, the 1976
Soweto riots, and a wildly fluctuating interest rate cycle. Who says
history does not repeat itself?
The rest, as they say in the classics, is history. The Imperial team
started to diversify, with forays into truck hire, leasing, and trans-
port, which was an early indication of what was to come. In 1987
Imperial listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, and a trans-
port giant was born.

14 July 2009

Expansion into financial services in the late 80’s, international
acquisitions in the late 90’s, and the leveraging of mobility expert-
ise into aviation and tourism in the early part of this decade, fol-
lowed. Today, despite a global economic crisis not seen since 1929,
the Imperial Group, through a restructuring and consolidation
process in 2008, is in a sound position to renew its sterling growth
record when the good times return in the not too distant future.
This quote, taken from Imperial’s Annual report 2008, puts it in a
nutshell, “When examining Imperial today, one finds a diversified
industrial services group with three clearly defined clusters –
Logistics; Car Rental and Tourism; and Vehicle Retailing. These
are the areas of Imperial’s focus. However, we should not be meas-
ured only in terms of what we are today, because we are creating
new centres of growth for tomorrow. In keeping with Imperial’s
history of broadening its horizons into new fields of business, we
will continue to pursue opportunities that can be aligned to, and
improve our existing operations. Therefore, we believe our future
The Imperial Genes are a Good
Fit for Imperial Auto Parts
I
mperial Auto Parts (IAP)
has all the hallmarks of an
Imperial operation. Con-
ceived in 2004 and opera-
tional since March 2005,
IAP falls under the Imperial Group’s Vehicle Retailing cluster,
and it as yet hardly rates a mention in the 2008 Annual Results.
The reason for this is that it is defined as “still being in the devel-
opmental phase”, which suits the management team to a tee,
who consider themselves as being in a David versus Goliath sit-
uation; IAP being David, and the broader automotive parts dis-
tribution market in all its manifestations, being Goliath. But
IAP does have the might of the Imperial Group behind them,
and thus they do not even need to unleash their sling. Their
mere presence is enough to make the automotive market sit up
and take notice.
IAP is following the Imperial template to the letter, the essence
of which is encapsulated in six powerful and successful philoso-
phies, honed and perfected over the decades since Imperial’s
inception:
• Grass Roots Initiatives – without exception (but for
Aviation), Imperial’s vast empire has been built up from
ground level. All the divisions have grown from small start-
ups. Logistics, Leasing and Fleet Management (since hived
off ), Car Rental and Tourism, Distributorships, Motor
Dealerships, Insurance and Banking, all did the acorn to oak
replication.
• Prove a Theme – Imperial first “proves a theme”. Once
proved, it pours resources and energy into its growth and
development. The motivation is that growth comes from
innovation and finding a better mousetrap, and doing
things differently, and well. Taking this further, if you can
July 2009
Cover Story
holds more value than our present.” Taking a look at Imperial’s
track record, these are not idle words. Consider that in 1987
Imperial’s revenues were R159 million with a pre-tax profit of R8
million, and its market capitalisation was R35 million. In its 2008
Annual Report, Imperial reported revenues of R56 billion and pre-
tax profits of R2,1 billion, and a market capitalisation of R11,2 bil-
lion. This, however, does not tell the full story. To get a better idea
of Imperial’s record and potential, one needs to look at what
Imperial was achieving before its unbundling of its Leasing and
Capital Equipment division, and the closure and sale of other busi-
nesses. In 2007, Imperial’s market capitalisation was R29,7 billion,
its pre-tax profit was R3,6 billion, and when its share price touched
record levels, someone who had invested R6 750 in 1987, could
have sold their shares for R1,75 million. That same amount, if
invested in a fixed deposit at 10% p.a., would have been worth
R45 000. Even Warren Buffet would celebrate with a few cherry
Cokes!
do it well in one location, you can do it well in other loca-
tions, and from this you get geographical growth. Apply this
in equal measure to existing businesses and acquisitions, and
from these small bases, you get significant organic growth.
• Decentralisation and Empowerment of Executives –
Imperial operates on an intoxicating mix of entrepreneurial
flair, conservative financial constraints, strong marketing
and solid operational structures. This is defined as a
push/pull scenario which creates dynamic harmony, which
when implemented with the correct nuances, results in the
best wisdom prevailing.
• Business Building – Imperial is in the business of building
businesses. This requires time and patience, and needs a
foundation on which the business can expand and prosper.
Appropriate support and the correct disciplines are the
nutrients that sustain these businesses.
• Capital is a Valuable Resource – Imperial’s impressive
pedigree is in no small measure attributable to the belief that
capital is a valuable resource. This universal truth, which is
often neglected and even spurned by new age entrepreneurs,
is the rock upon which this mighty oak is built. Corollaries
that flow from this wisdom are the appropriate return on
capital and the dictums that profits shall be re-invested and
that any venture must become self sustaining in a required
period of time.
• Mobility – Imperial sticks to the knitting! And the knitting
is “mobility”. Despite the recent restructuring, Imperial
remains, quoting Hubert Brody, Chief Executive Officer, “a
group with substantial scale in long-term, sustainable sectors
of the South African economy, weighted towards the trans-
port needs of individuals and businesses”. In other words, if
it moves and makes sense, Imperial will get involved.
15
 Cover Story

The Genesis and Growth of Imperial’s

Automotive Aftermarket Initiatives
In 2004, the Imperial Group recognised that with its impressive logistics, car rental,
vehicle distribution and motor dealership footprint, that a presence in automotive
parts distribution was not only feasible, but imperative. From this recognition,
Imperial Auto Parts (IAP) was born, closely followed by an agreement of co-operation
with Mikar Spares (and eventually ownership), and further down the line the acquisi-
tion of Alert Engine Parts and Engineparts, both specialists in engine parts.

T
he fulcrum for Imperial’s foray into parts distribution was
MIKAR, founded in 1999 by a group of eight enterpris-
ing and prominent spares outlets based in Pretoria,
Kempton Park and Johannesburg, who had banded together to
form a members co-operative focusing on respected brand names
and guaranteed local and imported product, and the identifica-
tion of four essential elements of success:
• Customer Support
• Unity of Members
• Support of Suppliers
• Effective Marketing
These elements would bring the benefits of collective buying
power, a recognisable enhanced image, access to quality branded
product, combined advertising and promotional input, and mem-
bers’ participation in decisions. MIKAR was a product of the
times, and when Chairman Fred Nasser, who together with Derek
Blanchard was the driving force behind this creative adventure,
was approached by Imperial Auto Parts in 2004, he recognised the
synergies, and a handshake of enormous import took place at the
offices of IAP in Bedfordview on the 28th October 2004. Less
than five years later, MIKAR plays an important role in the strate-
gies of IAP, which itself has gone through a learning curve, and is
now positioned to make a significant impact in the South African
Automotive Aftermarket.
In recognition of the pioneering partnership between Imperial Auto
Parts and MIKAR, Fred Nasser received the Chairman’s Award at
the 2009 Mikar Conference on 18th March 2009, a fitting tribute
as it was Fred who instigated this award some ten years ago.
Part of the evolution of Imperial Auto Parts, was the eventual coa-
lescing of a strong management team to take IAP forward. This
management team comprises chief executive officer, Deon Botha;
sales and marketing executive Pieter van Deventer; financial exec-
utive Janson Ponting; and procurement executive Terry Brand.
This team has been commissioned by the Imperial Group to carry
Bill Lynch’s original mandate forward; i.e. to leverage off the
strong entrepreneurial spirit that is evident in South Africans of all
stripes, and to give these entrepreneurs the chance to go for it,
with no pre-conditions, all premised on the Imperial entrepreneur
business model. IAP’s message to the market is a mixed bag of rec-
titude, passion, vision and commitment:
• IAP will conduct itself professionally and ethically
• IAP shall provide the market with quality products at
affordable prices
• IAP is dedicated to the independent entrepreneur
• IAP is here to stay for the long haul
• IAP is committed to bringing Imperial’s vision to fruition

16 July 2009
 Cover Story
Deon Botha, chief executive Pieter van Deventer, sales and
officer, IAP marketing executive, IAP

“Imperial Auto Parts is now in a position
to offer its customers quality products,
world class service and a professional
and ethical commitment backed up by a
reputable organisation. We shall do this
with humility and enthusiasm, for the
mutual benefit of our organisation and our customers. We shall
quietly do our thing, and we shall never forget our mandate. My
message to the staff of IAP and our customers is that arrogance
shall be avoided like the plague.”
“The culture of Imperial Auto Parts is
one of an entrepreneurial hands-on team
that partners with like minded business
partners, be it customers, suppliers, who-
ever; in fact all stakeholders. Our focus is
on nurturing close relationships to create
a “unique” strength that bonds for the future, and puts us in a
position to aggressively widen and deepen our footprint in south-
ern Africa. To this end, we are relocating and expanding our oper-
ations in Cape Town, Durban and Nelspruit”

Janson Ponting, financial Terry Brand, procurement

executive, IAP executive, IAP

“We recognise that our strategic advan-
tage is world class information systems
and cash management. We have recently
implemented a state of the art ERP
(Enterprise Resource Planning) system,
which is a fully integrated system that
covers the A to Z of best practices. This is a multi-million Rand
investment that enhances our business both upstream and down-
stream, and we shall continue to invest in processes that will give
us the competitive edge in distribution.”
“We source locally and globally to give
effect to our promise of quality products
and competitive prices. Whilst we offer
the world’s leading automotive brands,
we also scour the world extensively to
seek out the best possible suppliers for
our RAPS in-house brand, providing a comprehensive range of
quality tested and keenly priced alternative product for the cash
strapped motorist. Continuity of supply is our promise, so the
supply chain becomes a key element of our strategy.”

Product Philosophy
The recent proliferation of vehicle brands and models in South Africa has meant that local component manufacturers have been unable
to keep up with demand, and the resultant gaps in product ranges has meant that parts distributors have had to look for alternative
sources to satisfy the market. This is a situation not of their own making, but to satisfy the needs of the burgeoning car parc, the dis-
tributors have no option but to look outside the country. Imperial Auto Parts has met this challenge with the introduction of an exclu-
sive brand, named RAPS (Reliable Automotive Parts Supplies). After an extensive and prolonged product development process, IAP is
now in a position to offer its customers a sound brand that has the necessary back up of a reputable organisation. The focus has been
on product where there is no local manufacturer, or to import to cover the gaps created by such a diverse car parc. Deon Botha, chief
executive officer of IAP, says that with this package, “we can provide our traditional and emerging customers not only with the well
known and well loved proprietary brands, which by default give the customers peace of mind, we can now give the broader motoring
community a house brand with acceptable quality, affordable prices, and that very important ingredient of assurance that their vehicle
can be maintained and kept roadworthy at reasonable prices.”

July 2009 17
 Frankly Speaking

Painting Your Wagoner

by Frank Beeton into a Corner
As these words are written, it has just been announced that General Motors
Corporation, which was, at one time, the world’s biggest business, and, until recent-
ly, its largest vehicle manufacturer, has entered a judicial process known as Chapter
11 Bankruptcy Protection. Given the unfolding of global events since the emergence
of the so-called “subprime mortgage crisis” in the United States of America during
2007, including the subsequent cataclysmic imploding of new vehicle markets, and
several huge US government interventions to keep GM and cross-town rival Chrysler
LLC cash-liquid, this event was not entirely unexpected. It has, however, added to the
list of embarrassments recently suffered by vehicle manufacturers, including
Chrysler’s subsequent bankruptcy protection leading to a proposed merger with Fiat,
and debt restructuring measures which have become necessary at companies as geo-
graphically and culturally diverse as Porsche in Germany, and Tata in India.

B
efore proceeding any further, it would be just as well
to record some explanation of “Chapter 11
Bankruptcy Protection”, as this provision seems
destined to play an important role in the restructur-
ing of a number of substantial American businesses.
In very simplified terms, it is a component of the US bankruptcy
Code allowing for the financial reorganization of companies while
they follow debt repayment plans, which does not require the liq-
uidation of the business. During this process, the debtor compa-
ny remains in control of the operation, as the “debtor in posses-
sion”, subject to the oversight and jurisdiction of the federal bank-
ruptcy court. Two of the most important provisions of this process
are the automatic stay, which requires all creditors to cease their
collection attempts, and the ability of the protected company to
reject executory contracts, typically with labour unions, dealers,
vendors and customers, in which each party has residual
contractural obligations.
Although it is expected that GM will emerge, albeit in some fair-
ly radically altered form, after the Chapter 11 period, there can be
no doubt that these recent events have shaken the very founda-
tions of the formerly world-dominant American motor industry.
Only last September, GM celebrated its Centenary, and we were
reminded of its early history, starting on September 16th, 1908
when high school dropout William C (Billy) Durant incorporated
the company, which, at that time, only listed the Buick and
Oldsmobile brands among its assets. Durant’s perception, unpop-
ular among most of his contemporaries, was that a grouping of
several carmakers under one corporate umbrella would have better
prospects for growth than a stand-alone entity. Durant’s vision
proved to be prescient, and, by 1916, Cadillac, Chevrolet,
Oakland and GMC had joined the GM “family” that was to
emerge as the only serious rival to the then industry-dominant
Ford Motor Company. By 1926, GM, under the leadership of the
legendary Alfred P. Sloan, Jr., had eclipsed Ford’s dominance.
One important aspect of GM’s history was its willingness to invest
abroad. Between the World Wars, it acquired Vauxhall in the
United Kingdom, Adam Opel in Germany, and Holden in
Australia. In addition to the continuation of these individual
brands under the GM umbrella, other manufacturing and assem-
bly plants were established in many other countries, including
South Africa. An important consequence of this policy was that
the “mainstream” US products, which had previously been export-
ed all over the world, became progressively isolated from overseas
markets, and were used almost exclusively to service the huge
North American demand for vehicles, which peaked at 17 million
units in Year 2000. This process began to reverse once foreign cars,
particularly those of Japanese origin, began to make their mark on
the US market from the nineteen-seventies onwards. One of the
best examples of international product co-operation was GM’s J-
Car series medium sedan platform of the nineteen-eighties, which
was built in the US, Germany, Australia and Japan, and sold
simultaneously as the Opel Ascona, Vauxhall Cavalier, Holden
Camira, Chevrolet Monza, Cadillac Cimmarron, Pontiac J2000,
Oldsmobile Firenza, and Isuzu Aska. However the American mod-
els were, predictably, a little more soft and showy than those built
and sold overseas. More recently, the purchase of bankrupt
Daewoo’s light vehicle assets in South Korea has established a new
value vehicle sourcing string which has benefited GM’s marketing
efforts across the globe.
Making some rational comment on GM’s current problems from
a South African perspective is a challenging exercise, and it would
be impossible to cover all the manifold aspects in an article of this
length. The real issues that have pulled GM down include a pro-
gressively declining North American market share in the face of
foreign competition, uncompetitive production cost structures
with a highly organised and expensive labour force, negligible
export potential for US-built products, and ever-tightening
domestic fuel consumption and emission legislation. It also
became heavily dependant on larger cars and truck-based SUV
products for its profits, while smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles
were demanded by the market. In a situation of falling sales
volumes, this developed, with frightening rapidity, into an unten-
able situation.

18 July 2009
 Misa Minutes
MISA Benefit and Funeral Fund
This is an important part of the benefits which we provide to the MISA members. The
benefit is funded from the normal MISA membership subscriptions and no additional
contributions are required. A certain portion of the membership subscriptions is allo-
cated towards this fund to finance the benefits.
T
his fund is subject to annual audits by a professional audit-
ing firm, tabled at the annual general meetings of the
members in the various Regions for consideration and
approval and then submitted to the Registrar of Labour Relations.
These are all requirements which need to be complied with in
terms of the Labour Relations Act. Many employees in the retail
motor sector think that they do not require a benefit like this as
they are too young to think about that or they might be too young
to die, they have enough provision for funeral cover in the unlike-
ly event of the member or dependants passing away and some are
just not giving it a second thought.
Firstly, none of us are too young to die and it is therefore never
too early to start thinking of this type of cover!
Secondly, the question they need to answer is whether the provi-
sion they made ensures that the money is readily available to pay
for the funeral when required or would the dependants have to
look to family and/or friends or even their employer to provide
payment, until such time that the estate is wound up and the pay-
ments and refunds can be made.
Whenever a family member passes away it causes grief and enor-
mous levels of anxiety and it certainly is no time then for the
dependants to concern themselves with where and how they are
going to access funds to cover the funeral costs.
The MISA benefit is payable as soon as all the necessary and
required documentation is supplied by the claimant. The benefit
does not form part of the estate of the deceased and is paid direct-
ly to the undertaker, if the funeral is arranged by AVBOB, and the
balance to the nominated beneficiary. If the family make use of
another undertaker the benefit is paid to the beneficiary who then
has to settle the account.
MISA legal representation
O
ne of the most important reasons for joining a trade
union is to ensure that as a member you have access to
professional legal advice and support where and when
appropriate.
In the overall picture not a lot of the MISA members are involved
in any form of disciplinary hearings or unfair labour practices.
However, the insurance is required similar to motor vehicle insur-
ance. You might not need to claim for twenty years and then out
of the blue you are involved in an accident, and not necessarily of
your making!
With the current state of the retail motor sector it is inevitable
that employers are looking at ways of reducing overheads. One of
20
- By Dana de Villiers
I want to share some statistics about this fund that have not been
shared previously and are not well known.
Since 1985 the benefits paid in respect of claims in total
amounts to R 58 864 167! (Yes R58 million).
The breakdown of the abovementioned amount in respect of the
benefit categories is as follows:
Principal members: 3786
Spouses: 1545
Children above the age of 14: 202
Children below the age of 14: 109
What are the benefits of
this fund?
• Membership is automatic so members don’t have to concern
themselves with obtaining funeral cover
• No additional contributions are required to fund the benefit
• Cover as from receipt of one weeks’ contributions
• The benefit does not form part of the deceased members
estate and is paid directly to the beneficiary
• Make use of AVBOB as the undertaker and MISA guarantees
payment of the funeral to the undertaker up to a maximum of
R6000-00
• No commission is paid to brokers and the fund is adminis-
tered as part of the union administration reducing costs sub-
stantially
the overheads which are the seen to be the easiest to manage,
although it may be very costly if done unfairly or for no real
reason, is the employment costs.
Commission structures are continuously amended, pressure is put
on employees to ensure more unit sales, obtaining more new cus-
tomers, and customer satisfaction is the new flavour of the decade.
Keep the customers happy! General Motors are even implying in
their television ads on their “Red Tag Event” that it is required
and acceptable to neglect your family, no matter the
consequences, just to sell more motor vehicles.
There is nothing wrong with managing these issues as an employ-
er. The problems are generated by how these issues are managed.
July 2009

The retail motor sector has always had problems at middle to sen-
ior management level as not a lot of focus is placed on developing
people management and communication skills. The lack of these
skills is normally what causes the problems in the workplace lead-
ing to disputes.
The MISA members have access to a number of qualified and
dedicated people who focus on labour relations in the retail motor
sector. There are so many consultants and lawyers and even other
trade unions selling their services to employees who have no idea
of the content of the collective agreements or even the dispute res-
olution process in our sector.
The MISA representatives have a very professional approach to
addressing the labour relations problems on behalf of members.
There are very specific principles which MISA adheres to which
sets us apart from other trade unions. What don’t we do?
• MISA does NOT create problems between members and their
employers
• MISA does NOT create unrealistic expectations with our
members
• MISA does NOT only listen to only one side of the problem
• MISA does NOT walk away from a member who has a valid
case
• MISA does NOT charge members additional costs for legal
representation at whatever level
• MISA does NOT retain any money from settlements reached
or awards obtained on behalf of members to offset legal
expenses
I would like to use the case against Madikor Drie (Pty) Ld as an
example. In 2002 Henred Freuhauf (Pty) Ltd sold a portion of its
The MISA members and legal team in the Madicor Drie (Pty) Ltd Labour Appeal Court case: Front row: J Rebelo, E Pearce, H Barker,
B Lock (Attorney), M Keyter (National Legal Advisor). Second row: A da Costa, J dos Santos, T Cozen, J Thuysse, L Thuysse
Third row: J Blignaut, M de Sousa, J Nortjie, C Beyers
July 2009
Misa Minutes
business to Madikor as a going concern. There was a Manpower
Reduction Policy in place as part of the employee’s letters of
employment. When Madicor initiated retrenchments they did
not want to pay the retrenchment packages in terms of the
Manpower Reduction Policy. They thought that a mere consulta-
tion in this regard and unilateral implementation would suffice.
MISA represented our members and warned the employer to
adhere to the MISA members’ conditions of employment. The
employer ignored the MISA argument and paid reduced retrench-
ment packages. MISA duly declared a dispute on behalf of the
members and the legal process started.
At all the legal forums where the case was heard MISA obtained
the award in our favour and every time the employer would take
the next step in the process.
Eventually a full bench of the Labour Appeal Court ruled in
favour of MISA and our members. The employer had to pay a
capital amount of R 2 668 855 and interest of R 766 241 (a total
of R 3 435 127) over and above the retrenchment packages paid
at the outset on behalf of the 12 members.
The added benefit to the MISA members is that they did not have
to pay a single cent towards the legal expenses and none of the
money is retained by MISA to offset any legal expenditure. Had
MISA lost the case the same would have applied in terms of the
legal costs.
Not bad for a “small, useless, irritating, of no real consequence
trade union” for which the employer and its legal representative
were not scared of!
I don’t want employers to be scared of MISA. I don’t expect
employers to like MISA. I do know that they will respect MISA,
the principles we subscribe to and the way we protect the interest
of our members. Even though some of them will not admit to it!
21
 Auto Topical

by Tony Twine,
Senior Economist,
Director –
On your bike, Otto!
Four major technology groups seem set to vie for the attention
Econometrix (Pty)
Ltd of motor vehicle producers and their customers, in the not too
distant future. Broadly speaking, they are the charge-and-go
electric battery platform, the charge-as-you-go hybrid platform, the hydrogen powered
fuel cell platform and the mighty mouse micro engine which uses conventional petrole-
um based fuels in tiny engines with exponentially improved power and torque delivery
characteristics. Vehicle technology available by 2015 or 2050 may be difficult to imag-
ine right now, but it seems highly likely that one of these four technical design plat-
forms will develop at the expense of the other three, probably within the next decade.

S
ome of the possible technology
groups overlap with the others.
For instance, battery powered,
hybrid and fuel cell cars would
all rely on electric motors.
Hybrid and mighty micro
engine vehicles would both burn petrole-
um fuels, and so on. Hybrid vehicles,
which use small conventional internal com-
bustion engines to provide power and
charge batteries, are already well established
through the availability of two generations
of Toyota Prius SUV’s. Various producers
are currently falling over themselves to
bring battery powered electric vehicles to
the roads. Fuel cell powered vehicles, where
hydrogen gas passes across a platinum grid,
leaving electrons behind to be used to
charge batteries and power motors, are
already available, but have several hurdles
to go before becoming truly practical.
Mighty micro engines, which are small dis-
placement turbo boosted petrol and diesel
units, are nothing more than direct descen-
dants of engines that have been around
since the term Otto-Cycle was born.
A number of global developments may
appear to be aligning themselves to acceler-
ate the take-up of new technologies in the
automotive market place. Not the least of
these must be the scare that the vehicle
users, manufacturers and politicians alike
were given during 2007 and 2008 by the
seemingly unbridled rise in the price of oil.
While that particular pressure point may
well have been created by financial sector
operators, who have largely but by no
means completely slunk off to hide in the
ruins of their formerly mighty institutions,
it certainly acted as either a premature or
timely warning of an event which is sure to
come back more permanently at some time
in the future.
Apart from global oil supply and demand
considerations, there are mounting con-
cerns regarding the polluted health of the
planet. Green is the attitude of choice
across almost all political parties, from the
mightiest at the helm of the USA, to the
ANC alliance back home in South Africa.
None of the four major technology groups
sketched above features renewable energy,
not even the hydrogen fuel of the fuel cell
option, although it possibly comes the clos-
est. While the world is full of hydrogen,
most of it is attached very firmly to other
elements, and will require energy to per-
suade it to part company from whatever it
happens to be bonded to. Energy equals
pollution, at least until the practical
harnessing of renewable resources, or the
solving of nuclear waste disposal
puzzles.
For some years, hybrid vehicles appeared to
be on the front foot as the next automotive
technology phase, but the oil price shock of
2008 heightened the level of criticism of
even these gas-sippers, with the realisation
that outside of heavy urban traffic condi-
tions, they used nearly as much petrol as a
reasonably economical conventional
vehicle would on the open road. Enter
then the mighty micro engine vehicle
which is no scientific breakthrough, but
simply a way of doing more with less,
which was for years pure anathema to the
worlds largest automotive market, that of
the USA.
But the current favoured son of the
Internal Combustion Engine appears to be
what had become a prodigal son when the
first hybrids made their appearance, name-
ly the rechargeable electric car. There are
several that had either been (slightly prema-
turely) shown at the international motor
shows of the past 12 months, with some
breakthroughs in battery technology, for a
long time a stumbling block of the vehicles,
having clearly been achieved. Too bad
about the pollution aspect, though, as one
inevitably has to burn coal or oil in a
nuclear shy electricity generating environ-
ment, to charge the beasts.
But the technologists can invent their way
to obscurity, whistling anthems of change
through their exhaust manifolds, if con-
sumers do not want to change their tastes.
Consumer tastes react to the strangest stim-
uli, defying both logic and prediction.
Who could possibly have foreseen that an
80% increase in the petrol price between
January and June 1970 would initiate
the hatchback revolution in the South
African car market? Combined, the Golf 1
and Mazda 323 of the time had struggled
to collectively achieve 4% market share. By
the first half of 1980, they were regularly
achieving 42% between them. Why?
Ostentatious consumption in an inverted
dimension, and who says that it cannot
happen again?
Ken Ken 8 x 8
How to Play:
Like Sudoku, even though difficulty may vary
from puzzle to puzzle, the rules for
playing KenKen are fairly simple:
For a 8x8 puzzle, fill in with the numbers 1-8.
• 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 76

22 July 2009
 A series of articles on the rise of the Chery automobile

Keeping the Cost of

Motoring Down
– the Chery Way
Times are tough for the motorist, and to add to this
burden the cost of new vehicles has been going up
relentlessly this past year. And motorists in the market
for a new vehicle need to do their sums in more ways
than one, because it is not just the initial purchase
price that has to be taken into account when purchasing
a new vehicle. It is the service costs and the price of
crash parts that also need to be closely scrutinised,
and availability of these parts will also become a major
Mike Dawson, After Sales Director
factor if your car is off the road and in need of repair. of McCarthy Vehicle Imports

I
t is these factors that exercise the minds of
McCarthy Vehicle Imports executives when they
consider the introduction of a new model, and they
urge the consumer to do exactly as they do when
looking for a car – do the homework! Mike
Dawson, After Sales Director of McCarthy Vehicle
Imports, says that the homework they do before introduc-
ing a car is a comprehensive market study on the cost com-
parison of the Chery vehicle to a similar vehicle in the mar-
ket, involving a parts basket of at least 200 parts, compris-
ing a mix of service and crash parts, and other replacement
parts, and to sharpen the pencil to ensure that the Chery
replacement prices are typically 30% or more below the
competitive brands. Assistance from Chery in China, in
the form of lower FOB prices, is sometime solicited to
ensure that this promise is kept. The upshot of all this is
that anyone buying a Chery vehicle not only gets a very
reasonably priced vehicle, but they also get very good parts
prices, comparatively assessed, and McCarthy Vehicle
Imports goes even further by ensuring that the Chery serv-
ice centres also charge industry beating labour rates, pro-
viding the Chery vehicle owner with an extremely compet-
itive and attractive motoring cost package. The proof of the
pudding is the latest Kinsey Report, which rates the Chery
QQ3 0.8 as the cheapest vehicle to maintain in the Entry
Level Category, when it comes to the basic service parts,
comprising air filter, oil filter, fuel filter, spark plugs, wiper
blades, front brake pads, and rear brake pads/shoes. The
Chery QQ3 0.8 also comes out tops on the “major” serv-
ice package, comprising front and rear shocks, fan belt,
front brake disc, cam belt/timing chain, clutch kit, water
pump, radiator, radiator cap, and thermostat. The Chery
QQ# 0.8 also holds its own in the crash parts segment. The
aforesaid confirms the promise made by McCarthy Vehicle This sign is prominently displayed at all Chery service outlets, specifying exactly
Imports, that they will offer a comprehensive and afford- what you will be charged for the respective services – which confirms the trans-
able package to the cash stressed motorist. parency of the process
24 July 2009
 health care

MOTO Health Care

In our May newsletter to all members, Murida Khan indicated in her message that the
time to consider benefits and contributions for 2010 is upon us because there are a
number of deadlines that have to be to met. The Board of Trustees depends heavily
on MHC’s consultants in this process. In order to give members an insight into how
this process unfolds, I invited Roseanne da Silva of Toth Resources CC, actuarial
consultants to MHC, to tell how this happens. This is what she had to say:

T
he Board of Moto Health-
Care has the task of deter-
mining the benefits and con-
tributions for the benefit
options in 2010. This is a
complex and difficult process as it requires
the Board to balance offering a compre-
hensive level of benefits while also ensur-
ing the contributions remain affordable.
The Board has already embarked upon the
process of benefit review. This involves
analysing the current utilisation levels and
investigating any trends and variations
from what was expected when the budget
was prepared last year. The Board consid-
ers whether categories of benefits should
be enhanced or reduced and even whether
new benefit options should be introduced.
During this process the Board relies on
actuarial analysis of claims data as well as
feedback received from members and the
Scheme’s staff and the administrators who
are regularly interacting with members.
One of the particular challenges is address-
ing new medical technology. New tech-
nology can mean, for example, that surgi-
cal procedures can be performed quicker
or that medication has fewer side effects.
But these medical advances are usually
associated with higher costs and the Board
has to consider carefully whether the addi-
tional cost is justified. This is very impor-
tant since ultimately all the costs covered
by the Scheme are funded from the mem-
bers’ contributions and so additional costs
for new technology may lead to contribu-
tion increases.
tricky process in the current economic
conditions. They will also need to consid-
er whether any benefit changes are likely to
cause members to change benefit options.
All members will have the opportunity to
select their benefit option at the beginning
of 2010.
Barry Canning, Chairman Board of
Trustees - MOTO Health Care
is affordable for members but they also
need to ensure that the Fund is responsibly
managed and that it will remain solvent in
the long-term. If the Board feels that the
levels of required contribution increases
are too high, they will revisit the proposed
benefit levels and even consider restructur-
ing some of the benefits.
Once the budget and contribution rates
have been determined they need to be sub-
mitted to the Registrar of Medical
Schemes for approval. The deadline for
this submission is the end of September.
The staff at the Registrar’s office will scru-
tinize the assumptions made in drawing up
the budget. They also focus on the impact
of contribution increases on members and
they will often request further information
from the Board to justify their decisions.
Once the Registrar of Medical Schemes is
satisfied that the contribution increases are
reasonable, the Scheme may embark on
communicating the benefits and contribu-
tions for 2010 to the members. This
process is expected to start in November
and members will be given the opportuni-
ty to select their benefit option for 2010.
Since not all members will respond to
communications sent out by the Board,
the Board will also determine a default
basis for members who do not indicate
their benefit option choice. This usually
means that they remain on the same
option as they were on in 2009. Even if
you are going to stay in the same option it
is important to let the Scheme know that
this is what you want to do.

Once the Board has drafted a set of bene-
fits for 2010, a budget for the costs needs
to be calculated. This is done with the
assistance of the actuarial consultants to
the Scheme. They will estimate the utilisa-
tion levels per benefit category and benefit
option in 2010. They will also estimate the
likely increase in the cost of medical serv-
ices for next year. This can be quite a
There are also administrative costs for the
Scheme that need to be included in the
budget.
Combining all of these factors, the actuar-
ies will recommend a budget for costs to
the Board. The Board will then need to
consider how to fund these costs. They
need to determine a contribution level that
The budget process is particularly chal-
lenging for the Board as it involves balanc-
ing a large number of factors to ensure that
the interests of all the members are taken
into account so that Moto Healthcare can
continue to offer an affordable and com-
prehensive range of benefit options in a
financially sound manner.”

26 July 2009
 Customer C.A.R.E

Customer Relationship Management

– it’s all science really

An important aspect of CRM is that you make an effort to interact
with your existing customers. Why? Simply, because of our nature, we
are unwilling to change. We tend to stick to what we know rather
Theo Calitz has been
working in or involved in
than try the unknown. You do get the exceptions of course, the pio-
the motor industry for the neering spirits among us, the people that just love trying something
last 16 years. A mechani- new every now and then. But these people are rare. We find that this
cal Engineer by profession, behavior of “sticking to what I know” for items and services of all
he is passionate about levels to be far more common. We are ceatures of habit after all.
customer care and his
company, T-R-M There is a law in science that describes this behaviour very well; it
specialises in automotive is called Newton’s First Law of Motion. What is says is the follow-
CRM for the automotive ing: “Every object persists in its state of rest or uniform motion in
industry and has been a straight line unless it is compelled to change that state by forces
doing it for 9 years. impressed on it.”

A
lthough this might sound terribly scientific it makes my
point very well. There are some interesting things that we
can derive from this; firstly, things tend to stay as they are,
unless an external force acts upon them. A force in CRM speak
could be a bad customer experience, a complaint that is not prop-
erly addressed or a friend that is really happy about a product or
experience and keeps on talking about it. All this can be seen as
forces that can mobilise consumers to try that something else.
Conversely, if a consumer likes using a product, it is possible that
you can get them to try new products from the same brand, like
Nivea, which started with products for women exclusively but are
now also promoting products for men. If women were happy to
use these products for themselves, it becomes quite easy to con-
vince them to buy it for the men in their lives.
Two things to be learned from this:
1. If your customer complains, pay attention. Fix what’s wrong
– you do not want to disturb the equilibrium! The last thing
you want is to create a ‘force’ that could upset the comfort-
able relationship the customer has with you. Mechanisms
that can be applied are the following:
a. Excellent customer care processes. This may include the use of a
Call Centre (one that works as intended!).
b. Quality control of your product or service to prevent bad prod-
ucts reaching your customer.
c. CSI or customer satisfaction measurement to find out what your
customer thinks of your product or service. Remember, it is all
about their experience, not if you are right or wrong.
d. Excellent recovery strategies. When you discover that something
went wrong, make an effort to win back the heart of your cus-
tomer. It is worth it!
2. If you are losing market share, you are doing a lousy job.
Think about it: your customer already uses your product
which means:
a. They already know your product. You do not have to educate
them and you do not have to convince them - at most you have
to re-assure them.
b. They already use your product – i.e. – they already know the
benefits and they are comfortable with the brand.
c. They already accept the price as they are buying it currently.
d. They might already tell their friends about it and therefore
promoting your product for free!
The best example can think of in terms of this principle is my wife.
She has a MINI Cooper S and she simply loves her car and pro-
motes it at every opportunity that presents itself. It is now three
years down the line and I think it is time for something else.
Despite my best efforts, she is only interested in either keeping the
MINI (yes, the Motorplan has been extended already) or a get new
MINI. My efforts to get her to try other brands are met with sub-
stantial resistance – Newton’s First Law of Motion in action again!

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

28 July 2009
 Customer C.A.R.E

Trilogy Customer C.A.R.E. Programme

– sponsored by Federal-Mogul

MODULE TWO - THE ROOT CAUSE OF BAD

CUSTOMER C.A.R.E.

I
n Module One we discussed the
problem of poor customer service in
South Africa. In particular, the
surly, slow, uncooperative and
unproductive staff behind the coun-
ters, telephones, etc. We also looked at the
basic essence of CUSTOMER C.A.R.E.,
which is the emotional and intellectual
understanding that C.A.R.E. means CUS-
TOMERS ARE REALLY EVERY-
THING.We now need to look at the root
cause of bad customer service - manage-
ment! Management always claims that the
poor customer service their company deliv-
ers is because of the poor quality of staff
with whom they are forced to contend, and
the reasons they put forward for this situa-
tion are varied, but the main culprits, the
hardy annuals that always crop up, are the
culture thing, or the education standards,
or the poor socio-economic environment.
Yes, these are problems, but I still contend
that the root cause of poor customer
service is management. To verify this
statement, just look at history, which in
hindsight is an uncannily accurate meas-
urement. In one word, we are talking
LEADERSHIP.
Management should not only manage, but
they should also lead. This applies to any
situation where there are leaders, and
where there are followers. As surely as night
follows day, followers tend to follow the
lead of their leaders. Take nations, as a clear
example. The history of nations is littered
with either good or bad results, depending
on the behaviour of their leaders; and the
followers behaved accordingly, by watching
what their leaders did, or watching what
their leaders did not do. Nazi Germany is a
perfect example of how the followers, who
were an educated and cultured people,
were led into insanity by a small clique of
immoral and decadent thugs.
The old South Africa became a blind and
bizarre society through the acts of commis-
sion by its leaders, and the new South
Africa has become a corrupt and criminal
society through the acts of omission by its
leaders. This happens because the mass of
followers, lemming like, watch how their
leaders behave, and follow suit.
Individualism, unfortunately, is still a rare
trait amongst the animal kingdom, over
which the human race has divine domain,
but still manages to mimic in comic
proportions.
This applies to all human endeavours, be it
sport, religion, business, or the PTA of
your local school. All the nations of the
world, all the religions of the world, all the
sport teams in the world, all the businesses
of the world, have peaks and troughs,
depending on the behaviour of their
leaders. Customer c.a.r.e. is exactly the
same. The customer service levels of your
company are in direct proportion to the
sincerity of management when it imple-
ments customer care strategies.
SPECIFICS
Now that we have got the philosophical
discourse out of the way, let us start look-
ing at specifics. To do this, we need to
understand the SECOND TRILOGY
TRUTH ( the first Trilogy Truth is rather
esoteric, and therefore will be discussed at
a later stage, when you are a little more
steeped in the lore of customer c.a.r.e. ).
The SECOND TRILOGY TRUTH states
that there are three very important steps to
achieving superb CUSTOMER C.A.R.E.,
and that these three steps are indispensable.
The first step is a commitment to yourself,
the second step is a commitment to your
company, and the third step is a commit-
ment to your customer - in that order.
There are no short cuts in this process -
you cannot be committed to your
customer if you are not committed to your
company, and you cannot be committed to
your company if you are not committed to
yourself.
continued on p32

30 July 2009

The three simple questions, ARE YOU COMMITTED?
1. COMMITMENT TO YOURSELF
2. COMMITMENT TO YOUR COMPANY
3. COMMITMENT TO YOUR CUSTOMER
DISCUSSION POINTS
1. What is the essential difference
between MANAGEMENT and
LEADERSHIP?
2. Give an example of an act of
commission.
32
Customer C.A.R.E
You have one month to think about this.
I want you to analyse these three questions,
YES NO with sincerity and deep thought. Meditate on
these issues, shut yourself away for an hour or
two and clear your mind of all its clutter, and
think clearly and logically and objectively, as to
whether you are truly committed in these three
areas. Then tick the three boxes, with either a
yes or no.
We shall analyse your answers in the next
module.
3. Give an example of an act of 5. Can you fake sincerity?
omission. 6. How do you measure sincerity?
4. Discuss the advantages and disad-
vantages of individualism.
July 2009
18 Months Warranty
 managing the Risks
It’s been said a million times before that when the going gets tough, the tough get going. This cliché takes
on a new resonance when describing the truck industry. Times may be tough, but trucks are tougher, and
truckers are the toughest. This industry is literally the wheels of the economy, so thank goodness that when
the going gets tough, the toughest get going. A critical element in this dynamic is the ability to keep costs
down, and to ensure that operating costs are kept under tight control. The first port of call in this endeav-
our is to protect against theft and misuse. The first port of call in this endeavour is to protect against theft
and misuse. A close second is thinking smart and keeping costs down. ABR has commissioned Séan
by Séan Jackson Jackson of TRUCKTEK to give our readers a series of tips on Managing the Risks.

Under Pressure
Séan Jackson is a music buff, so it was not difficult for him to pick some music for the
article this month on tyre monitoring systems. “Under Pressure” was his immediate
response when asked the question, and whether you are a David Bowie fan or a Queen
fan, you’ll agree that Séan’s choice is most appropriate , because if you are running a
fleet of vehicles, you will understand the importance of the tyres being under pres-
sure, and if this vital aspect of fleet management is not given the management it
deserves, then the fleet manager and the bottom line soon come under pressure.

I
n this article Séan Jackson returns to
his favourite theme when discussing
the management of risks – it all
starts with the driver! Look after the
driver, and your costs will come
down; it is as simple as that. This applies to
every single risk issue which we have dis-
cussed; fuel losses, material losses, the role
shock absorbers play in extending the value
on your fleet, and safety, of course.
We have a few more aspects to discuss, but
in this month’s issue it is the turn of tyres,
and the need to look after them bearing in
mind the job they do, the big loads that
are being carried, and the paramount
importance of optimum tyre pressures.
Séan does not want to labour the point,
but he is emphatic that fleet managers need
to understand the risks inherent in the
event of a tyre bursting, and of the signifi-
cant effect on balance when a truck
loses a wheel – something a
fatigued driver may not notice.
This is why a tyre monitoring
system is so important, and
why it is compulsory in
America, and that legisla-
tion is being promulgated
in Europe, and naturally,
and hopefully, this will
soon follow in South
Africa. Safety is a big issue
here, particularly for buses,
and the many lives at stake at
one time. And you need to give
the driver the necessary tools for
early detection of tyre problems.
ACTSENSOR IT!
• Advanced Tyre Pressure Monitoring
• Prevents Accidents
• Unique Key
• Easy to Install
• Totally Wireless
• Alarm Response
• Suitable for Cars, Trucks and Buses
TRUCKTEK has chosen Actsensor-It!, an
advanced tyre pressure monitoring system,
known worldwide as TPMS, that supplies
constant information to the driver of any
vehicle on all the operating tyres, whether
four or thirty two. This is a global system
with South African adaptations, and which
is perfectly suitable for our unique condi-
tions. The beauty of this system is that it
recognises that the driver is the first line of
defence, but it can also be linked into a
control centre, and can be incorporated
into any fleet management system. The
driver is kept aware of all the tyre pressures
of the vehicle via a dash mounted monitor,
or a rear view mirror clip on version, and is
warned visually and aurally when a tyre
pressure variance of 15% is detected.

Next month, Séan shall discuss this subject

in more detail, focusing on the dynamics
around tyre monitoring.

34
July 2009
 weighty issues

The Rapidly Disappearing

by Frank Beeton Truck Market
Back in the April issue, we asked where the truck market was heading. Our concern, at
that time, was centred on a survey that had been carried out by Focus on Transport &
Logistics magazine among the management of truck suppliers at the end of 2008. The
consensus forecast for vehicles over 3,5 tons Gross Vehicle Mass (i.e, Medium, Heavy
and Extra-Heavy Commercials, and Passenger Buses) came in at just less than 28 500
units, suggesting a year-on-year decline of nearly 18%. Given that the then Finance
Minister Trevor Manuel, in his Budget speech, had given assurances that the govern-
ment’s R787 billion infrastructure development plan, including R50,9 billion
earmarked for specific transport-related expenditure, would still roll out, we thought
that the supply industry was taking an overly-conservative view, and was in danger of
forecasting itself out of business.

H
ow wrong we were! To be
fair, it took some time for
market analysts and fore-
casters to fully appreciate
just how difficult the
financing environment for commercial
vehicle sales had become. We assumed that
the National Credit Act had settled down,
and that the prospect of steadily falling
interest rates would create a positive arena
for the financing of vehicle purchases. It
was only when MAN CEO Thomas
Hemmerich went public with his frustra-
tion that we finally caught on, and the sup-
porting anecdotal evidence then started to
pile up. As it turned out, the market results
for the first quarter were considerably
worse than anticipated by the captains of
industry, and, five months into the year we
find the market no less than 47,3% off the
volume reported for the equivalent five-
month period in 2008. Unless things
improve radically, and fairly soon, reaching
a final market total for the year of only 20
000 units could become a major challenge.
It is difficult to believe that the current
market reflects the true level of demand for
new vehicles coming from the local trans-
port industry, and frequent tales of a less
than 20% success rate with applications for
credit by transport operators tend to bear
this out. We must also assume that the local
supply industry would have initially pro-
cured inventory at a level to support its
own 28 500 unit forecast, so product avail-
ability, at least in the first quarter of the
year, should not have been a seriously lim-
iting factor. The fact that a very large num-
ber of new trucks, buses and vans had
entered the South African vehicle parc dur-
ing the boom market years from 2006 to
2008 has given operators the option of
extending the lives of their existing vehicles
under the currently very difficult financing
scenario. There is also the possibility that
some operators have chosen to defer their
fleet replacement and expansion plans until
the global and local economic environ-
ments improve, but the magnitude of the
downturn in the market has become
extremely difficult to rationalise.
One of the few potential bright spots in the
market has also recently been dealt a severe
blow. Several metropolitan Bus Rapid
Transit projects were starting to take shape
early in the year, with Johannesburg plac-
ing orders on Scania for 143 BRT units,
while the Department of Transport book-
ing spaces for 570 buses and coaches on the
Mercedes-Benz and MAN production
lines. However, the presumably well-inten-
tioned efforts of President Jacob Zuma to
defuse potential taxi protest action threat-
ening the General Election by effectively
putting BRT implementation “on hold”,
has thrown a mantle of doubt over the
entire process. Meanwhile, back in the
marketplace, some new factors have recent-
ly emerged. Evidence of sales incentivisa-
tion in truck advertising, has reinforced the
view that stock availability is not a major
limiting factor. More importantly, certain
vehicle suppliers have begun aggressively
promoting the availability of in-house cred-
it facilities, in a clear response to the diffi-
cult financing environment. It is highly
unlikely that this initiative would have
been unilaterally underwritten by the local
banking fraternity, given their current lack
of risk appetite, so it presumably involves
some element of risk acceptance by the
vehicle suppliers. In May, the market pro-
file showed a swing back in favour of the
premium XHCV segment, following the
bloodbath in this category earlier in the
year, and this suggests that these alternative
credit arrangements are having an effect.
It is interesting to reflect on the fact that
several vehicle suppliers have long-running
joint ventures with local banks to provide
financing facilities at sales outlets.
However, it now appears that, once the
going got tough, these JV’s virtually
removed themselves from contention.
While acknowledging that there are risks in
extending credit to some truck operators,
the finance companies, presumably, have
been in the business long enough now to
recognise a well-managed and viable opera-
tion when they see one. It is difficult to
believe that 80% of South African opera-
tors have suddenly become unacceptable
risks! However, the unavoidable conse-
quences of an extended period of depressed
vehicle sales will include the degradation of
operator efficiency, and consequent viabili-
ty, and the exertion of considerable pressure
on truck manufacturers, importers, dealers
and suppliers. When these players
inevitably reduce their level of exposure to
the downturn, the supporting infrastruc-
ture that has been painstakingly built up
over the recent period of market strength,
will start to break down.

36 July 2009
Imperial Auto Parts & Mikar would like to congratulate Martin Grobler
on winning a Honda ATV, sponsored by GUD Filters. Martin entered the
competition at Mikar Hursthill in Johannesburg.

Hennie Noortman from

Mikar Hursthill handing
over the keys to Martin

Another happy
Mikar customer

July 2009 37
 Tony’s take

Economic recovery
by Tony Twine
or Alphabet Soup?
More than one general economic commentator and almost every motor sector supply side
participant have expressed their disappointment in the performance of new vehicle sales
during May 2009. The dismal performance of April had largely been written off to a com-
bination of both the state of the economic cycle and a host of special random impacts, such
as the number of public holidays, the way that they were distributed to form potential pock-
ets of extended autumn vacations by joining the holiday dots with a few days extra leave,
uncertainty around the election and the new leadership that it was bound to bring and a
general lack of both consumer and business confidence regarding short term economic
prospects.

I
n new vehicle show rooms, May evi-
dently started off far more briskly
than other recent early monthly
periods but momentum fizzled out
around mid-month and struggled
upwards to its month end rate with some
difficulty. In the end, NAAMSA passenger
car sales were up a relatively small 9.5%
over the woeful levels of April, which
meant that a substantial number of sales
which may have been expected simply
failed to occur. Released early in June, the
NAAMSA vehicle sales data for May was
accompanied by two equally up to date sta-
tistics for that month in the form of the
Kagiso-BER purchasing managers index
(PMI) and the First National Bank House
Price Index. The PMI almost completely
mirroring the level of car sales in the
month had ticked up from a level of
around 36 basis points to 37 basis points,
which was scarcely a startling improve-
ment. The FNB house price index showed
an annual nominal (unadjusted for infla-
tion) decrease of 11% for May. This was
slightly down on Aprils result.
These two indicators, alongside the vehicle
sales results from NAAMSA, provide some
perspective regarding both business and
consumer confidence. The PMI, which
effectively moved sideways, probably
reflects the inertia in business confidence,
despite the additional 100 basis point cut
in interest rates during the month of May,
bringing about a total so far of 450 basis
points since December, and restoring the
prime overdraft rate to a level only 50 basis
points higher than it was at the low point
of the previous interest rate downturn
(10.5% at the beginning of June 2006).
Impacting on business confidence is prob-
ably the knowledge that the rest of the
world is in even deeper trouble than the
South African Economy is, meaning that
exporters, and in turn, the people who sell
domestically to South African Exporters,
continue to face unenviable sales prospects.
With over 25% of South Africa’s GDP
exposed to exports, the cascade effect of
troublesome foreign sales environments
quickly spreads through the rest of the
business sector. Households continue to be
confronted by the historically high levels of
debt, and debt to disposable income ratios
that were accumulated during the 2003 –
2006 boom, and which remain far from
being paid off. As the chart shows, debt to
disposable income ratios are currently still
almost half as high again as they were at the
beginning of the last upturn in 2003. If
that is the average for the household sector,
and with lots of households unable to bor-
row from banks at all, it is easy to imagine
what kind of ratio levels the more adven-
turous borrowers of the past five years (yea,
verily, those who buy motorcars included)
may be confronting. It could take months
or years for the more tattered household
balance sheets to be restored to the level of
respectability that lubricates the wheels of
bank loans. This is even more true in an
unusual environment in which asset prices,
especially house prices, have fallen contin-
uously for more than a year. Which is
cause, and which is effect?
Like those who relied on the oracle of
Delphi, we could tip out the box of scrab-
ble tiles in the hope of gaining insight into
the economic recovery. May tends to indi-
cate that a V-shaped recovery is not going
to happen. There might have been a recent
relatively sharp recovery in items like com-
modity and equity prices, and the foreign
exchange value of the Rand, but interna-
tional market watchers are warning of a
possible W-shaped phenomenon, with the
recent up-tick in these prices forming the
upward sloping middle part of the dia-
gram. This writer suspects that we are cur-
rently at the beginning of the flat portion
of a U-shaped recovery pattern, and that
we could drag along the bottom for most
of the rest of 2009. If you prefer a greener
gardening metaphor, we might see some
green shoots as early as the third quarter of
2009, but be careful how you set your
lawnmower!

38 July 2009
 Update

Spirex – A Comprehensive Service Offering

Hundreds of years ago, mobility was a privilege, rather than a right. You either used a
horse, or used your own legs to get from A to B, unless you were press ganged into the
army or navy, and then you did get around, but at quite a high risk, and you did not
choose where you were going. This limited your options, and it was only the wealthy or
the fit who managed to see the world beyond their limited confines. The steam engine and
the railways improved things somewhat, but it was only after Henry Ford brought person-
al mobility to the masses some one hundred years ago, that mobility took off, and then it
was still only really limited to the gainfully employed and the adventurous.

I
t was World War II that provided
the impetus to personal mobility,
and it became a God given right,
and owning a motor car was no
longer a sign of wealth, as it
became easily accessible to the common
man. Even then, many motorists had to
service their own vehicles, because proper
maintenance was often out of the reach of
the cash strapped motorist. Since the sev-
enties, DIY has declined, due to a more
well heeled population, and the propensi-
ty of the modern generation to eschew the
manual labour associated with vehicle
maintenance, and the proliferation of
workshops and mobile mechanics offering
good and reasonably priced service.
However, with the recent global down-
turn, and the pressing need to look after
cash flows, the DIY market is reviving,
and the younger generation is finding that
maintaining your own vehicle is not so
infra dig. The problem herein lies in locat-
ing the correct parts at good prices, and
the need for a helping hand in “how to”
when replacing, installing or simply main-
taining your car. This is where AutoZone
has stepped up to the plate, and their serv-
ice offering around their in-house Spirex
range of maintenance parts. The Spirex
range offers quality parts for the cost con-
scious DIY and workshop customer,
allowing for the service and maintenance
of vehicles at discounted prices, whilst still
fulfilling the primary need for peace of
mind.
• Vehicle Maintenance Guide
• Maintaining the Cooling System
• Maintaining the Wiper Blades
• Installing the Spark Plugs
• Replacing Ball Joints and
Tie Rod Ends
• Replacing the Battery
• Replacing the Disc Brakes
• Replacing the Brake Drums
• Replacing the Brake Pads
• Replacing the Brake Shoes
• Replacing the Clutch Kit
• Replacing the CV Joints
• Replacing the Fan Belt
• Replacing the Filters
• Replacing the Fuel Pump
• Replacing the Gaskets
• Replacing the Globes
• Replacing the Oil
• Replacing the Thermostat
• Replacing the Wheel Bearings
• Replacing Universal Joints
• Replacing Worn Shocks
A further safety net is the 7 day a
week, 7am to 7pm technical hot
line at 0800 200 993 whereby any-
one with a problem can get free
expert fitment advice from the
AutoZone pit crew. And for those
with access to the web, the DIY books,
store locators, weekly specials, and much
more is available at www.autozone.co.za

The Spirex range, consisting mainly of

chemicals, lubricants and service parts, is
backed up by the other in-house brands,
like AutoKraft, AmPro, EcoTech and
Femo, to give the cost conscious customer
everything they need to keep their car well
maintained and roadworthy, without
breaking the bank. These parts are avail-
able from the 170 AutoZone stores locat-
ed right round South Africa, and available
at these stores are 22 DIY leaflets, offering
hints and tips on the following:

42 July 2009
AIDC Automotive Industry Conference 2009

High-level panel to debate

critical industry survival issues
eTV News anchor Jeremy Maggs will facilitate a panel discussion on the first day of
the AIDC's Automotive Industry Conference 2009, which will be hosted at the SA
Automotive Week in Port Elizabeth on 7-8 October 2009.

T
he first panel discussion will be in the form of a Barlow Manilal, Managing Director of the AIDC, told ABR that
high level debate about Vision 2020 – is it a fan- additional value is on offer to delegates at the Automotive
tasy or reality? Panel members include key figures Industry Conference 2009 as part of South African Automotive
in the automotive industry, Dave Powels Week, which includes the only NAACAM endorsed International
(NAAMSA President and VWSA MD), Brand Trade Show in South Africa. The Trade Show is focused on
Pretorius (McCarthy Holdings CEO), Steve Component Manufacturing, is for trade only and attracts buyers
Koch (GMSA President & CE) and Charlie Eggerding (VP, QAD and suppliers from throughout South Africa and around the
Software). The panel discussion will be followed by a session globe. Site tours to the Coega IDZ, an OEM and Fifa 2010
where delegates can address Soccer World Cup Stadium
questions to the panel. are among key networking
opportunities, which also
A second panel discussion will include golf and the famous
ask the provocative question: Gala Networking Dinner on
Does the SA automotive Port Elizabeth's blue flag
industry deserve a bailout? beach attended by the who's
Dr Matthews Phosa, ANC who of the automotive sector.
Treasurer, Trade and Industry
Minister Maria Ntuli, Coega Barlow says, “The global
Development Corporation financial crisis is exactly that:
CEO Pepi Silinga and global. It means that the South
NUMSA National Secretary Africa economy is feeling the
Irvin Jim have been invited to pinch and the automotive
participate in this discussion. industry is equally affected by
This panel discussion will be the global downturn. It is
also be followed by an interac- hurting both domestic sales
tive Q&A session. The and our export efforts. But,
keynote address will be deliv- instead of sliding into a state
ered by Dave Powels and dele- of depression over the nega-
gates will also be hearing tives influences now is the
about a rescue plan for the Attendees will be able to rub shoulders with leading lights across the time to work at improving
automotive sector from Kevin spectrum, among them, clockwise from top right: Dr Matthews Phosa, the fundamentals that will
ANC Treasurer; Steve Koch, GMSA President & CE; Brand Pretorius,
O’Marah, Chief Strategy McCarthy Holdings CEO; Barlow Manilal, Managing Director of the ensure a sustainable automo-
Officer from AMR Research, AIDC; Dave Powels, NAAMSA President and VWSA MD tive industry in South Africa
USA. Dr Neal Bruton, in the long-term”.
Response Group Trendline’s CEO, will discuss the status of eco-
nomic drivers for new passenger cars. Barlow Manilal, CEO of "The AIDC Automotive Industry Conference will address an
the AIDC, says that the theme of the conference is "NAVIGAT- industry in crisis. Industry role-players are seeing this as a plat-
ING THE STORM: A ROADMAP TO VISION 2020." The form to ensure that the industry is equipped with the credible
first day of the conference takes the form of a plenary session with information, resources, direction and sentiment that will allow
plenty of opportunity for discussion and debate. The second day automotive businesses to make the right strategic decisions for
sees delegates focus on specific areas of interest: Supply Chain their businesses," says Lance Schultz, Project Manager at the
Development, Supplier Development and Skills Development AIDC. Diarise the dates now! Conference fees for the two day
& Training. conference are R4,069 excluding VAT per delegate. The early bird
conference fee presents a saving of over 15% if registration is com-
Minister of Education, Dr Blade Mzimande, has been invited to pleted by 31 July 2009. Early bird fees are R3,176.00 excluding
address delegates on the second day before they split into the VAT. To register, visit the
focus areas. Topics range from practical guides to managing sup-
ply chains for South Africa, to cost saving case studies, innovation For more information about opportunities at
and the impact of attracting investment to the SA automotive SA Automotive Week please contact Alastair Stead at
industry on the skills crisis. alastair@inkanyezi.co.za call him on 041 363 0310 or visit
www.saaw.co.za.

July 2009 43
 Personal profile

by Roger McCleery
Q&A
INTERVIEW WITH STANLEY ANDERSON
South Africa has produced a host of top motor men who have taken
their companies from way down the list to become leaders in the
industry. Here is another such man. Stanley Anderson, the 44 year
old Marketing Director of Hyundai in South Africa. He has been the
Marketing Manager and then Director of the Company since
Associated Motor Holdings Group and their newly appointed MD,
Alan Ross, took over Hyundai. That was after Billy Rautenbach
departed the scene leaving quite a few problems that had to be
solved quickly for the sake of the brand and its many customers.

You have seen the corporate and product
TV ads for Hyundai produced with a cer-
tain amount of humour and passion for the
brand. Stanley Anderson has been the man
behind these. With the retail adverts show-
ing their range and prices, plus the list of
dealers, this also did the trick for them over
the years. Even today in these tough times
for the motor industry in South Africa,
Hyundai advertising stands out.
Q: What got you into Hyundai?
Q: Has Hyundai Motor Company
in Korea acknowledged your
successes?
A: Besides Hyundai expecting them, we
have been awarded many distributor
awards over the years. The highlight was
being awarded “Global Distributor of the
year” in 2005.
Q: What experience did you have before
you joined Hyundai?
personality and then made the decision to
go into Marketing.
Q: Sport?
A: I played rugby at school and also got
my Provincial Colours for cricket and
swimming. These days I still play hockey
for Tukkies in a Sunday league to keep fit.
Q: Who made an impression in your
life?

A: I was head-hunted by Hyundai ten
years ago when Alan Ross took over as the
new MD.
Q: What turned Hyundai around for
you guys?
A: I was working at Mercedes Benz in
Pretoria with that other great South
African motor man, Christof Kopke, who
was the MD. I had been there for 14 years
and was pretty settled as a Product
Manager.
A: I had a solid upbringing with my fam-
ily. My coach at school, Bokkie Blignaut,
instilled in me the importance of team
work, discipline and an ability to “vasbyt’.
This has stood me in good stead in busi-
ness as well, particularly today.

A: We adopted Hyundai’s quality way of Q: Before that? Q: When you retire?

doing everything. Quality products, which
Hyundai has proved over the years and a
quality way to look after customers with
service. Training and parts supply became
a big part of our business.
Q: Range of vehicles?
A The range has got better and better.
Cars and our commercials were just right
for the times at the right prices. Now we
even have 39 seat luxury coaches thanks to
our involvement in the World Cup, where
Hyundai is a main sponsor.
Q: How are you going in today’s
depressed motor market?
A: I was working for WesBank Corporate
in Pretoria after getting my B.Com.
Business Economics Degree at Tukkies.
Q: Where did you grow up?
A: In the North West Province starting in
Groot Marico, for the first 7 years: we then
moved to Richards Bay and at the age of
14 we moved to Rustenburg where
I matriculated.
Q: Schooling?
A: I went to Bergsig Hoërskool in
Rustenburg.
A: I would like to lecture to Marketing
students at UNISA.
Q: Would you like to work overseas if
asked?
A: No – I would like to work here in
South Africa.
Q: Married?
A: To Anthea. I also have three children.
Keegan wants to be an Architect, Zanco
wants to design computer games and our
youngest, Shannon, wants to get into
Marketing.

A: Although unit sales are down, we have Q: What did you want to be at school? Q: Your ambition?
been able to gain market share, which is
one of the best ways to measure success. A: A CA, but I soon realised I had a A: Hopefully to run Hyundai one day.

44 July 2009
 and Their

by Marcus Haw
Tyres Contribution to
Safety in Motoring
“In the next issue we will look at as many operational problems and tyre remedies as we
can, and we’ll get into some cost saving as well”. This was the promise we made at the
end of last month’s issue. Previously we have gone through tyre cost cutting, and the
importance of keeping tyre records. Building and keeping histories of tyre performance
and failures in fleets are the most effective way of making correct decisions, and there-
by keeping costs low. This applies to all fleets no matter what they consist of vehicle
wise, what tyres are being used and what routes and loads they are involved with. We will
now go through specific problems and remedies experienced over the years focussing on
the 4 to 10 ton group of vehicles as in last issue. Looking at specifics we will go through
each operation type and the particular challenges they face.

Most common operational problem: Non stop driving, high

Furniture hauliers
There are two main categories here; domestic and office furniture
carriers. The similarities in the two businesses are that they are
mainly volume carriers, not heavy loads. Their main routes are
mostly inter city and include a lot of stop start driving, with high-
way sections of under seventy kilometres.
Most common operational problem: Loads are either one way full
and empty return, or a constantly diminishing load also with
empty returns.
Most common results of operational problems on tyres:
Susceptibility to impact damage and irregular wear. This is due to
the tyres building heat during the loaded part of the trip which
increases the inflation pressures. They then run in an OVER inflat-
ed condition on the empty return trip.
Remedy: Run the tyres at the lowest practical pressure and reduce
speeds while loaded. The SABS 1550 Standards directory will
assist in using the correct pressures.
Long distance parcel service
Trucks in this category are used in 24 hr long distance express par-
cel type work. This includes constant high speed driving short
stops and heavy loads.
speeds and heavy loads.
Most common results of operational problems on tyres: General
high wear rate, often irregular wear and usually early tyre failure.
This is due to the fact that these vehicles seldom get checked, espe-
cially the tyres and very often the wheel alignment and suspension
components as well. On top of this these vehicles are driven very
hard due to delivery time constraints. They are possibly the most
conscientiously abused vehicles in the transport industry.
Remedy: Remedying these concerns is simply to maintain the
vehicle more regularly, and slow the drivers down. This is some-
times difficult as these companies make their money by getting the
goods from one door to another in the shortest possible time and
it seems that delivery service is more important in this industry
than tyre costs.
Supermarket type deliveries
Included in this category is all food, refrigerated, pharmaceutical
products, meat, milk etc. These operations are very similar, and
deliver in the same areas. Loads are pretty close in weight too.
Most common operational problem: Similar to the furniture guys
the main problem is a constantly diminishing load, and/or one

46 July 2009
way full and the return trip empty. However these loads are heav-
ier, often over the trucks weight limit. Also a lot of stop start driv-
ing, and the biggest problem is the fact that they have to get into
all kinds of tight spaces to off-load.
Most common results of operational problems on tyres: High
wear rate, irregular wear and sidewall damage.
Remedy: The wear rate is hard to correct and is a direct result of
the stop start driving. Driver training and bonuses for good tyre
life have proved effective though. The irregular wear is due to the
empty one way trip and the answer is to reduce tyre pressures to as
low as one safely can. Refer again to the SABS 1550. The damage
to the sidewalls is the hardest to counter, since unless you can con-
vince the shopping centre architects to improve the delivery areas
tyres will get damaged. Driver training does produce results, but in
all fairness there are some areas which the finest driver in the world
could not get into without any damage. It is this kind of challenge
which the alert fleet controller can use to show the bosses what he’s
made of. This is where the choice of tyre can save a fortune. You
can’t stop the damage, but you can save money by buying cheap.
The trips are short, the speeds are low, so buy cheap and retread.

Construction vehicles is pretty minimal in equipment. It is essential that the compressor

In the construction industry, the trucks in the sizes we are dis-
cussing are used in many varied configurations. They are used to
carry materials and light equipment in a dropside configuration.
Water tanks are fitted and used to spread water to keep dust down
and to carry water from site to site, as well as sorting fires out.
Where necessary they carry explosives, tools, people, spares, rubble
and aggregate. Because of their many uses, their tyre problems are
also varied, but there are common factors for all vehicles at the site.
Most common operational problems: Extremely harsh underfoot
conditions; no roads, rocks, sand, mud, whatever is hidden in the
mud etc. Loads are usa everything and tyre valves are prone to leak-
ing from dirt ingress.
Most common results of operational problems on tyres: General
all round damage to tread and sidewalls. Low tread life, compro-
mised casing life and premature failure.
Remedy: Number one is to make sure the valves have steel valve-
caps fitted at all times. We have seen a cost saving of 7% in the tyre
budget of a construction company just by the conscientious use of
steel valve caps. Secondly the correct inflation pressure will go a
long way to making the tyres more resilient, and resistant to dam-
age. At construction sites there is usually a workshop set up but it
July 2009
is capable of inflating all the tyre types in use and that the tyres are
regularly checked and corrected. It is also wise to get expert opin-
ion on the pressures to use. In many off-road situations slightly
reduced pressures can be advantageous since the tyres are able to
absorb the bumps, rocks and ruts better. However, these vehicles
are usually very heavily loaded so it is necessary to be exact with the
pressures.
Apart from all the above, the construction industry is another one
where buying cheap and retreading own casings is the way to go.
We must emphasise here that when we say buy “cheap” we don’t
mean buy rubbish. You still need to have a good strong product
and you need backup on that product. What we mean is buy the
best you can at the lowest price you can.
Local tyres have a wide price range and to put premium tyres into
high damage operations will give no advantage. Buying cheap and
nasty, unknown imports though, could work out even more
expensive, so buy with thought. In some of these situations cross-
ply tyres offer a sound alternative.
So consider your operation type and ensure your tyres and vehicles
are in a safe condition at all times.
www.bridgestone.co.za
47
 Diamond
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 distributor 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.
The Importance of the Automotive Aftermarket
OEM, OES, P&A, Aftermarket. These are all terms that are used liberally, and
sometimes glibly, by automotive industry insiders, outsiders and commentators alike,
but do we really know to what exactly these terms refer, and what precisely we are
saying when we talk about these markets?
A
s a point of departure, Giel Steyn
recommends that we go to the
source to find out from the
horse’s mouth how the OEM’s
define these terms. Norman
Lambrecht from NAAMSA (National
Association of Automotive Manufacturers of
South Africa) was kind enough to provide
the following definitions:
• Original equipment manufacturers
(OEMs), comprising passenger car, com-
mercial vehicle and bus manufacturing, as
well as sales, primarily through
dealerships.*
• Original equipment suppliers (OESs),
who manufacture and supply automotive
parts and accessories directly to the OEMs
for their service networks. In this way the
parts receive the reliability associated with
the brand of the vehicle, which is serviced
for nine to ten years after production of the
vehicle (CBI, 2004b:10). OESs require
global coverage and need to provide “black
box” solutions (solutions created by suppli-
ers using their own technology to meet the
performance and interface requirements set
by the OEMs).
• The independent aftermarket, which is
responsible for the manufacture and sale of
automotive replacement parts and acces-
sories. The sales take place through inde-
pendent retailers and repair shops directly
to the consumer. The aftermarket also re-
manufactures, distributes, retails and installs
motor vehicle parts and products, other
than the original parts and accessories.
• First, second and third tier component
manufacturers who supply manufactured
parts and accessories to OEMs, OESs and
the independent aftermarket. The distinc-
tion between the different tiers of compo-
nent suppliers is indicative of the compo-
nent manufacturer’s role in the value chain.
First tier suppliers (also known as sub-
assemblers) are responsible for manufactur-
48
Dialogues
ing components that are supplied to the
OEMs and the aftermarket. In some
instances they design certain assemblies and
assemble modules, such as entire dash-
boards from different components, and are
then referred to as tier 0.5 suppliers. They
require design and innovation capabilities,
but compared with the OESs their global
reach may be limited. Second and third tier
suppliers provide parts for first tier suppliers
and also OEMs, depending on the product.
The third tier suppliers supply mostly basic
products and generally only rudimentary
engineering skills are required.
Now that we have the official viewpoint, let
us take a look at what Giel Steyn sees as the
big mama; the Automotive Aftermarket. Giel
views this aftermarket as having a huge influ-
ence on the industry, and mostly in an
extremely positive light. He also segments this
market into two distinct components:
Aftermarket # One is the part of the aftermar-
ket that is under the direct and indirect con-
trol of the OEMs. This is primarily the fran-
chise dealerships, who sell vehicles, both new
and used, fit specialised equipment to these
vehicles under the auspices of the OEMs to
maintain warranties, provide after sales serv-
ice through their workshops and parts divi-
sions, and the various financial, insurance and
other add ons that are also sold to the cus-
tomer. All of these activities contribute signif-
icantly to keeping the general population
mobile, and ensuring that this mobility is as
safe as possible.
What really gets Giel’s juices flowing is what
he defines as Aftermarket # Two. This is the
massive component of the automotive after-
market that is under the control of the inde-
pendent operators, and the significance of
their role in mobility and safety is according
to Giel vastly underestimated and grossly
underappreciated. To truly appreciate this
we have to analyse the South African car parc,
by age:
1 – 3 years 22%
4 – 7 years 22%
8 – 12 years 21%
13 – 20 years 28%
> 21 years 7%
Traditionally the first three years of a car’s life
falls under the wing of the franchised dealers,
either through warranty or service agree-
ments, and new car customers also tend to
have a stronger feeling of confidence and
peace of mind by going back to where they
bought the vehicle. From four years of age
and beyond, the independent aftermarket
tends to take over the maintenance responsi-
bilities, although with the latest trend of
manufacturers offering service plans to five
years and beyond, this has moved the curve
somewhat. Even taking this into account,
one can see that at least 60% of the car parc
is being looked after by the independents.
And this is where the four significant factors
of Technology, Quality, Safety and Value for
Money begin to play a HUGE role! The
Diamond Dialogues now take on a new
meaning, and players in this aftermarket seg-
ment need to be scrutinised for their contri-
bution to these four aspects. Grandmark
International is one of these players, supply-
ing quality product at reasonable prices, and
ensuring that those with older cars continue
to have the benefits of technology and safety,
and further giving esteem to the industry.
* The debate starts here. Dealerships
are one of the grey areas. They are con-
trolled through franchise agreements
by the OEMs, but legally they fall
under the terms and conditions of the
Bargaining Council legislation. More
on this in the next issue of ABR
July 2009
 The Tipping Point
A series of articles based on interviews with Klaus G. Langer, an inde-
pendent supply chain consultant and self confessed environmentalist
who proudly sees himself as a “Cultural Creative”, which is an influen-
tial group of new progressives who are disenchanted with materialism
and hedonism, and who are at the forefront of prodding mankind to move
from conventional to rational and responsible thinking, and to encour-
age participation in an ethical expansion, focusing on “balanced rather
than negative reciprocity”

Klaus Langer
Eco-Friendly Vehicles
T
he race is on for more environmentally friendly the future looks bright, as the industry responds to this enormous
motor cars, driven by the need to arrest and reverse demand from the consumers. The replacement cycle has already
global warming, dwindling fuel resources, and the begun, albeit very small at the moment, with Toyota leading the
realisation by humanity that we simply cannot con- way with over a million Prius’ being sold to date. The Prius has
tinue our wasteful ways. Klaus Langer predicts the become the Hoover of its age, and Toyota has upped the ante with
end of the internal combustion engine within 15 years, and he a plug-in version to be introduced in 2010. The rest of the indus-
anticipates completely new engines emerging in the next three to try is playing catch-up, with all the manufacturers, from General
five years. The original equipment manufacturers are now Motors in America (in a new lean, mean post Chapter 11 guise)
engaged in a battle for survival, and in a very short space of time introducing the much hyped Volt, through to the rapidly expand-
we are going to see whole new cars, designed from scratch, utilis- ing Chinese automotive industry making serious moves with
ing significantly different power trains, and lightweight materials. Chery Automobile and BYD leading the way. BYD is a particu-
Klaus sees this as an exciting era, with the industry responding larly fascinating company. Founded in 1995 by Wang Chuan-Fu,
proactively and positively to the challenges. The initial signs are who is described by Berkshire Hathaway’s Charlie Munger as “a
promising, with examples of innovation already on the showroom combination of Thomas Edison and Jack Welch”, BYD is the
floor, and electrifying (excuse the pun) developments around con- world’s largest manufacturer of cell phone batteries and is already
cept cars. The consumers are still behind the eight ball, but they selling a plug-in electric car (F3DM) with a backup petrol engine,
will be forced to go with the flow, as small and eco-friendly vehi- which puts it ahead of Toyota and the rest. So much for catch-up.
cles become a statement of responsibility and maturity. All this This has impressed Warren Buffet of Berkshire Hathaway to the
will happen, sooner rather than later, because humanity has extent that he has purchased 10% of this company, and would
reached a tipping point, and whereas this point requires a total buy more if allowed to.
change of mindset, its time has truly arrived.
More on this and much more in future Tipping Point articles.
Meeting the Needs of the
Consumer
Mobility has become a right rather than a privilege, and the
demand for greater mobility will continue. The automotive
industry has for over a century provided this mobility, and will
continue to meet this demand for another century and beyond.
The big difference is that the industry’s love affair with big, pow-
erful, fuel guzzling internal combustion engines is coming to an
end, and the future is hybrids, electric cars, and ultimately fuel
cell technology will become the Holy Grail. The good news is that
these technologies will translate into economic growth, as the new
generation of vehicles replace the current car parc. Currently,
there are some 580 million not so eco-friendly vehicles moving
people around the planet, and the estimate is that this will grow
to around 1,3 billion vehicles by 2030 and an astonishing 2 bil-
lion vehicles by 2050. From an environmental point of view, these The BYD F3DM at the recent Shanghai Motor Show
will be eco-friendly vehicles, and from an economic point of view
 Industry Update

Life Goes On
Following the Life Goes On article in the June 2009 issue of ABR, I was
once again fortunate to attend a media briefing from a chief executive in
the South African Automotive Industry, and once again I left the briefing
in an upbeat mood, having progressed from “Baa Baa Black Sheep” to “I
By Austin Gamble Could Have Danced All Night”, and eagerly awaiting the opportunity to do
my Freddie Mercury impersonation as I belt out “Bohemian Rhapsody”.

I
t was the briefing on 8th June 2009
by the recently appointed CEO of
Mahindra South Africa, Ashok
Thakur, that had me clearing my
throat, and whilst I may have a
weight problem, as far as the demise of the
motor industry is concerned, the fat man
is not about to sing. When we do sing, it
will be about the resurgence of the auto-
motive industry both globally and locally
in the not too distant future. Mahindra
definitely believes this, and they have
promised an announcement within three
months about the details of local assembly
of the Mahindra, in both left hand and
right hand versions, to service southern,
western and central Africa, and who
knows, even the American market if their
AGOA calculations prove promising. Yes,
Mahindra is planning to invade America
at the end of 2009, as they feel the down-
turn in the States is an opportunity, with
buying habits changing to more afford-
able, thrifty, rugged vehicles, and an alter-
native for which the American motorist is
now receptive. Ashok Thakur disclosed
that 300 dealerships will be established for
the launch, and that significant volumes
are expected. General Custer would be at
his wits end!
To back up these projections, Mahindra is
investing over US$1 billion in a green
field facility in Chakan, India, whilst also
looking at local assembly where possible
to take manufacturing to important mar-
kets, as there is over capacity worldwide,
and the possibility of joint ventures that
would previously be undreamed of is now
on the cards. For example, Mahindra
builds the Logan in India, and it utilises
The recently appointed CEO of Mahindra
South Africa, Ashok Thakur, is optimistic
about the future
the facilities of Bavaria Auto
Manufacturing Co. in Egypt to assemble
the Scorpio, side by side with the BMWs
assembled in the self same factory, on the
self same lines. Could we soon be driving
Scorpios assembled in Rosslyn, with the
expatriate workers being exhorted to
“Build Mahindras, Wolfgang!”? It is all a
manifestation of the globalisation of the
automotive industry and the blurring of
competitive lines, as the industry struggles
to cope with the new realities. Mahindra is
obviously taking advantage of these reali-
ties, as it increases its global footprint in
off-road vehicles, trucks, tractors and two
wheelers. Mahindra is also eschewing the
new age technologies, by sticking to the
tried and tested when it comes to environ-
mental initiatives. Ashok revealed that
Mahindra has no immediate plans to
develop hybrid and electrical vehicles,
rather focusing on the bio fuel, CNG and
stop-start expertise it has, and to meet
emission standards with a current genera-
tion of engines that meet Euro V require-
ments. A pragmatic approach, which is
the hallmark of Mahindra & Mahindra
worldwide, and with a track record of
note, Mahindra seems to succeed in what-
ever they do. Take tractors, for example.
Mahindra has over 40% market share in
India with their tractors, which are ideal
for the smaller farmer. They are now look-
ing for growth in South Africa, with four
models soon to be homologated, and they
displayed at the recent NAMPO show in
Bothaville, and reported keen interest,
particularly from the emerging farmers.
In conclusion, it is clear from recent
media functions that the attitude of the
motor manufacturers is one of “Life Goes
On”, and if the banks could now start to
play ball from a financing point of view,
we could expect a modest upswing sooner
rather than later. It is time to put our trou-
bles behind us, and to not allow the bear-
ers of bad tidings to fulfil their prophecies.
We must wrest the future away from these
harbingers of doom, and to ride confi-
dently into the night. Our gambit is one
of confidence, and the game of chess does
not allow the Knight to take the Queen
without a fight.

52 July 2009
 From the Cockpit

Groenewald Shows his Class

The Wesbank V8 Championship is South Africa’s premier motorsport
formula, and Automotive Business Review brings you the action from
the heart of the battle. Richard Pinard, part of the dynamic Timken
duo, gives a track review from the cockpit of his 450kW V8 Jaguar.
In this issue, we get a glimpse of the guts and glory in Rounds seven
and eight at the high speed East London Grand Prix Circuit on
Saturday, 6th June 2009.
(keino@quickpic)

Hennie Groenewald shows the rest of the racers “who’s their daddy”

W
ith Timken suffering a poor start to the 2009 sea-
son, it was a case of do or die for the team at East
London, particularly for Hennie Groenewald, who
if he was to have a decent chance of defending his
championship title for a record 4th time in a row, would need to
pull out all the stops. With the Timken duo languishing in 8th
and 9th position after rounds five and six, something had to give,
and the Timken Team was going to ensure that it was not them,
with fastidious preparation at Zwartkops the week before, and
bringing the Holden Commodore out of mothballs as back-up for
the East London meet. This proved to be a wise move, with one
of the Jags breaking a crankshaft during Friday’s practice.
During practice, the Timken top guns were blisteringly fast, with
both the Jags and the Holden proving to be very quick, and
Hennie recording the fastest lap time, and Richard close behind
with the 3rd fastest lap. Unfortunately, Richard came a cropper at
Potter’s Pass during practice, going off at 262 km/ph (telemetry
tells the tale!), and this spin took a psychological toll. As Richard
says, “When you hit the grass at this speed, and you lose all con-
trol of the vehicle, you are at the mercy of a car with a mind of its
own. No matter what miracles you can achieve on the skid pan,
and all the theories about under steer and over steer, at a time like
this, with the weight of the car and the very high speed, you sim-
ply go into survival mode, and pray that you don’t hit anything
solid. Funnily, the major concern that goes though your mind is
not your physical danger, but the cost implications if the car is
seriously damaged.” And the chances of damaging a car at South
Africa’s fastest race circuit are high, with the V8’s hitting speeds of
up to 290 km/ph at Rifle, and then braking down to 70 km/ph
for the turn. This makes the East London track a great drive, but
it does demand high concentration levels. Coming back to the
psychological toll, Fridays’ spin did affect Richard, as he was a lit-
tle too circumspect in qualifying, taking at least a second off his
pace, and ending up at 8th on the grid. But the psychological
aspect worked in Hennie Groenewald’s favour, as even though
54
there was practically nothing to choose between the Jags and the
Holden when it came to lap times during practice, the different
feel of the Holden gave Hennie an extra boost of confidence – in
the racing game, they call it a “mind thing”. Thus Hennie took
pole position, and the die was cast for his great fight back, and
wins in both heats. Hennie led from start to finish in the first race,
with the other racers made to look very ordinary as they followed
in his wake, with Richard struggling with a car that kept jumping
out of first gear, which meant a radical revision of his driving style
for eight laps, something he likens to riding rodeo – the only dif-
ference is that in this rodeo he had 600 horses to contend with!
But it was the second heat that proved the class of Hennie.
Starting at the back of the grid (the inversion rule giving Clare
Vale another gender bending pole position), Hennie worked his
way past 12 drivers to take the chequered flag, but not before a
great dice with 17 year old Brandon Auby on the penultimate lap.
A case of experience and skill trumping youth and enthusiasm.
Unfortunately, Richard Pinard’s woes continued. After moving up
and toughening it out at 2nd position, he was bumped at
Cocabana Corner, which caused wheel alignment problems, and
then in the final lap he has another “coming together” before
being T-boned at the self same corner, which meant a long walk
back to the pits.
Two final points. Richard Pinard pointed out that the East
London circuit is under threat from developers who want to turn
the track into a housing estate. He has appealed to the racing
fraternity to stand up and be counted, and to ensure that this his-
torical track does not go the way of so many other iconic venues.
It should be remembered that the very first South African Grand
Prix was held here in 1936, and Richard says he sees it as a privi-
lege to race on this track. A privilege that is worth fighting for.
Secondly, Richard also wishes to thank Timken for their support,
and expresses his gratitude to the companies that provide the
sponsorship to keep such a wonderful sport alive and vibrant.
July 2009
 Innovation
See What You Mean
The Automotive Supplier Park in Rosslyn, north west of Pretoria, has
been the venue for many interesting and cutting edge seminars and
forums, and on the 4th June 2009 it was no exception when Dassault
By Austin Gamble Systémes, in partnership with CDC, presented the CATIA PLM Forum
2009, to experience, learn, and collaborate around the latest updates
on Dassault Systémes products and solutions, on their various platforms, including
CATIA, DELMIA, ENOVIA, SIMULIA and 3DVIA.
F
or the uninitiated, PLM stands
for Product Lifecycle
Management, and the purpose of
the forum was to reemphasise
how PLM can rapidly help com-
panies save costs throughout product devel-
opment and manufacturing processes. It
enhances product innovation and style dif-
ferentiation, reduces time to market, pro-
motes eco-design and in these stressed eco-
nomic times, it has the added benefit of sav-
ing money, from requirements management
to product optimisation through simulation
and supplier sourcing management, as well
as the optimisation of multi-site collabora-
tion for product and process definition and
reduction of manufacturing downtime.
Laurent Couillard,
Vice President Value Selling
Europe for Dassault Systémes
56
Laurent Couillard, Vice President Value
Selling Europe for Dassault Systémes, gave
the keynote presentation “PLM for
Innovation and Growth”, emphasising the
fact that in the current economic climate,
companies must radically change the way
they conduct business and how they interact
with customers to achieve a competitive
advantage. This to a large degree depends on
companies’ flexibility and ability to adapt
themselves to the new economic environ-
ment and their ability to reinvent the future
through innovative thinking and behaviour.
PLM is a vital cog in this process, as it allows
you, as Laurent puts it so succinctly, “to see
what you mean”. In other words, PLM is the
conjunction of the real world with the virtu-
al world. Recent examples of the effective
use of PLM is the “Bird’s Nest” Stadium
designed and constructed in record time for
the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and this engi-
neering feat shall be repeated with an east
European flavour with the design and con-
struction of the main stadium to be used in
the Euro Cup in Poland in 2012.
Dassault Systémes is the world leader in
PLM solutions, mainly because of their
devotion to research and development (43%
of their 7 800 employees are dedicated to
R&D!) and the strong commitment of the
shareholders and management, which allows
The TATA Nano – PLM
in action
the company to deliver unique 3D solutions
for most industries and consumers, includ-
ing aerospace, automotive, shipping, indus-
trial equipment, high tech, construction,
consumer goods, packaged goods, life sci-
ences, energy and business services. The
automotive industry utilises Dassault
Systémes extensively, with iconic brands
such as Bosch, Ford, Toyota, Daimler,
Nissan, Michelin, BMW, Honda, Volvo and
Peugeot/Citroen utilising PLM technology.
PLM is extremely versatile, from virtual
shopping experiences through to molecular
modelling, medical/pharmaceutical training,
fabric simulation to assessing environmental
impact, which Laurent describes as “3D for
all”. It is all based on the reality that to work
quicker and smarter, we need:
• A virtual universe – to understand
• Communities – to talk to each other via
social networks
• Sustainable supply chains – the capacity to
get to these communities in a sustainable
way
• Knowledge trading – the utilisation of
knowledge and the trading therein
• People and environment friendly focus –
this is the be all and end all
Thus the move from PLM V5 to PLM V6,
to get it right digitally before implementa-
tion in the real world, which dramatically
shortens engineering change. Innovation is
basically the sum of experience, conceptual-
isation and technology, and PLM tools
allows one to capture this experience, imag-
ine a concept and to develop the technology,
all in rapid order. This leads to the increase
of a company’s asset value, the escalation of
a company’s image and the strengthening of
a company’s competitiveness. An excellent
example of this in action is TATA. In a very
short space of time, which in years can be
counted on one hand, TATA’s international
image has rocketed from nowhere to a spot
in the top 15, and this can be largely
ascribed to the NANO – a stroke of genius
which could only come from experience,
conceptualisation and technology being
wrapped into warp time, greatly assisted by
PLM techniques.
July 2009
 What’s the
Experience the latest ITS technologies at the 16th World Congress
and Exhibition on Intelligent Transport Systems and Services
The 16th World Congress and Exhibition on Intelligent
Transport Systems and Services (ITS) will take place at
Stockholm International Fairs (Stockholmsmässan) from 21 –
25 September 2009. The theme of the event is ‘ITS in Daily
Life’, exploring how ITS can improve everyday mobility with
strong emphasis on co-modality and ITS solutions for all trans-
port modes. It will offer visitors the opportunity to experience
an array of Technical Visits and showcases as well as featuring a
demonstration theatre within the exhibition hall. The Technical
Visits can be attended by any participant for a modest fee of 25
euro. Transportation to the Technical Visits will be conducted
in hybrid ethanol buses which are fitted with the latest ITS sys-
tems on the market. The Demonstration Theatre in the exhibi-
tion hall will offer visitors an opportunity to experience five dif-
ferent scenarios per day demonstrating how ITS in daily life
ensures a more efficient, safe and secure future using green solu-
tions. The 30 minute demonstrations are free to attend and
cover the following areas: Secure transports; Cooperative sys-
tems; Safe and sustainable transport solutions; Extended e-
transactions – the base for ITS deployment; Daily commuter.
In addition to the Demonstration Theatre, other free-of-charge
SKF SOUTH AFRICA ON THE V8 FAST TRACK WITH
THE AUBY BOYZ RACE TEAM
SKF South Africa is sponsoring the winning Auby Boyz Race
Team in the V8 Super Cars in 2009. The Swedish multi-nation-
al, SKF, has been actively involved in motor sport sponsorship for
a number of years. “SKF has enjoyed one of the longest technical
partnerships in the history of motor racing with Scuderia Ferrari
in Formula 1 and, amongst others, also sponsor NASCAR in the
USA”, says SKF Automotive manager, Marchant Taylor, and
adds that local sponsorships have been equally successful.
“Motor sport sponsorships are particularly rewarding. Motorcar
July 2009
Buzz?
demonstrations will take place alongside the Congress and
Exhibition. Highlights include the outdoor Experience Park,
where visitors will have the opportunity to try out the latest
state-of-the-art ITS applications and technologies of the future
on a small-scale model roadway and a joint demonstration site
from four Swedish transportation authorities, giving live
demonstrations of Traffic Control Centres for railway, aviation,
maritime and road will show a number of different weather sce-
narios, traffic disturbances and crises. The Exhibition will offer
a unique opportunity to visit over 170 exhibitors and meet key
buyers from around the world, with particular emphasis on traf-
fic safety, mobility for vulnerable users, implementation of well-
coordinated ITS projects and services and multimodality/co-
modality leading to cleaner climate. In addition, other ITS-
related topics will also be exhibited. The Congress will run
alongside the exhibition and include 245 sessions relating to all
modes of transport (road, rail, aviation and maritime). There
will be many opportunities to take part in the ITS World
Congress and Exhibition as a delegate, speaker, exhibitor and
visitor. To register your interest or find further information,
please visit www.itsworldcongress.com.
racing is such a powerful, thrilling and very demanding environ-
ment and, as a knowledge engineering company, we combine
technical know-how with product superiority to offer automotive
rotating equipment solutions and play an active supporting role
in motor sport”. The formidable Auby Boyz Race Team currently
competes in the Wesbank V8s, with two Jaguars driven by Marc
and Brandon and Deon driving a Chevrolet.
57
 Insights

Fewer, Bigger, Better

“Barloworld has a proven track record of effectively managing long-term relation-
ships with global principals and customers. We have an ability to develop and grow
businesses in multiple geographies including challenging territories and high growth
prospects. One of our core competencies is an ability to leverage systems and best
practices across our chosen business segments” – Clive Thompson, CEO Barloworld.

P
owerful and inspiring words, which would encourage any
stakeholder, be it current or potential. Let us look at
Barloworld’s Vision, which is “to be a recognised global
market leader in the provision of integrated solutions in
distribution, rental, fleet management, product support and logis-
tics to customers in our chosen business segments”. Now for the
company overview as gleaned from Barloworld’s website;
“Barloworld is driven by the maxim of creating sustainable value
for all its shareholders. The group offers its global customer base
integrated business solutions backed by leading international
brands.” This is all distilled into the most powerful statement of
all; “What sets us apart is our ability to develop and maintain
mutually beneficial long-term business relationships. We like to
call it the Barloworld Way”.
The reason for this introduction is to
explain the ethos behind Barloworld
Motor Retail’s decision to become a
Capricorn Society supplier. Barloworld
Motor Retail is one of the chosen business
segments as described above, sharing cen-
tre stage with the equipment division, car
rental operations, fleet services, and the
handling and logistics divisions. It would
take reams of paper to do justice to all
these operations, suffice to say that they all
follow the words of Clive Thompson and
fit nicely into Barloworld’s Vision. This is
the message ABR took on board when it
interviewed Pieter Haak, General Manager
After Sales of Barloworld Motor Retail
South Africa. Pieter Haak describes these
philosophies as “Fewer, Bigger, Better”,
underpinned by a conservative and ethical
approach. Thus, when he was approached
by Rob Mildenhall, Capricorn Society
Limited Business Development Manager
for South Africa, he did not immediately
join as a supplier, even though he and Rob
had served together on numerous industry
bodies, and he knew the qualities of the
individual. He needed to be 100% sure of
the viability and sustainability of the organ-
isation, and he also needed make sure that
the ethics of the Society fitted the
Barloworld values. Early on in his
research, his mind was soon put to rest.
Capricorn Society Limited was formed
in 1975 in Western Australia and since
its inception it has had an impeccable
reputation for integrity and it has never
compromised on its strict eligibility cri-
teria for workshops and suppliers.
These values were carried through to
the other Australian states, then New
Zealand and South Africa as the
Society expanded, and now the
Capricorn Society can rightfully
appropriate and share Barloworld’s Pieter Haak, General
Manager After Sales,
claim of “developing and maintaining Barloworld Motor Retail
mutually beneficial long-term busi- South Africa
ness relationships”.
Barloworld Motor Retail became a Capricorn supplier some four
years ago, and the wisdom of Pieter Haak’s decision is validated by
the fact that the Society in now one of the top ten accounts for the
division. Capricorn members can now leverage off Barloworld’s
strength in motor retail, which includes Volkswagen/Audi;
Mercedes-Benz; Chrysler; Ford/Mazda; General Motors; BMW;
Toyota and Subaru dealerships, sourcing their parts from hub and
spoke operations in Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Western Cape and
KwaZulu Natal. The benefits for Barloworld Motor Retail are
numerous, including improved turnover, the prompt and guaran-
teed payment of one account covering many small workshops,
increased exposure, and the knowledge that their extended car parc
is being maintained by genuine parts whenever a Capricorn mem-
ber gets involved. Likewise, the Capricorn members get the bene-
fits of price, availability, rebates and less administration. A final
word from Pieter Haak – “My relationship with Rob Mildenhall
does help, but to be totally honest, his persistence in promoting
the benefits of Capricorn, both for members and suppliers, and
the assistance and help that he and his staff provide, makes it a
pleasure for the suppliers. He will move heaven and earth to assist
and help, and this makes the difference.”

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

58 July 2009
 Q&A

by Roger McCleery

Roger McCleery asks the questions

See how many of these 20 Questions you can answer.

1. What company has signed an alliance with Chrysler in the United States?

2. What company has taken over Hummer?

3. Where is Hummer going to be made?

4, What company sold the most passenger cars in May?

5. What is the top selling LCV (Bakkie) in South Africa?

6. How many people have walked on the moon?

7. When refuelling a Grand Prix car, how many litres of fuel does the car receive per second?

8. What company sponsors a GT Challenge racing series for mainly Porsches and Ferraris racing in South Africa?

9. Who is the current President of the FIA?

10. Name two international motor races run at Kyalami this year.

11. Name South Africa’s only Formula 1 World Champion.

12. What city does he come from?

13. Name three Jewish South African drivers who have competed in Formula 1 Grand Prix Racing.

14. Name the current three-times South African WesBank V8 driving champion.

15. What company sponsors the racing V8 driven by Hennie Groenewald?

16. Who holds the South African Land Speed Record?

17. At what speed?

18. What is the maximum length and time of a Formula 1 Grand Prix?

19. Who is the SAGMJ’s Journalist of the Year?

20. What makes of car leads the World Rally Championship after seven rounds?

Answers on page 65
60 July 2009
 Wilde Things

A Call to Alms
by Fingal Wilde
My column in the June 2009 issue of ABR caused quite a stir.
In one fell swoop I managed to piss off a third of South Africa’s
electorate and the entire soccer world, all aflame about my com-
ments on the quality of their grey matter. At last, confirmation
and affirmation that I must be doing something right! Now, to
balance the scales, I am about to have a go at that citadel of
masculinity and testosterone, a mere stone’s throw away from the Union Buildings,
where strange creatures, with horns on their heads, rings through their noses, and
their bodies daubed in blue, pay homage to grown men indulging in steamy physical
contact, popularly known as rucking (too close for comfort to the term rutting), and
with an unhealthy obsession in getting hold of an oval ball. This temple of worship
is known as Loftus Versfeld, or for the true aficionados, just Loftus. The gay
pastime that is played here is widely referred to as rugby.

B
efore I go on any further, I need to
come out of the closet. I do watch
this spectacular display of creatine
and iron pumping inspired combat. I
actually enjoy it, as I believe that rugby
union, when played properly, is the best
sport on the planet. And the spectators at
a rugby match are generally far better
behaved than the soccer louts, inside and
outside the stadium. Someone once said
that soccer is a game designed for gentle-
men, played by hooligans, and that rugby
is a game designed for hooligans, played
by gentlemen. I’m not going to argue with
this, but what about the spectators. The
less said about the soccer yobs the better,
but recently the rugby spectators appear to
be going the same route. And it is at
Loftus, where the blood runs blue, that
this malady is manifesting itself in the
form of boorish and unwelcoming behav-
iour. I have long lamented the insufferable
behaviour of spectators booing the visiting
side, the referee and that particularly
unsporting bit of booing and jeering when
the opposing side takes a kick at the posts.
This is bad enough and must stop. But
recently, when Luke Watson visited
Loftus, he was subjected to an incessant
barrage of booing and worse by a distinct-
ly unfriendly crowd, simply because of
some comments that he had made. Yes,
Luke Watson is his own worst enemy, but
that does not give anyone the right to
behave so badly towards a visiting team.
What has happened to the simple concept
of courtesy? Once again, at the semi-final
and the final of the Super 14, the
Crusaders and the Chiefs were met by a
cacophony of hoots and howls, and I was
truly dismayed. It is time that the officials
and the rugby players do something about
this. Not just
at Loftus, but at
every rugby ground
in South Africa.
Manners must
come back to this
wonderful game.
How do we do this?
We do this through
the players, who
surely the fans will On the left is the cranium of a well behaved rugby spectator,
listen to. I’ve and on the right the cranium of a yob.
noticed that most of
South Africa’s rugby players (and a good
portion of the New Zealand lot as well)
make the sign of the cross after scoring,
and cast their eyes to some higher power
above and even make some pointed ges-
ture to this deity above. A few seasons ago,
Jaco van der Westhuyzen took this wear-
ing of your feelings on your sleeve to even
greater heights by wearing this on his
chest. It has also become de rigueur for the
captains and the man of the match to
thank God (usually referred to as the
Skepper) for having given them such
amazing talent, so I can safely assume that
rugby players in the main appear to be
committed Christians. Thus my appeal
goes to these bearers of the faith to apply
their fervour to converting the poorly
behaved fans on the bleachers. I definitely
am not a theologian, but I’m going to use
some scripture to get my message across.
Firstly, I quote from 1 Peter chapter 2,
verses 15 and 16; “For it is God’s will that
by doing good you should silence the
ignorant talk of foolish men. Live as free
men, but do not use your freedom as a
cover-up for evil; live as servants of God”.
I am sure that you guys will agree that
booing visiting players is the equivalent of
the ignorant talk of foolish men, and that
by staying quiet about this unacceptable
abuse you are abusing your freedom, and
that as servants of God you should be
scolding the fans for their behaviour.
Need more? How about the second and
fourth commandments? You shall love
your neighbour as yourself definitely does
not gel with how your fans are treating the
visiting neighbours. And you are definite-
ly not honouring your father and mother
if you allow this sort of abuse in your
name or your team’s name. Need more?
What about Christian charity, and giving
alms to the poor. Alms is not just about
giving money, it is about intercessory
prayer and acts of mercy. Believe me,
getting the fans to keep quiet while you
are delivering a rugby lesson is indeed an
act of mercy, and by interceding you are
doing God’s work. I could go on and on
with messages from the Bible.
Thus ends this lesson. In future, I expect
to hear a pin drop when a kick is taken at
Loftus, no matter who is taking the kick.
Anyone for side bets on this happening?

July 2009 61
 Robert Bosch

From Innovation to Standard Equipment

– 30 years of safe braking with Bosch ABS
Bringing a car to a safe stop was not upper-
most in the minds of the early automotive
pioneers, who had bigger fish to fry in
engine development, suspension improve-
ments and drive line technologies. Braking
was then seen as a necessary inconvenience.

B
etter and safer braking started to exercise the minds of
automotive engineers in the early part of the twentieth 30 years of Bosch ABS –
century, when it was realised that the locking of the
wheels was the chief culprit in accidents, not only in cars, development milestones
but also in railway vehicles and even in airplanes, and as
early as 1936 Bosch was already at the forefront of this
thinking when it was granted a patent for “a mechanism to prevent lock- 1936 Bosch is granted a patent for “a mechanism to
ing of the wheels of a motor vehicle”. The development of anti-locking prevent locking of the wheels of a motor vehicle”
systems was a slow and tortuous process, with the early designs too com-
plicated and therefore prone to failure. The breakthrough came in 1964, 1970 ABS 1 prototypes perform all the required func-
when Teldix began development work on the first fully electronically tions, with functional safety limitations
controlled system. The basic structure of this design, known as ABS1,
1978 Series production of the first antilock braking
can still be found today in nearly every ABS. The problem in the early
system
development was that the roughly 1000 analogue components and safe-
ty switches meant that the reliability and durability of the electronic con-
1985 Bosch ABS installed in US vehicles for the first
trol units were not yet good enough for volume production. The next
time
breakthrough came in 1975 when Bosch acquired ABS development
form Teldix, and the know-how of the Bosch engineers combined with
1987 TCS (traction control system) goes into series
the increasing possibilities of digital technology, including integrated
production
circuits, meant that the number of electronic components could be
reduced to 140. After 14 years of intense development, everything final-
1989 ABS 2E is the first to feature a control unit
ly came into place in 1978: the first system, known as ABS2, went into
mounted directly on the hydraulic modulator
series production at Bosch, first been fitted as optional on Mercedes-
Benz S-Class vehicles, and shortly afterwards in BMW 7 series cars. 1993 Series production of the Bosch ABS 5.0

The ABS system was further enhanced in 1986 by the TCS traction 1995 Introduction of ESP® electronic stability
control system and in 1995 by the ESP® electronic stability programme programme
– and once again, these systems were Bosch innovations. In 2007, more
than three quarters of all new vehicles worldwide were equipped with 1998 Bosch starts production of ABS 5.7
ABS. At world market leader Bosch alone, some 21 million braking
control systems rolled off the production lines in 2008. Now, it is as if 2001 Series production of Bosch ABS 8
ABS has been with us a long time, and in Europe, the U.S., and Japan,
ABS is now standard equipment on all vehicles, and the ESP® electronic 2003 100 million ABS systems
stability programme is increasingly replacing ABS as a standard feature,
and this trend is accelerating, encouraged by the regulation in the U.S. 2004 ABS becomes standard equipment in all 15 EU
mandating the gradual introduction of ESP® in all light vehicles up to member states
4.5 tonnes gross weight by model year 2012. Europe has passed similar
legislation, and in emerging markets ABS is also becoming the norm, 2008 30th anniversary of series production of ABS
with Brazil taking it to heart, and already in China two out of every three
passenger cars features ABS.

More on ABS in the next issue of ABR.

62 July 2009
 The Deep Roots of the Goldfields
The mines are deep in the goldfields of the north western Free State. So are the roots
of many who live in the Welkom, Virginia, Odendaalsrus triangle. It is these roots that
sustain this close knit community and it’s these roots that gave Ben du Plessis and Willie
Claassen the strength to start up du Plessis and Claassen Service Centre, situated at
216 Jan Hofmeyr Street, Welkom, in the heart of the motor trade in this mining town.

I
t takes courage and drive to start your own business in the prime
of your life, and to leave the cosseted confines of the corporate life.
It takes even more courage to start from scratch, but this is exact-
ly what Ben du Plessis and Willie Claassen did, sinking their life
savings into a business venture during the height of a global economic
crisis. Courage comes from crisis, but this was not a spur of the
moment decision. Having worked together for 20 years at the local
Mercedes-Benz dealership, and being close friends during this time,
Ben and Willie had for many years discussed this possibility during
their frequent hunting trips to the Waterberg. It may have been a
sub-conscious imperative, but they were simply waiting for the right
opportunity, as they did not just want to, in the words of Ben, open a
workshop “onder ‘n boom”. The catalyst came in the form of the
Johannesburg Motor Show in October/November 2008, when Ben was
perusing the show catalogue and came upon the e-CAR concept. After The sun is rising on Willie Claassen and Ben du Plessis, with a
modern workshop staffed by highly qualified technicians, offering
contacting e-CAR and after two insightful briefings, Ben and Willie 60 years of Mercedes-Benz technical experience and know-how,
knew that they had found a home, and the time had arrived for this backed up by the e-CAR concept
dynamic duo to divest themselves of their “corporate comfort zone”,
and to tackle a new and exciting challenge. The wheels were put into
motion, and on the 8th May 2009, du Plessis and Claassen Service
Centre was officially opened.

The business became an instant success, and with barely two months
under their belts, Ben and Willie can already declare with absolute
certainty that they have made the right decision. They ascribe their
Welkom roots as having played a central role to their success, as their
clientele comes from the local folk and the surrounding farming
community, the ties to which Willie and Ben have built up over many
years, and this local knowledge and inside track made the venture that Over 80% of the vehicles serviced at du Plessis and Claassen
much easier. The e-CAR name and its links to the Bosch standards Service Centre are Mercedes-Benz passenger and commercial
relating to equipment and training also played a major role in the seam- vehicles, testimony to the ties built up over the past 20 years
less transition from a corporate culture to a more family orientated
culture. Whilst e-CAR has its rules and guidelines, Ben and Willie love
the more informal attitude and the independence granted to them by
an organisation focused on excellence with a personal touch. This
support covers the whole gamut from technical, parts, training, market-
ing, all key to the success of a modern workshop, but what Ben and
Willie truly appreciate is the ethical and moral support which e-CAR
lends to them, aspects that are sometimes undervalued in the hurly
burly of the business world.

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)

64 July 2009
 Burford
Logan’s Run
Renault was the first French brand to return to South Africa in
by Adrian Burford the 1990s, in a deal with Imperial which saw them launch the
Laguna into a market hungry for variety. It heralded the end of a
10 year hiatus, Renault finally giving up on South Africa and its divisive politics
in 1985, closing shop in the wake of PW Botha’s infamous Rubicon speech on
August 15 that year.
I
t also brought the curtain down just as it was going up: in
1984 the Renault 5 (despite being near the end of its life-
cycle) and newer 9 were both selling strongly, keeping a
well-developed dealer network busy. In 1981 about 7 500
R5s were sold, and in 1984 some 10 000 R9s found
homes, numbers which made Renault a mainstream player, if not
quite in the same league as Ford and Toyota. Renault South Africa
existed as an entity in its own right to handle sales and marketing
while the cars were being assembled in Durban by Toyota’s Motor
Assemblies operation – as the 5 had been since the mid-70s. The
brand had a solid reputation for economy combined with the ride
comfort of more expensive cars. Prior to Toyota’s involvement (the
brand also marketed the 5 in the earlier years) Renaults had been
assembled in East London, with the rear-engined R8 and the
slightly larger R10 flying the brand’s flag from the middle 1960s
to the early 1970s. For those after spacious hatchbacks there was
the evergreen R16, which had a 10 year lifespan. Meanwhile, the
imported - and pricey - R8 Gordini and locally-developed - but
much more affordable - R10 Alconi were doing wonders for the
brand’s reputation on racetracks. A young man called Jody
Scheckter cut his teeth in the former.
While there weren’t any new Renaults available from end-1985
until mid-1996, the brand was kept alive by enthusiasts, aided by
France’s pragmatic approach to at least supplying parts. To this
day, the 5 and 9 remain a surprisingly common sight on our
roads. Imperial’s decision to start importing and distributing the
quintessentially French brand put them at the forefront of our
industry’s rapid regrowth in terms of new badges in the post-
apartheid era. By the end of the century Renault was doing nice-
ly with a range of Meganes and Lagunas on offer. There was also
a luxurious saloon called a Safrane but the less said about it the
better. After the Great War Renault had a reputation for building
impressive large cars, including some with a giant 3.7 metre
wheelbase. The company’s inability to build large cars latterly
(think the outlandish Vel Satis and interesting but flawed
Avantime) has only been matched by its French cousins Peugeot
and Citroen, who should also learn to stick to their knitting.
Answers
1. Fiat 7. 12
2. Tengzhong – China 8. Altech
3. Shreveport USA 9. Max Moseley
4. VW 10. A1GP, World Super Bikes
5. Toyota Hi-Lux 11. Jody Scheckter
6. 12 12. East London
July 2009
on Brands
And that has largely been the case since World War II, and it was
post-conflict that Renault was nationalised, company founder
Louis Renault dying in prison while waiting to be tried for
allegedly collaborating with the Germans. Small cars like the
4CV and Dauphine becoming the company’s stock in trade,
Renault then doing a design about face at the beginning of the
1960s when they changed to the front-engined, front-drive R4.
The 4 CV was imported to SA from 1953 by Curries Motors and
Renault Africa was formed in 1958. Renault lost huge amounts of
money in the early 1980s, causing a major shake-up in which they
sold many key assets and retrenched thousands of workers, a deci-
sion which was said to be the justification for the assassination of
MD Georges Besse at the end of 1986. His policies stemmed the
tide of red ink though and the company’s ability to compete inter-
nationally was further aided by privatisation at the end of the 80s.
The company has recently celebrated 10 years of the Renault-
Nissan alliance, an arrangement whereby Renault owns 44.4
percent of Nissan which in turn owns 15 percent of Renault. By
the early 2 000s Renault was the darling of the local media: the
Clio 1.4RT was chosen as the Wesbank Car of the Year and in
2004 the bustle-backed Megane II also took the crown. Sales grew
rapidly from about 10 000 units in 2000 to 18 625 just five years
later, market share peaking at a shade under five percent. Renault
South Africa (formed in 2002) seemed capable of doing no
wrong. But since then things have gone pear-shaped and
the brand has fallen out of favour: sales dropped in ‘06 and
plummeted in ’07 and while they’re not the only ones to suffer in
that regard, share was down to 1.38 percent last year.
However, the company seems to be on the comeback trail in
South Africa and not only is there a rush of new product (not least
of all the affordable Logan and Sandero twins) but the brand is
adamant that their issues with indifferent dealers and poor parts
availability and pricing have been addressed. So far this year
(January to May) they’ve sold 1 304 units with share starting to
climb too. Much of it is on the back of their ‘cheapies’ and
Logan/Sandero seems to be the right product at the right
time...and not a moment too soon either.
From page 60
13. Jody Scheckter, Ian Scheckter 18. 305 kms or two hours
and Eddie Kaizan 19. Egmont Sippel
14. Hennie Groenewald 20. Citroën
15. Timken
16. Johan Jacobs in a Jet Car
17. 504,554 km/h
65
 Howard Keeg follows the action

Partinform Blooms in Bloemfontein

Conceived in 1986, Partinform has grown into a significant parts road show, where-
by reputable manufacturers can display their latest products, and to show cutting
edge technological advances, and most importantly, to talk face to face with the
trade and the end users across the country about the technical challenges facing
the industry, and to inform and educate on various matters of interest and concern,
such as the professional benefits in buying and fitting guaranteed, quality branded
product; and to warn about the dangers of fitting sub-standard or counterfeit parts,
the obvious dangers thereof around roadworthiness; and VERY VERY IMPORTANTLY,
the implications for the industry of the recently promulgated Consumer Protection
Bill. Howard Keeg followed the Partinform caravan into Bloemfontein, where they set
up their stalls of knowledge, wisdom and insight, and invited the locals to partake
of food, drink, information, education, entertainment and very valuable networking.

B
loemfontein is known as the City of Roses, and things
were indeed blooming at the City Hall, where the
Partinform Automotive Trade Show was held on
Wednesday night, 17th June 2009. 260 attendees were
on hand to participate in the action, and by the end of the night,
every one of them left with a better understanding of the impor-
tance of selling or fitting well known brands, with local support and
back-up. It was while observing the goings on during the show that
I wondered what Johan Nicolaas Brits would have made of all the
fuss, and his take on the amazing advances in the means of mobil-
ity, and the emphasis on quality, roadworthiness and safety, and the
commitment of the purveyors of the components that make all
these good things happen. Farmer Brits was the fellow who owned
the farm that became a British outpost in 1846, and where the city
of Bloemfontein was established by the trekboers. Bloemfontein is
famous for its roses, but even more famous for its Cheetahs rugby
side, named co-incidentally or purposely after Manguang, the
Sotho name for the city; and meaning “the place of cheetahs”. This
was also the birthplace of such luminaries as J.R.R. Tolkien, Zola
Budd, Allan Donald, Leon Schuster, Hansie Cronje and many
more, and if a conurbation is the sum of its parts, these celebrities
hold the key to understanding that Bloemfontein is a fusion of cul-
ture, side splitting humour, sport, and an area which gives any other
city a run for its money. There is also apparently no truth in the
rumour that Tolkien found his inspiration for Gollum in
Bloemfontein, but who knows what affected him in his formative
infant years. Enough of the twisted travelogue, and let us take a
look at the action on the night of 17th June:

66 July 2009
 People + products
= Knowledge and Information

July 2009 67
68 July 2009
The Winners Juan Annandale of BNS Workshop, Bloemfontein, was the big winner of the night. He
knew that when disconnecting a battery, the negative battery terminal must be the first
terminal to be disconnected, and this knowledge meant that he will be attending the
Forza Racing Ferrari Track Experience on Friday 19th November 2009 at the
Zwartkops Racing Track, together with the other winners from the other shows. Four
more racing experiences are still to be allocated, at the forthcoming shows:
• Durban Tuesday 21st July 2009
• Klerksdorp Tuesday 8th September 2009
• Port Elizabeth Tuesday 13th October 2009
• White River Tuesday 10th November 2009

Make sure that you attend one of these shows, and you could be part of the Ferrari Fun!!!
Other great prizes were up for grabs.

Danie du Toit got some goodies Samantha Botes from Ficksburg Midas
from Bosch picked up a prize from Goodyear RAM
Gerhard from the Volksie Shop
walked away with a prize
from FRAM
Kallie Malan from Lindsay Saker drew the short straw when it came to the
questions. When asked the difference between a FRAM filter and a cheap
import, his answer that it was of a better quality and had better filtration
properties, did not get the nod from the strict judges. What they were looking Johan Marx and Danie du
for is that a FRAM filter has a better contamination holding capacity. For Toit were the lucky draw
those who will be attending the next shows, be warned – make sure that you winners of the i-POD and
do your homework at the stands. You could get a tough question! Tom-Tom GPS, courtesy of
Willard and Sabat Batteries
Competition Corner
And if you are a reader of ABR, not only are you highly intelligent, you also have a chance to win a Forza Racing Track Experience. Four lucky
winners will be drawn out of the hat at the Port Elizabeth Partinform on the 13th October 2009, and will be advised via e-mail or telephone
by the 27th October 2009, and the winners shall also be announced in the November 2009 issue of ABR. Don’t delay. The entries from the
previous editions of ABR are already streaming in, so get out your thinking cap and answer these three questions:

1. When was Partinform conceived?

2. Bloemfontein is known as the city of what?

3. What important bill relating to quality, service and back-up, has just been promulgated?

Send your answers to fax 086 6579 289 or e-mail bigheart@iafrica.com with the following details:
Name and Surname: __________________________________________________________________________________

Company: ___________________________________________________________________________________________

Position: ____________________________________________________________________________________________

Postal Address:_______________________________________________________________________________________

Contact Tel. no’s:_____________________________________________________________________________________

e-mail address:________________________________________________________________________________________

July 2009
69
 Partinform

The CEF Brake Hose you

make up on site for your
customer, is the same
Quality that we supply to
the “OE Manufacturers”
1. Fittings Production 2. Fitting bending Production

3. Inspection 4. Assembly

5. test Assembly 6. Completed Brake Hose

70 July 2009
 Vehicle Evaluation

by Howard Keeg Cadillac Man

When I was growing up in the 50’s and 60’s (20th century, for those wondering) there
was only one car for me. My aspiration was not a Rolls-Royce, nor a Ferrari, and this was
long before the new breed of super cars that in those days were not even a twinkle in the
eyes of the designers. The car for me was a Cadillac. The marques of note were the
Studebakers, the Hudsons, the Pontiacs, and the like, and on top of the pile was the
majestic Cadillac. For Elvis and me, this was our dream car. By the time that I eventual-
ly reached driving age in the early 70’s, Elvis had amassed a collection of Cadillacs, but
unfortunately economic reality had kicked in, and petrol prices had kyboshed the
Cadillac, so my sights were lowered somewhat, with my dream car downsized to a Beetle.

I
magine my emotions when, for one
week at the beginning of June, I
had the opportunity to experience a
Cadillac, courtesy of those nice
guys at General Motors. And not
just a Cadillac, but a 2009 Cadillac CTS.
As I slid behind the wheel of a Cadillac for
the first time in my life, those childhood
dreams came rushing back with a
vengeance. The CTS is a 3,6 litre V6 pow-
ered brute, but in one package you have
the beauty and the beast, that can only be
appreciated by a certain type of motorist,
or more accurately, motoring journalist.
This species is rare on the ground in both
Europe and South Africa, so it is no sur-
prise that the accolades have come from
more appreciative climes, with the CTS
reaping awards such as the 2008 Saudi
Auto Car of the Year, the 2008 Motor
Trend Car of the Year – North America,
and the engine making it onto Ward’s
Autoworld magazine’s “Ten Best Engines”.
229kW of power and 374 Nm of torque
makes for effortless driving, enhanced by
the 6 speed hydra-matic automatic trans-
mission, which allows for full automatic
mode or clutchless manual gear changing
via the gear stick or paddles on the steering
wheel. Developed on Germany’s famed
Nürburgring test track, this Cadillac is a
brilliant throwback to the past, being big-
ger than its rivals in the luxury sports
sedan class, and all the bells and whistles
befitting a car of its status. I could go on
and on about the multi-colour pop-up
screen which controls the radio, TV, CD,
DVD player, MP3, GPS (when installed), Just in case you can’t make it home for your
the 40Gb hard drive for storing everything favourite soap
including the kitchen sink, the voice acti-
vated channel changing, the on board
information available, the seat warming,
the stored driver settings, the leather, wood
and aluminium finishes, and other features
which even Paris Hilton would die for, the
superb build quality, the breathtaking han-
dling thanks to a wide track rear wheel
drive arrangement on 18” tyres, all for an
incredibly good starting price at R425 000
(for the well heeled), but what I really need
to say is “Go and experience it for your-
self ”. And now I’m a Cadillac Man for life,
even if it’s in words rather than deed.

The Yin and Yang, the ancient and

the modern, represented by Maropeng
and the 21st century Cadillac.

72 July 2009
 Corporate Conscience

It’s More Than Just

Business #2
In February 2009, Automotive Business Review began a series of articles
under its Corporate Conscience/Industry Update banners, describing the
Herculean efforts of Patrick Latouche, General Manager of Sparepro, to re-
invent and re-ignite the company with a blend of management disciplines and
new wave thinking, putting soul and spirit into the staff, and striving to
allow each and every employee to become the best that they can be, and
inculcating a “Spirit of Team”. These articles were titled “It’s More Than Just
Business”; “Management by Measurement”; “Feeling the Pulse”; “Feeling the
Pulse – with Passion and Precision”; and “An Idea Becoming a Reality”, where-
by we delved into Patrick’s various management by motivation techniques, and the incredible
success that he has achieved so far. For the next two articles, we have gone full circle, as
we look again at “It’s More Than Just Business” with a more enlightened eye.

W
e visited Sparepro on Friday 5th June at 07h10, some
20 minutes early, and found Patrick already ensconced
behind his desk, analysing the previous day’s sales
performance in preparation for his daily pep talk to the sales team.
This confirmed that behind all his modern philosophies and
concentration on the “softer” issues, Patrick knows that the foun-
dation is built on sound business principles and good old fash-
ioned hard work. It was thus only when this daily operational task
had been put to bed that Patrick turned his attention to our
07h30 appointment, and he got round to one of his intense pas-
sions, and a recurring theme in his approach to business. This
recurring theme is that business is like a human being, because it
represents the collective souls of the people in the business, and
that healthy souls equal healthy business. Even if this does not
exist, it can be cultivated, because as Patrick says with an evangel-
ical gleam in his eye. “It is more than just business”. An example
of this is the initiative that Patrick has started in assisting Little
Eden, a registered non-profit organisation that cares primarily for
children affected by Down Syndrome, cerebral palsy, autism,
epilepsy, Dandy Walker syndrome, foetal alcohol syndrome or
mental trauma as a result of birth complications or physical abuse.
Other patients suffer from behavioural problems or mental ill-
nesses such as schizophrenia, thus unable to function in normal
society and who have to rely on their carers for help with eating,
bathing, dressing and other daily activities. Nevertheless, each one
is an individual with something to contribute and very often
something to teach us, like patience, joy in small achievements,
trust and love. As Domitilla Rota Hyams, the Founder of Little
Eden, says “There is one thing I know: that people with intellec-
tual disability have great value and that God gave them to touch
our hearts and make us better people. From the very beginning,
Little Eden has been a place where each individual is not only
cared for physically, but also emotionally and spiritually.”
It is clear that his visit to Little Eden has affected Patrick emotion-
ally. He says “By visiting Little Eden you realise that life is a gift.
We tend to take so much for granted, but we should stop to think
and to realise how lucky we are to be functional. The kids at Little
Eden feel the cold, get hungry, get happy, and get angry, just as we
do. The only difference is that they got the short end of the stick
when they were born, which they did not ask for. We should
realise that but for the grace of God, that could be us, and how
would we feel if we were abandoned. We must accept that we are
here for a short journey, and we must realise that whatever we do
to earn our daily living, we are more than just a business. It is not
just balance sheets, income statements, returns on investment. We
cannot just measure wealth in monetary terms, wealth is nothing
without a social conscience, and people and business have to get
involved in worthy causes to redress the balance of life.” Patrick
bemoans the attitude of some people who say that if there are no
returns, that they will not contribute and just wash their hands.
“Children with no future may not give returns in the convention-
al measurements, but they can give returns in other ways”, he says.
More on this in the August 2009 issue of ABR.

Little Eden Founder Domitilla Rota Hyams with Shaun. Shaun looks like a
normal little boy, but he suffers from all of the affects of foetal alcohol syn-
drome – small for his age, physically and mentally disabled, a hauntingly sad
and empty gaze. But he was also a beautiful baby who screamed non-stop for
days after he arrived at Little Eden, suffering acute withdrawal symptoms after
being born to a mother who drank alcohol and took drugs during her preg-
nancy, but today he smiles and responds to people and can point to his nose
and mouth when asked. Shawn will never be normal, nor will he contribute
to society in the conventional way, but he has reached a stage where he can
touch the hearts of everyone who meets him; a milestone that simply would not
have been possible without the dedicated care, encouragement and love of
Little Eden’s wonderful therapists and nursing staff.

74 July 2009
 Road Safety

DWD as bad as DUI

The Bridgestone Committee for Active Road Safety (CARS), a subsidiary of
the South African Guild of Motor Journalists, conducted an interesting
pilot study at the Wanderers Club, Illovo, Johannesburg, on 28 May
by Howard Keeg 2009. The purpose of the study was to determine the effect of operating
a cell phone in either talk or text mode while driving. The results were
rather predictable, as previous research has given us the clue.

Eugene Herbert of Skidpan Advanced Driver Training conducted the study

I
n actual fact, I do not need research to prove what is going
on under my very own eyes every day of my life. Whenever
I observe slow or erratic driving during the day, my immedi-
ate assumption is that the idiot is on a cell phone, and nine
times out of ten I am correct. The exceptions are newly minted
drivers who obviously did not get their driver’s licences legally, or
who simply do not have a driver’s licence. At around midnight, one
is confronted with a totally different scenario, with high speed, low
speed, erratic driving, and other hair raising antics thrown into the
mix, all fuelled by alcohol. Coming back to the study, the results
confirmed that DWD (distracted while driving) is as bad as DUI
(driving under the influence), which, as I said before, is as simple
as ABC (a bloody certainty). Research data from various other
studies make for compelling reading:
• Distraction from cell phone use while driving (handheld or
hands free) extends a driver’s reaction as much as having a blood
alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08%
• The number one source of driver inattention is the use of a wire-
less device
• Driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain
activity associated with driving by 37%
• Motorists on the blood-alcohol edge drive better than sober
drivers using cell phones
• Phones ringing startle people, and most people feel compelled
to answer them regardless of the traffic situation they are in.
There are many more such statistics, suffice to say that the logical
conclusion is that anyone who uses a cell phone while driving
should be incarcerated in a cell for a salutary period. To get full
details of the study conducted on the 28th May, you may contact
Dr. Lawrence Barit at barit@tiscali.co.za

July 2009 75
 Fast Wheels
THE BRAWN FORMULA
ONE GP TEAM ROLLS ON
The fairytale entry and successes of the Brawn GP Team in Formula 1 World
Championship Racing continues. Jensen Button at the end of the Turkish Grand Prix out-
side Istanbul at the beginning of June had chalked up 6 wins from 7 starts. Only Jim
Clark (Lotus) and Michael Schumacher (Ferrari) had ever achieved that sort of record.
If Schumacher had won 6 out of 7 GPs to start the season the
British Motoring Press would have been shouting that he and
Ferrari are ruining GP racing and he is arrogant into the bargain
(which he is not). Button doing it is OK, and I must admit it is
fantastic to see a new team and their star English driver, who lis-
tens to Brawn, bringing a happy smiling face to the racing.
Button takes all in his stride. You can see that the Brawn team is a
happy crowd compared to some of the others. With success behind
them like this already why wouldn’t they be?
After Brawn had a one/two finish in Australia people like Renault’s
Briattore cried “Foul” and that they had broken the rules.
Everybody said it was the diffuser under the car. Then the “Lie-
gate” saga unfolded in Malaysia with Button having another win
and only gaining half points when the race was abandoned early
due to a huge storm and fading light.
The Chinese Grand Prix, also run in heavy rain saw a Red Bull vic-
tory with Sebastian Vettel and Mark Weber leading home Button
in 3rd.
Bahrain in April saw other teams sprouting diffusers under their
cars. It didn’t matter as Button took his third win with Vettel 2nd
in the Adrian Newey-designed car. Good to see Toyota in 3rd with
Lewis Hamilton 4th and Barricello 5th. Raikkonen picked up his
first points for the year for himself and for Ferrari. He finished 6th.
Things looked like they were getting closer at last.
You reckon? The “Bearded Duo” of Jensen Button and Ross
Brawn, the brains behind Schumacher’s success, engineered anoth-
er one/two for the Brawn GP Team in Barcelona. Button 1st ,
Rubens Barricello 2nd.
Monaco, said the experts, and for that matter, all the other teams,
would even the playing fields. A good qualifying would make all
the difference as there is almost no passing on the narrow streets of
this Principality. The jewel in the GP crown provided a glamorous
afternoon looking at the rich and famous, sunbathing on their top
toys floating in the harbour. Result? Another one/two finish for the
Brawn GP team. Win number five out of six Grands Prix held so
far, with Button seven seconds in front of Barricello. Ferrari got
onto the leader board with Kimi 3rd and Massa 4th.
This Monaco Grand Prix will always be remembered for another
bit of motor sport folk lore. After his win Jensen Button parked
his car in the pits instead of in front of the Prince at the podium.
Nothing daunted, he set off on foot and sprinted at least a kilome-
tre in full racing gear to get his trophy, to the cheers of the crowd.
76
by Roger McCleery
Then the Formula 1 circus went across the Bosphorus to the Asian
side of Turkey for Round 7 of the season. Ferrari had won the last
four races here and with all sorts of aerodynamic devices now fit-
ted were getting closer. Vettel got pole in practice but it was Button
who passed him around the circuit on Lap 1 when Vettel went off
on a fast corner and that was that. Vettel was quick and had anoth-
er go at Button but his choice of tyres failed him and he came
home in 3rd spot. Button 1st, Rubens out with gearbox problems.
Weber’s 2nd spot was seven seconds behind Button and his best
finish ever in a Grand Prix. Toyota and Toyota-engined cars recov-
ered from previous problems with Trulli 4th and Nico Rosberg in
his Williams 5th. First Ferrari was Massa in 6th.
Lewis Hamilton with the fastest car was 13th. He almost seems to
have given up this year or altogether after his “Lie-gate’ scandal
seems to have got rid of some of McLaren‘s key people.
While all the racing has been taking place, Max Moseley, Bernie
Ecclestone and the Formula 1 team is at war, in public. Like the
formula 1 technical rules which never aim to make for close rac-
ing, the FIA never seems to fail by doing things that none of the
public or the teams wanted in the first place. Max wants more
teams on the grid spending a lot less money so he has put a cap on
it. He has given as much testing and development as they would
like. The manufacturers’ teams don’t want the “cheapies” to down-
grade the sport. Ferrari, BMW, Renault, Toyota and some of the
others say they could depart the sport. It could be the end of the
worldwide exposure they get on a Sunday. They are now thinking
about suing the teams.
An alternate series could be found.. This is the A1 Grand Prix
Championship which uses Ferrari power already. It has a good for-
mat and lots of passing. One way or another let’s hope they sort it
all out for the best.
From p 22
July 2009
 The Last Writes by Baron Claude Borlz

My dead readers are brilliant. Read on ………….

Priceless Observations:
Sometimes, when I look at my children,
I say to myself, “Lillian, you should have
remained a virgin.” – Lillian Carter,
mother of Jimmy Carter
I had a rose named after me and I was very
flattered, until I read the description in the
catalogue: “No good in a bed, but fine
against a wall.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
Lat week, I stated that this woman is the
ugliest woman I have ever seen. I have since
been visited by her sister, and now I wish to
withdraw that statement. – Mark Twain
The secret of a good sermon is to have a
good beginning and a good ending; and to
have the two as close together as possible.
– George Burns
Santa Claus has the right idea. Visit people
only once a year. – Victor Borge
Be careful about reading health books. You
may die of a misprint. – Mark Twain
By all means, marry. If you get a good wife,
you’ll become happy; if you get a bad one,
you’ll become a philosopher. – Socrates
I was married by a judge. I should have
asked for a jury. – Groucho Marx
My wife has a slight impediment in her
speech. Every now and then she stops to
breathe. – Jimmy Durante
I have never hated a man enough to give
his diamonds back. – Zsa Zsa Gabor
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass
all the four essential food groups: alcohol,
caffeine, sugar and fat. – Alex Levine
My luck is so bad that if I bought a ceme-
tery, people would stop dying.
– Rodney Dangerfield
Money can’t buy you happiness, but it does
bring you a more pleasant form of misery.
– Spike Milligan
Until I was thir-
teen, I thought my
name was Shut Up.
– Joe Namath
I don’t feel old. I don’t feel anything until
noon. Then it’s time for my nap. – Bob
Hope
I never drink water because of the disgust-
ing things fish do in it. – W.C. Fields
We could certainly slow the aging process
down if it had to work its way through
Congress. – Will Rogers
Don’t worry about avoiding temptation.
As you get older, it will avoid you.
– Winston Churchill
Maybe it’s true that life begins at fifty, but
everything else starts to wear out, fall out,
or spread out. – Phyllis Diller
By the time a man is wise enough to watch
his step, he’s too old to go anywhere.
– Billy Crystal

Of course, Rodney Dangerfield is famous for his close

to the bone one liners, like these which can be printed
after censoring, and only for those with a sense of
humour. There are many others that simply can’t be
cleaned up:
orn-
a c e m e tery this m
ing in hind a
I was walk a b lo k e hiding be
w
ing and sa e.
graveston
"No,
in g ." H e replied,
orn
I said, "M g a s#!t."
just havin

Went to my first Iraqi birthday

party last week. The musical chairs
was a bit slow, but $%#@ me,
pass the parcel was quick!!!

ys, "Can I
tr o l st a ti on and sa
p e
lks into a hunky?"
A man wa h a ve a KitKat C
plea se
nky
itKat Chu
g e ts him a K ,
behind th
e ti ll s the n m a
The lady to h im . "No," say @ !"
s it back $ #
and bring you fat %
a n o rm al KitKat,
"I wante d

July 2009 77