September 10, 2021 - Heels & Horsepower Magazine

Chery South Africa, WesBank sign landmark agreement

vuyi on September 10, 2021

The wheels are turning fast at Chery South Africa, as the the Chinese automaker enters into a financial services agreement with WesBank

The wheels are turning fast at Chery South Africa, which this week signed a binding agreement with WesBank for the provision of financial services to both clients and dealers.

The agreement follows several months of negotiation between China’s leading exporter of vehicles and South Africa’s leading provider of innovative vehicle and asset solutions and includes the provision of comprehensive vehicle finance solutions under the newly created Chery Finance. It will also take care of all asset and dealer floorplan finance through the same alliance.

For Chery, affordability means much more than just the sales price.

– Jay Jay Botes, National Sales Manager of Chery South Africa

The agreement was signed on Tuesday at a small ceremony at the Chery offices in Bryanston, Johannesburg. It will now allow Chery’s sales and dealer development team to implement the finance solution at each of the 30+ dealers that will start trading in November 2021.

“For Chery, affordability means much more than just the sales price. We consider the cost of finance, maintenance, and insurance in our calculations, and we want to make sure that it makes sense to our customers on every level. With this in mind, we are very proud to partner with WesBank for the creation of Chery Finance. WesBank is known for its innovative approach to vehicle finance and cost competitiveness. This will ultimately benefit our future owners, who are guaranteed to get the best possible deal on their new or pre-owned Chery through Chery Finance,” says Jay Jay Botes, National Sales Manager of Chery South Africa.

We are proud to be associated with Chery South Africa and look forward to a long and fruitful relationship.

– Ghana Msibi, CEO of WesBank Vehicle and Asset Finance

“We are proud to be associated with Chery South Africa and look forward to a long and fruitful relationship,” says Ghana Msibi, CEO of WesBank Vehicle and Asset Finance. “In our due diligence prior to creating the Chery Finance alliance, we were impressed with the company’s focus on quality, safety and customer service, and we believe that this will help the company to grow in a market that values these attributes highly.”

We are excited to introduce South African customers to our range of modern SUVs, such as the Tiggo 4 and Tiggo 8 Pro which are very popular in every market where they are sold.
– JAY JAY BOTES, NATIONAL SALES MANAGER OF CHERY SOUTH AFRICA

The creation of Chery Finance follows an official announcement of Chery’s establishment in South Africa. This is the first time that the company enters South Africa as a wholly owned subsidiary of the global group, although it has supported the existing owners with parts and service support throughout.

“We are excited to introduce South African customers to our range of modern SUVs. Vehicles like the Tiggo 4 and Tiggo 8 Pro are very popular in every market where they are sold, thanks to their combination of modern technology, powerful engines and unique safety innovations,” says Botes.

“Now we can add to that list the many finance innovations on offer through Chery Finance, including fast online finance applications, immediate vehicle settlement calculations and best-in-class dealer support.”

Chery has completed its local vehicle testing and homologation and looks forward to introducing its first vehicles later this year. This will be followed by a comprehensive range of ultra-modern vehicles in 2022 and the continued growth of the Chery network of dealers.

The Golf 8 GTI is now officially on sale in South Africa

vuyi on September 10, 2021

The Golf 8 GTI officially went on sale on 1 September 2021.

The Golf 8 GTI officially went on sale on 1 September 2021 and AVIS was Volkswagen South Africa’s first customer.

2021 is a special year for Volkswagen and AVIS as we celebrate our 50-year partnership.
– said Rebone Motsatsi, AVIS Executive: Car Rental Operations

“Part of our success as a brand is attributed to sales to the rental industry. Volkswagen has the highest passenger car share of the rental market which is 34%. AVIS remains a key strategic partner for the Volkswagen brand because it accounts for 50% of our rental channel sales,” said Steffen Knapp, head of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars Brand.

Over 7 000 units are sold to AVIS each year, which is approximately 10% of Volkswagen’s total annual vehicles sold in South Africa.

AVIS remains a key strategic partner for the Volkswagen brand because it accounts for 50% of our rental channel sales.
– Steffen Knapp, head of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars Brand

The partnership between Volkswagen and AVIS began in January 1971 with the delivery of 96 Beetle 1300s. A year later, Avis tripled the order which included 1600cc Beetles, Type 4s and Microbuses. By 1981, Volkswagen has sold its 10 000th car to AVIS which was a Golf.

In 1996, AVIS became Volkswagen’s biggest customer when a record number of 3 805 vehicles were delivered to them during that year. In 2008, Volkswagen delivered the 100 000th vehicle to AVIS and to date over 200 000 units have been delivered to AVIS.

“2021 is a special year for Volkswagen and AVIS as we celebrate our 50-year partnership. We are proud of how the partnership between the two organisations has grown since the humble beginnings in 1971. We are also excited to be the first customer to take delivery of the Golf 8 GTI in South Africa which will be an important model of our AVIS Luxury Cars fleet,” said Rebone Motsatsi, AVIS Executive: Car Rental Operations.

In 2020, the Golf range was No.1 in the A Hatch segment with a share of 29.1%. The Golf 8 GTI is set to continue the success of the hot hatch and to date over 1 000 customers have shown interest in the GTI since pre-orders went live on 19 July 2021.

New Land Rover Defender V8 Bond Edition inspired by ‘No Time To Die’

vuyi on September 10, 2021

Land Rover SV Bespoke has created a new Land Rover Defender V8 Bond Edition to celebrate the 25th James Bond film, No Time To Die, ahead of its world premiere later this month.

Land Rover SV Bespoke has created a new Land Rover Defender V8 Bond Edition to celebrate the 25th James Bond film, No Time To Die, ahead of its world premiere later this month.

Available to order as a Defender 110 or 90 and inspired by the specification of the Defenders that appear in No Time To Die, the stealthy Defender V8 Bond Edition features an Extended Black Pack with 22-inch Luna Gloss Black alloy wheels, signature Xenon Blue front brake calipers and a ‘Defender 007’ rear badge.

The bespoke touches extend to the practical interior, with illuminated ‘Defender 007’ treadplates and a specially developed touchscreen start-up animation for the intuitive Pivi Pro infotainment system that honours Land Rover’s long partnership with the James Bond franchise. At night, customers will also spot unique ‘007’ puddle lamp graphics.

Exclusively available to just 300 buyers around the world, the Defender V8 Bond Edition’s interior features laser etching detailing that it is ‘one of 300’ and the SV Bespoke logo. Each vehicle is commissioned by the vehicle personalisation experts at SV Bespoke in the UK.

“The Land Rover Defender V8 Bond Edition is an exclusive take on the most powerful production Defender ever made, inspired by vehicles on screen in No Time To Die. It represents a meeting of two great British brands and is a unique celebration of Land Rover’s 38-year association with James Bond,” said Finbar McFall, Land Rover Brand Director.

Defenders are at the heart of the action in No Time To Die alongside two Range Rover Sport SVRs. A Range Rover Classic and Land Rover Series III are also in the film, which will be released in cinemas around the world from 30 September 2021.

Based on the recently launched Defender V8, the Bond Edition is powered by a 5.0-litre 386kW supercharged petrol engine, which produces 625Nm of torque and drives through an eight-speed automatic transmission. The Defender V8 90 accelerates from 0-100km/h in 5.2 seconds with a top speed of 240km/h.

It delivers new levels of performance and driver engagement by combining the V8 with expertly developed suspension and transmission tuning to create the fastest and most dynamically rewarding Defender yet.

Exclusivity is guaranteed with only five Defender V8 Bond Editions destined for the South African market.

No Time To Die is directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga and stars Daniel Craig, who returns for his fifth and final film as Ian Fleming’s James Bond 007. The film will be released in South African cinemas from 1 October.