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CAR is Southern Africa’s leading automotive-interest magazine – and has been since 1957. It’s aimed at petrol-heads of all ages looking for, expert reviews, road tests, driving impressions of the latest models available and great motoring content from the country’s leading motoring journalists.

From the editor’s desk

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LINESMAN’S CALL • Why recalibrating your vehicle’s ADAS and LIDAR systems is a must after replacing your windscreen

CARS FOR 2025 • An ever-intriguing feature to compile, our annual look ahead to what new vehicles you can expect to see on South African roads in the coming calendar year is a juggle between what each brand is willing to confirm and what news remains guarded. Whether you are in the market, or simply window-shopping, here’s our comprehensive list of vehicles we know – and what we suspect – are set to launch in SA in 2025.

DEFINING AN ERA • The Rolls-Royce 40/50HP Phantom II’s graceful lines seemingly trace the journey from early to mid-20th century motoring. We headed to Paarl to experience one of the most beautiful pre-war cars in South Africa

Home-grown HERO • A staple in the premium-SUV segment, the BMW X3 has been proudly assembled in South Africa since 2018. The new version promises to build on the virtues of its impressive predecessor, so we travelled to Germany to see how it measures up

The A game • Audi’s A4 has reached the end of the road but its successor looks more than capable of carrying its hardearned mantle of compact-executive segment staple

Colt’s comeback • We have driven the sixth-generation Mitsubishi Triton ahead of its local introduction. Is there enough substance behind those substantial new lines to cause a stir?

Wolfsburg’s watershed moment • Can the new Tiguan successfully bridge the gap between Volkswagen’s future-focused plans and its still significant reputation for honest, dependable motoring?

Omoda C9 2.0TGDI 400T AWD Explore AT • The second product to hit the local market from Chery’s Omoda subsidiary is arguably the strongest offering so far from the Chinese automaker

Mahindra XUV 3XO 1.2T AX7L AT • Mahindra is looking to move upmarket, and its successor to the capable but compromised XUV300 seems to have laid some decent groundwork

Hometown hero • Six months and 6 000 km spent with the solid and effortless Polo served to remind just why it has become such an important product in Volkswagen’s South African portfolio

SUZUKI FRONX 1.5 GLX AT • Suzuki’s popular compact crossover joins the CAR long-term fleet for a six-month stint, and has already made a solid impression

MERCEDES-BENZ EQE 350 4MATIC SUV • While there are some quirks that dull the EQE SUV’s appeal, range anxiety and a humdrum cabin aren’t among them

FORD TERRITORY 1.8T TREND AT • The Territory continues to excel, both as a daily driver and on the open road, though its average fuel consumption has taken a knock

BMW IX1 XDRIVE30 M SPORT • The electric BMW SUV’s comfortable cabin continues to prove a highlight of the package

HAVAL JOLION PRO 1.5T S ULTRA LUXURY DCT • With iEco mode selected, the aim this month was achieve Haval’s claimed fuel consumption

KIA SONET 1.5 SX CVT • The Sonet showed a stead set of feet when presented with its first taste of dirt-road driving

Hybridisation THE SUPERCAR SOLUTION? • The arrival of BEVs brought with it an unexpected surprise for legacy performance-car manufacturers as newly introduced luxury sedans from the likes of Tesla and Lucid were able to out-accelerate their supercars and hypercars. How have they responded?

NO DNA, JUST RSA • From the desert to DTM and two-wheeled exploits, it’s been a successful year for young South African motorsport...