September 2022 | BUSINESS FLEET AFRICA
WWW.BUSINESSFLEETAFRICA.CO.ZA
Editor
Reuben van Niekerk
reubenvn@vodamail.co.za
082 837 8801
Editor-at-large
Suzanne Walker
suzanne.walker3@gmail.com
083 3789 664
Contributors
Roger Houghton
houghtonr@mwebbiz.co.za
082 371 9097
Publisher
Jacques Wilken
jwilken@mweb.co.za
083 299 7312
Road Impression Editor
Charl Wilken
cwwilken@mweb.co.za
083 297 1837
Advertising and Marketing
Charlene Kruger
charlene@businessfleetafrica.co.za
076 807 4613
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A new season
Spring is well and truly here and it seems that the new season
is just what the automotive industry needed to really pick it up
a gear.
A variety of local new model launches from many of the major manufacturers in-
cluding Fuso, Mercedes-Benz and Isuzu, signal that they are ready to do business. The
recent Festival of Motoring was also an opportunity for passenger vehicle manufactur-
ers to showcase their latest offerings and give us a glimpse of what’s to come.
Talking about what’s to come, I will be travelling to Germany in the coming weeks
to visit Automechanika and IAA mobility trade shows and look forward to bringing you
up to speed on all the latest developments happening globally. These international
motor shows are always a great barometer of how the industry is doing and in what
direction it is heading and this should be very interesting as the world tries to figure
out a new normal.
Some fuel price relief
Good news is that there has been some fuel price relief with the petrol price decreas-
ing by as much as R2 and diesel by approximately 70 cents. While this is welcome the
pricing still remains higher than the level seen in May and still considerably higher
than the prices of January when petrol was still under R20 a litre. The price hikes that
were implemented in June and July will continue to impact the economy, and on the
financial situation of all South Africans. A sustainable solution to mitigating rising fuel
costs is still necessary and until that solution is found, citizens will be at the mercy of
fuel price hikes.
We need better quality fuel
While some manufacturers are starting to launch Euro 5 vehicles, up until now this
has been driven by customer demand. However South Africa is fast approaching a
point where new product launches could be hampered by the quality of our fuel.
Better quality cleaner fuels are necessary for the next generation of hybrid and
internal combustion engines that are pushing the limits in terms of efficiency and
fuel consumption.
The longer government drags their feet on the updating of this legislation the more
severe the impact on local availability of vehicles could be. With South Africa now
importing most of our fuel due the shut down of local refineries, getting higher quality,
cleaner fuels should be as simple as asking the suppliers to send it. The ball is now
firmly in governments court but unfortunately they are currently facing a number of
challenges around fuel and the fuel price, including proposals on the price capping of
93 and deregulation of the fuel price which could see the clean fuels issue be placed
on the back burner once more.
We would love to hear from you
As we continually refine the offering that is Business Fleet Africa, we would love to
hear what you would like to see more, or less of. Please feel free to drop me an email
with any comments or suggestions, the details are alongside.
Reuben van Niekerk
Editor
Editorial
eDIToRIal
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