In South Africa’s motoring scene there were a lot of positives in 2024 with new-car sales performing well, fuel prices falling, and e-tolls being scrapped.
Fuel prices ended the year slightly lower than they started out. In January a litre of 95 unleaded petrol cost R22.49 in Gauteng, compared to R21.47 in December, while the price of 500ppm diesel dropped from R20.63 to R19.21 over the same period.
Cash-strapped consumers were bedazzled by the introduction of competitively-priced vehicles from mostly Asia. Along with a spate of newcomers from China, India-built compact cars such as the new Suzuki Swift, Toyota Starlet Cross and Mahindra 3XO reached our shores to help address the affordability crisis. It wasn’t all good news. While passenger-car sales were stable compared to 2023, bakkie and truck sales took a dive.
There were positives to celebrate on the motorsport stage too, with a South African Formula 1 Grand Prix looking ever more likely in the next couple of years. Local boy Brad Binder gave us someone to cheer for on the international racing stage, and though he didn’t win the MotoGP title the KTM rider finished fifth as best of the rest behind the dominant Ducatis.
These were some of the top motoring moments of 2024:
South Africa’s potential return to the F1 calendar
Reports of South Africa getting a Formula One race have circulated ever since the last Grand Prix was held here in 1993 at Kyalami. Every effort turned out to be a false start, leaving local F1 fans understandably cynical about whether it will ever happen.
This time it seems as if we will truly be able to see the likes of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton live in action by 2026 or 2027, with the aid of Gayton McKenzie. Compared to the government’s previous “meh” attitude to F1, the new sport, arts and culture minister is a big motorsport fan who has been actively campaigning to bring the Grand Prix circus to town.
In December he set up a local Formula One bid steering committee to manage the bid process as the point of contact with F1 officials and stakeholders. Kyalami is the front-runner to host the race and is in the process of getting FI Grade 1 accreditation.
South Africa is in competition with Rwanda to host an African F1 race and it’s a case of which country will come up with the staging fee first. McKenzie estimates it will cost about R2bn per year to stage a race, so don’t expect the tickets to be cheap.
South Africa’s top motoring moments of 2024
There were a lot of positives in 2024 with new-car sales performing well, e-tolls being scrapped, and hopes of an F1 return
Group motoring editor
Image: Gallo Images
In South Africa’s motoring scene there were a lot of positives in 2024 with new-car sales performing well, fuel prices falling, and e-tolls being scrapped.
Fuel prices ended the year slightly lower than they started out. In January a litre of 95 unleaded petrol cost R22.49 in Gauteng, compared to R21.47 in December, while the price of 500ppm diesel dropped from R20.63 to R19.21 over the same period.
Cash-strapped consumers were bedazzled by the introduction of competitively-priced vehicles from mostly Asia. Along with a spate of newcomers from China, India-built compact cars such as the new Suzuki Swift, Toyota Starlet Cross and Mahindra 3XO reached our shores to help address the affordability crisis. It wasn’t all good news. While passenger-car sales were stable compared to 2023, bakkie and truck sales took a dive.
There were positives to celebrate on the motorsport stage too, with a South African Formula 1 Grand Prix looking ever more likely in the next couple of years. Local boy Brad Binder gave us someone to cheer for on the international racing stage, and though he didn’t win the MotoGP title the KTM rider finished fifth as best of the rest behind the dominant Ducatis.
These were some of the top motoring moments of 2024:
South Africa’s potential return to the F1 calendar
Reports of South Africa getting a Formula One race have circulated ever since the last Grand Prix was held here in 1993 at Kyalami. Every effort turned out to be a false start, leaving local F1 fans understandably cynical about whether it will ever happen.
This time it seems as if we will truly be able to see the likes of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton live in action by 2026 or 2027, with the aid of Gayton McKenzie. Compared to the government’s previous “meh” attitude to F1, the new sport, arts and culture minister is a big motorsport fan who has been actively campaigning to bring the Grand Prix circus to town.
In December he set up a local Formula One bid steering committee to manage the bid process as the point of contact with F1 officials and stakeholders. Kyalami is the front-runner to host the race and is in the process of getting FI Grade 1 accreditation.
South Africa is in competition with Rwanda to host an African F1 race and it’s a case of which country will come up with the staging fee first. McKenzie estimates it will cost about R2bn per year to stage a race, so don’t expect the tickets to be cheap.
Image: Supplied
E-tolls are scrapped
E-toll gantries in Gauteng beeped their last on April 11.
The controversial e-tolling system was introduced in 2013 to raise funds to repay the money spent on the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) and fund future projects. However, the system did not succeed and was boycotted by the vast majority of motorists. Only about 10% to 12% of road users in Gauteng paid their e-toll bills.
Motorists who paid their e-tolls in the past will not be refunded, and government has not yet announced how the outstanding R13bn debt on the e-toll project will be recovered.
It is planned to use the gantries for purposes such as fighting crime, tracking stolen vehicles and speed enforcement.
Image: Supplied
Chinese carmakers on the rise
As consumers seek more affordable alternatives, well-priced Chinese vehicles are becoming a real force in the local vehicle market.
Legacy motoring marques such as Toyota, Volkswagen and Suzuki remain the most popular local sellers but Chinese cars have come to the fore as their build quality improves while their prices continue to undercut more well-known brands.
Though the jury is out on their long-term reliability and resale values, the latest vehicles from behind the red curtain are almost unrecognisable from their cheap-feeling predecessors of a few years ago, with greatly improved refinement and sophistication, and the results are showing in the sales charts as they erode the market share of long-standing nameplates.
Brands such as Haval — a subsidiary of GWM — and Chery have overtaken the likes of Renault, Kia, BMW and Mercedes-Benz in local sales, while the local market is constantly inundated with new Chinese entries — most recently Omoda, BYD, Jaecoo, Dayun and GAC Motor.
Image: Supplied
South Africa’s car of the year
The BMW 7 Series was announced as the 2024 Car of the Year by the South African Guild of Mobility Journalists (SAGMJ) at a gala event on May 8 in Johannesburg. The car was also the category winner in the Luxury category.
BMW has won the 38-year-old competition a record seven times, with Opel and Porsche tied in second with four wins apiece.
The category winners of the 2024 competition were:
Budget/Compact — Suzuki Fronx;
Compact Family — Toyota Urban Cruiser;
Family — BMW X1;
Premium — Mercedes-Benz GLC;
Adventure SUV — Mahindra Scorpio-N;
4x4 Double Cab — Volkswagen Amarok;
Luxury — BMW 7 Series; and
Performance — BMW M2.
Image: Supplied
Car auction price record
There’s big money in old cars if they have the right rarity and provenance.
A Mercedes-Benz 280 SL Pagoda set a new record price for a car sold at a South African auction. The diamond blue, concours condition 1971 Mercedes was knocked down for R3.5m at the Creative Rides classic-car auction at Johannesburg’s Monte Casino in September, beating the previous record by more than R1m. The car had belonged to international film producer Anant Singh, who has more than 50 movie credits to his name including Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, Sarafina! and Cry the Beloved Country.
Bidders hailed from more than 20 countries and four other classic cars sold for more than R2m:
R2.8m for a 1957 Mercedes-Benz 190 SL convertible.
R2.65m for a 1958 Mercedes-Benz 220 S Ponton cabriolet.
R2.5m for a 1968 Mercedes-Benz 250 SL Pagoda.
R2.275m for a 1963 Porsche 356 B Cabriolet built in South Africa.
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