Duncan

I think this was inevitable. The costs were just too much, turning the sport into a "corporate only" participation. I think the new cost cutting rules will take F1 back to its beginnings with Private teams re-entering. Quite a few private teams have shown interest, and David Richards making up the 12th team in 2007. I personally prefer this. But other areas of development will carry on. When the V8 engines were introduced, everyone cried "boring"!! Into its first season and the V8s are matching last year lap times.

Button.....hhhmmmmm

Damn...thats expensive!!! We here pick up 1997 models (V6) for around Rs.800,000. What is the real casue of this...is it the high duties?

I think I will get killed for this, but I will say it any way.... ...I was going through some of races pics from our gallery and had the pleasure of checking out some of the "pit babes" posing. Don't you think who ever put them up to this could have come out with a better outfit? Lets admit it, pretty as they may be some of these babes are not all that great in certain depts. A better outfit would really bring out their beauty. A figure hugging race suit would be nice.

Hi guys This goes back to one of those never ending questions asked on this forum. I noticed a 2.8 Pajero (1992) put up for sale in our Car Sale section of Rs.5mil. Is this the actual going rate for such a vehicle in SL?? and is it easy to flogg it at this price? If this is the case I don't mind shipping some from here

Kimi Massa Alonso Fisi Kubica De La Rosa(?) Webber Ralph DC Heidfeld Don't forget the new team from David Richards next year. Wonder who their drivers would be.

After the stewrds decision to penalise Alonso, he lashed out at the sport and called it a "business" than a sport. Well true it is a business, but then again most other sports are highly commercialised in this day and age. How else can the likes of Alonso get paid the kind of money and perks they get?! Isn't Alonso moving camp for more money??!! He might be a great driver (I whole heartedly agree on this) but he needs to mature up a bit too.

miniace - you advice worked like a charm!! Thanks once again- "sir ace" Thanks to those others who also adviced. Much appreciated.

Born on January 3, 1969, Schumacher’s beginnings were surprisingly unremarkable. The son of a bricklayer who also ran the local kart circuit, the young Michael took to his father’s track like a fish to water. He won his first championship at the age of six - an early demonstration the natural talent and raw speed which have since defined his career. Successive teenage triumphs in Formula Ford and Formula 3 followed and established his reputation as a driver to watch. By his early twenties, the Formula One fraternity had finally taken notice and in 1991 the Jordan team took a gamble, asking him to stand in for a jailed Bertrand Gachot at Spa. Schumacher seized the opportunity with characteristic confidence. He qualified seventh on the grid, impressing rival team Benetton so much they offered him a permanent race seat for the rest of the season. The talent which had carried him this far now blossomed with Benetton’s backing. At the 1991 Italian Grand Prix, Schumacher finished fifth, claiming the first of four points he earned that year. The next season, he enjoyed a maiden win in Belgium, racked up 53 points and beat his more experienced team mate Martin Brundle to take third in the championship. A year later he was fourth in the championship and reigning supreme within the team. The rest has become the stuff of history. Motivating Benetton to greatness, Schumacher became the lynch pin of a group of immensely capable people. His dedicated work ethic and passion for winning paid off with back-to-back drivers’ titles in 1994 and 1995. Just three years into his Formula One career and Schumacher was well on his way to becoming a legend. In 1996, the world champion made a brave move. After four seasons with Benetton, he signed to Ferrari - a team which hadn’t won a championship in almost 20 years. Arriving in Maranello, Schumacher set about rejuvenating the Italian squad, attracting two of the founder members of his title-winning outfit at Benetton to join him later that year. Ross Brawn became technical director and Rory Byrne chief designer. Schumacher’s first season at Ferrari was a trying one. Nevertheless, relying for the most part on his natural talent, he took three victories out of an under-performing car. By ‘98, things were looking more promising and he finished second overall in the title race to Mika Hakkinen. Then in 1999, Schumacher was forced to show his mettle once more after a heavy crash in Silverstone broke his leg and put paid to his title chances for another year. It was during these early days at Ferrari, when his stakes were down, that Schumacher’s determination and obsessive dedication shone through. As a result, in 2000, everything finally slotted into place and Schumacher, after winning nine races, became the Italian team’s first world champion in 21 years. The German legend would continue winning for the next four seasons, racking up 39 victories and four further championships. He dominated the sport in a way never seen before and firmly ensconced himself in the record books. Only in 2005, with the rise of Fernando Alonso and Renault, did that dominance begin to wane. Then, as in ’96, Schumacher’s strength of mind came to the fore, as he pushed an uncompetitive car to go faster. The result was third in the championship - five places above a team mate in identical machinery. And in 2006 Ferrari are back and fighting, revived in small part by Schumacher’s resolute ambition and refusal to lie down. Even now, at the age of 37 and heading into retirement, he is still fighting for every win. Of course, such success rarely comes without controversy, and Schumacher has courted his fair share over the years. His first title in 1994 was tainted (and clinched) with a timely collision with the Williams of rival Damon Hill. Then in 1996, he was stripped of second place in the championship after crashing into Jacques Villeneuve - another title challenger - in Jerez. And more recently the German’s ethics have been called into question following his qualifying accident in Monaco this year. Schumacher’s insistence on number-one status at Ferrari also drew criticism from some quarters. Eddie Irvine, Rubens Barrichello, and Felipe Massa were all compliant number twos and doubtless played a role in his success. But that cannot diminish the great on-track rivalries Schumacher enjoyed - and won - with the greats from other teams. The likes of Hill, Villeneuve, Hakkinen were all champions themselves, but in the long term none could match his all-round ability. Be it speed, natural talent, ruthlessness or hard work, Schumacher had it all. He rarely made mistakes, his prowess in the rain has been well documented, and he has become so attuned to the development of the cars he drives that he can continually adapt their set-up mid race to his advantage. The other world champion to leave the sport this year, Jacques Villeneuve, questioned whether Schumacher’s legacy will be as long-lasting as that of Fangio, Senna or Prost. But with 90 wins, 68 pole positions, 75 fastest laps, 1354 points and those seven world titles, most would say Michael Schumacher will never be forgotten - or beaten! Never did like JV........most of us have even forgotten about him already Hey Pila, how come you did not see the race?? Well the penalty has come under a lot of critisism. But FIA has held steadfast and said rules are rules. Word has it that the car to pit telimentary received from Massa's car had quite clearly shwon that he could have had pole, but had to tap off due to Alonso. Massa was on a hot lap and Alonso on an in lap. But the question remains whether Alonso could have seen that.

To have watched Schumacher's entry into F1 and then through to his exit, I consider to be quite a privilage. I for one, will be quite sad not to see him from next year on wards. It would take some getting used to not seeing MS on the grid.

Yeh true!!! if it wasn't for Renault nissan might not be here today. They were in big trouble before the rescue plan. In our market we were bored to death with uninspiring, lack of character cars offered by the local factory. But today things are much better. Pitty about the Tiida though Clio is a big hit here.

It is quite humorous I must say. No such names in our market. We generally refer by the model name or number. However, Japanese imports into other Southern African countries are known in general as "Fong Kong". Slang for import. No imports are allowed in South Africa.

In our market it is a rebadged Renault Clio with a few cosmetic changes. A lot of manufactuers are doing this these days, like Chev selling rebadged Daewoos, and Chrysler cars sharing very obvious components with Merc. It seems these manufacturers are into gross "brand dilution". Why can't they stick to maintaining their own identitiy?!

Hi everyone Do you get the Nissan Tiida in SL? Well they just launched it here and it seems Nissan is running out of design ideas. It is a rebadged Renault!! At least the front end. I know Renault owns part of Nissan, but this is a bit disspointing.

Thats the beauty about living in Africa. We have wild life reserves bigger than SL. In fact here in Botswana we have three such reserves

Couple this with today's bank loan rates, insurance costs and eventual resale values, it really does not make sense to buy b/new anymore. Rather buy second hand for cash and divert the savings towards something more meaningful, like a beach front retirement home or like one of my friends here did.....invest in a 15x15 farm. Never owned a b/new vehicle in his life. He has all the peace and quiet in the world. He even has his own private 4wd obstacle course and a gravel flat track to try out his sports cars. All this for the price of two high end cars. Makes sense. By the way.........thats 15x15km.

Hey everyone In October of 2005 we bought a VW Touareg for the office. It was the V8, as we were quite impressed with the performance figures as well as the spec levels. After 45,000km of use to date, our experience has been somewhat dissapointing. Here are some of the nagging problems we have had:- (1) Soon after purchase the rear door's electric lock would not release, requring us to jump in from inside to access loads at the back. (2) Throttle responses were very erratic with the power band coming in at various rev levels. The processor was reset by the agent and the problem solved. (3) The "engage by wire" diff lock would engage when ever it felt like, irrespective of surface conditions. The processor was reset by the agent and the problem solved. (4) The throttle problem resurfaced with the processor having to be reset yet again. (5) The "engage by wire" diff lock starts engaging by itself again. This time the agent replaces the entire on-board computer. Problem solved! (6) The engine's rear oil seal develops a leak. (7) Gear box develops an oil leak, loosing as much as 1/2 pint a day. (8) Windscreen spray stops working due to a burnt out motor. All these problems and not once has the vehicle been taken off-road. Though the vehicle is marketed through the local factory, the Touareg comes to our shores full built from Germany with the local factory only "localising" the various settings in the vehicle. So could not put the blame for our woes on the local plant. It actually later turned out that there were quite a few unhappy customers. In the meantime, we also have quite a number of "older generation" pick up trucks and 4x4s (pre-SUV era) still running around. Some of them having clocked over 1/2mil km todate. Not so wonderful from a high end vehicle ! Cheers

Wonderful technology, but it takes a lot of the skill and fun out of driving. In a few years to come, it will actually breed a whole new generation of idiots for drivers.

Drove a S55 the other day. Whilst the entire car is a marvel, what really impressed me was the "distronic". Awsome gadget! Set the cruise control at 200km/h and the distance (speed based) in front of you. Then let lose!!! As I approached my first vehicle in front of me, the distronic automatically did the necessary braking to reduce speed, then as I changed to the free lane, the car sensed the free space in front of it and the power broke lose again. Awsome all the way!!

Good God!! That is astronomical.......we pay Rs11mil for the full spec Supercharghed Range Rover Sport. Yet we complain!!

Hi SpeedHolic It is a pitty that vehicle pricing in astronimical in SL. No matter what 8mil is way too much. As I said earlier, we pay less than 1/2 that for the top end Fortuner. But then again, won't this pricing apply to other makes and models? I am not sure as I don't live there. As for the Cygnus it is a huge, but great vehicle. Plenty power, plenty room, plent comforts, plenty everything. But in this market segment, if off-roading is not the primary concern, then there are other equally well speced makes and models available. If you are thinking of buying b/new, then rumour has it that an all new cygnus is due for release in 2007. As for lil_shane an SUV is totally different to a car, no matter which SUV you look at. This is why I said there is no comparison. What you need to do is look at why you need an SUV and then determine where you are going to spend most of your time driving it. If it is on road than off-road, then base your decision on that. Select a few models that suits your budget and then test drive them before making the final decision. Also taking into consideration reliability track record, after sales service availability and resale value. If you are attracted by the size,and height attributes of an SUV as compared to a car and you really don't want to do any serious off-roading, then there are 2wd versions of certain SUVs available. The Montrero comes to mind. Sames specs as the 4wd version. Cheers PS some friends just returned from a 22,000km trip through the African outback in four stock Fortuners, each carrying close to a ton of stuff. Absolutely no problem!

Which SUV's are you comparing to? Very few markets get the 2.7 plant. Why would you want to stop start on 2nd gear? The Fortuner is more off-road capable than most others in its segment. Thus the hard suspension. This is exactly why it has a long suspension travel.

Brand new Prado??

Enjoy it and then upgrade to an M5. Thats when the party really starts!!!!

Damn !! Cars certainly are expensive in SL. But the fact remains, the Fortuner is keenly priced in other markets. But then again this applies to all other makes and models keeping the status quo. In our market (SA), the full spec (leather) with maintenance plan V6 4L 4x4 we pay Rs.5mil with local taxes inclusive. Thats b/new off the show room floor with registration. Also the smallest engine we get is a 3L diesel. SL petrol too is very high in comparison to us. We pay Rs92 but this is inclusive of 3rd party insurance. Despite the above, if you can afford it, go for it.