RoadTrip Magazine SA

15/10/2024

Signs of the Times …

Welcome to this bumper RoadTrip edition, with an offering of features as diverse and wide-ranging in scope as the vehicles (and destinations) we have covered – from powerful and delectable GT cars to SUVs and crossovers of all sizes and descriptions, EVs and hybrids in various forms, as well as bakkies and/or pickups …

This variety in transportation is surely a sign of the times, as automakers globally grapple with what exactly the future holds in terms of modes and energy sources for personal mobility, and what shape it would take.

For starters, the last stalwart in the sportscar realm has now succumbed to the four-door, four-seater fold, while the progenitor of the GT genre has now extended that tradition with a four-door fastback … Yes, we are talking about Ferrari and Mercedes-AMG here, and the latest (non-full EV) models in their assemblage – offering different takes on the same thing with Maranello introducing its first-ever four-door GT car, while Affalterbach has broaden its GT offering with a coupé-like version; and we got to drive both.

We experienced the unique Purosangue from the stable of the Prancing Horse in the heart of the French Winelands while closer to home we used the magnificent GT 63 S E Performance, the first performance hybrid from Mercedes-Benz-AMG, to visit the inaugural Santos Beach Auto Extremo car show and the annual snoek braai of the Mercedes-Benz Club in Mossel Bay.

On the other end of the scale, with Suzuki Auto becoming the new naming right sponsor of the Griquas rugby team, we followed the 3 500 km trek of the Griqua people two centuries ago in a diminutive Suzuki Jimny five-door, and also sampled the INEOS Grenadier Quartermaster in the Kruger National Park to discover more about the advanced INEOS Pathfinder navigation system.

We joined the Gift of the Givers team on a disaster relief operation in the Western Cape in a locally built ISUZU D-Max 1.9TS LS X-Rider, explored the Eastern Cape in the EX30 electric SUV from Volvo Car, and spent some romantic quality time in the new Ford Territory.

Besides the normal overview of hotly anticipated models and newly arrived derivatives, we also feature two EV road tests – on the Volvo XC40 Recharge and the Volkswagen ID.4 Pro Performance – and offset this with a comprehensive report on the 2024 South African Bakkie of the Year competition, won for the first time by a Chinese manufacturer with the first hybrid bakkie in the country.

Yes, the GWM P500 HEV Ultra Luxury 4×4 9AT surprised all and sundry with its performance to be awarded the title of 2024 South African Bakkie of the Year – and this is perhaps the clearest sign of the times in the local automotive market …

11/09/2024

Join Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May on their last ever adventure together in The Grand Tour: One For The Road, premiering globally this Friday, 13 September, on Prime Video.

What starts as a serene road trip through Zimbabwe and Botswana quickly turns into an epic journey filled with wildlife, rough terrain, questionable cars, and their signature mischief and banter. 🐘🚙

You don’t want to miss this unforgettable ride! Who’s ready? 🙌

Go to https://roadtripmag.co.za/the-grand-tours-final-adventure/ to read more.



Prime Video

In their last ever journey together, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May take us on an unforgettable ride through the heart of Africa in The Grand Tour: One For The Road, which launches globally on Prime Video this Friday, 13 September. What starts as a seemingly idyllic road trip throug...

25/12/2023

Going Big…

We went big for this edition. Not necessarily big in terms of size or the amount of “pages” but more in terms of celebrating bigger models, larger events, grand trips and huge milestones.

In line with this, we joined the Suzuki launch event for the new, bigger five-door Jimny and headed off to Botswana to sample the expanded go-anywhere little sports utility.

We also celebrate a century of Ford Motor Company in South Africa with a very special photo shoot by image magician Ryan Abbott at the Franschhoek Motor Museum, and 25 years of the .Audi TT with a journey to the Isle of Man, whose legendary annual TT race lent the design icon its name.

We also undertook a grand tour – to the Kingdom of the AmaZulu in the province of KwaZulu-Natal in a nifty and thrifty Hyundai Grand i10 sedan, as well as towards the Eastern Cape Province to cross Frontier Country with a Suzuki Fronx.

We traversed the still technically closed Bloukrans Pass near Nature's Valley on the limited-edition BMW R1250GS Adventure Trophy Edition and feature an interesting story relating to Sani Pass in KwaZulu-Natal - a race up the pass with a Dakar Rally-spec Toyota Hilux and a Sherco Enduro bike to find out which is the fastest; the bakkie, or the bike?

We trust you will enjoy our “go big” issue, and wish all our readers, advertisers, contributors and stakeholders safe travels and a blessed time during the festive season, as well as prosperous new year...

25/12/2023

Wishing all our readers, contributors, advertisers and stakeholders a Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year. Stay safe, wherever the roads may lead you this Festive Season.

05/09/2023

20/08/2023

SA Bakkie of the Year testing... Watch out for our report on this highly relevant competition...

26/07/2023

Thank you, Giro Diva Drives, and welcome back!

17/07/2023

Zigzagging into Zim...

27/06/2023

Construction on the Sishen-Saldanha railway line started fifty years ago. Two French companies joined forces to lay the line and acquired a flotilla of Peugeot 404 bakkies as workhorses for the project. To celebrate the half-century milestone, we followed the 861 km-long line in a 50-year-old 404 pickup and the latest Peugeot Landtrek bakkie.

Click here to read the full story online for free: https://www.freemagazines.co.za/roadtrip-june-july-2023/ #20

RoadTrip Magazine SA
Peugeot

22/06/2023

The Afrika Odyssey begins...

20/06/2023

Lions on the Line …

Fifty years ago, in June 1973, construction started on one of most ambitious projects in South Africa, the Sishen-Saldanha railway. Two French companies won the contract to construct the 861 km long line and, in true French fashion, they acquired French bakkies (but locally assembled) to do the Lion’s share of light work on the line …

So, to celebrate this half-century milestone, we followed a section of the heavy-haul railway line (in atrocious weather conditions, one must add), driving the adjacent service road with a classic 50-year-old petrol-driven Peugeot 404 bakkie, similar to the pickups used to build the line, accompanied by the latest, modern Landtrek double cab bakkie in the Lion litter.

Subscribe FOR FREE and read the latest issue of RoadTrip Magazine SA at https://www.freemagazines.co.za/roadtrip-june-july-2023/
Peugeot Stellantis Club Peugeot Afrique du Sud Peugeot landtrek Sishen–Saldanha railway line Transnet Freight Rail Golden Anniversary

12/05/2023

Lead article loading....

From The Grenadier Pub at only 16 m above sea level to the highest pub in Africa – 2 876 metres above sea level – there could be no better place to take the new INEOS Grenadier, now locked and loaded for production, than up the steep Sani Pass into Lesotho, coincidentally on Moshoeshoe's Day.

RoadTrip Magazine SA
INEOS


Click here to read more online for free: https://www.freemagazines.co.za/roadtrip-april-may-2023/ #30

07/05/2023

A bevy of Italian beauties... as shot by Madrabbott Photography. Look out for our coverage of this amazing road trip in the next edition of RoadTrip Magazine SA...

20/04/2023

The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men gang aft a-gley, wrote Scottish poet Robbie Burns. Contributor Jim Freeman learned this hard lesson again when he took the recently launched new-generation SUV from Ford to Frontier Country.

Click here to read more online: https://roadtripmag.co.za/switching-to-plan-e-verest/

Ford Motor Company

19/04/2023

With a timeline firmly under Mother Nature’s control, correspondent Ian McLaren on the eve of the local launch of the all-new Ford Ranger Raptor set course for one of the rarest sites in the botanical world...

Click here to read all about it online: https://roadtripmag.co.za/full-bloom/

Ford Motor Company
Ford

With a timeline firmly under Mother Nature’s control, correspondent Ian McLaren on the eve of the local launch of the all-new Ford Ranger Raptor set course for one of the rarest sites in the botanical world …

15/04/2023

Quadrifoglio Anniversary Edition

Today, precisely 100 years will have passed since an indelible symbol of Alfa Romeo, the Quadrifoglio, made its debut on the racing version of the RL during the 14th edition of the Targa Florio road race.

For this special anniversary, Alfa Romeo has introduced the new Giulia and Stelvio Quadrifoglio in Sicily with the exclusive commemorative “Quadrifoglio 100th Anniversario” edition.

A symbol of Italian sportiness, the legendary Quadrifoglio has always been synonymous with the highest-performing creations from Alfa Romeo. This not only holds true for its racing models, but for its most powerful and exclusive road vehicles as well.

Limited to just 100 units both for the Giulia and Stelvio, the “Quadrifoglio 100th Anniversario” edition launch models are distinguished from their facelifted kin by an enhanced version of the renowned 2.9-litre twinturbo-V6 engine delivering 388 kW (for Europe, the UK and China) combined with a mechanical self-locking differential, making its debut on this special series.

The celebratory models share the new look of the Giulia and Stelvio range with new '3+3' adaptive full-LED matrix headlights offering anti-glare and adaptive driving beam for optimal lighting in all conditions. However, it is distinguished from lesser versions by burnished 5-hole 19-inch sports alloy wheels (on the Giulia) and 21-inch wheels for the Stelvio with new, exclusive gold brake calipers.

The same hue distinguishes the emblem celebrating 100 years of the Quadrifoglio, positioned on the mudguard of both cars. To add even more sportiness, for both, the grille and mirror caps are in visible carbon. Three liveries are available: Rosso Etna, Verde Montreal, and Nero Vulcano.

Inside, the special models receive an exclusive combination of black and Alcantara leather enhanced by new and exclusive golden stitching and an innovative 3D finish in real carbon for the instrument panel, the central tunnel, and the door panels.

On the dashboard, there is a special stitching of the number “100” next to a golden Quadrifoglio. The steering wheel is upholstered in leather and Alcantara with black stitching and carbon fibre inserts. The new instrument panel with historic “telescopic” design, debuts a digital 12.3-inch TFT screen and three layouts (Evolved, Relax and Heritage), with the exclusive ‘Race’ configuration making its debut on the Quadrifoglio. It is highly doubtful that any of the anniversary models will be made available locally.

ALFA ROMEO Quadrifoglio Alfa Romeo Alfaromeo_QV Alfa Romeo Stelvio ALFA ROMEO GIULIA

14/04/2023

You might think you know lions but, till a male in his prime has stopped five metres away, looked you in the eyes and GLARED, you know nothing about them. It does not matter that you are sitting high up on a game-viewing vehicle, you just know he could hop up there in an instant and drag you off into the bush for breakfast or dinner.

Click here to read more online: https://roadtripmag.co.za/a-river-runs-through-it/

Kwandwe Private Game Reserve

You might think you know lions but, till a male in his prime has stopped five metres away, looked you in the eyes and GLARED, you know nothing about them. It does not matter that you are sitting high up on a game-viewing vehicle, you just know he could hop up there in an instant and drag you off int...

13/04/2023

From The Grenadier Pub at only 16 m above sea level to the highest pub in Africa – 2 876 metres above sea level – there could be no better place to take final pre-production models of the new INEOS Grenadier than up the steep Sani Pass into Lesotho, coincidentally on Moshoeshoe's Day.

INEOS Grenadiers
INEOS

Click here to read the full story: https://roadtripmag.co.za/locked-and-loaded/

From The Grenadier Pub at only 16 m above sea level to the highest pub in Africa – 2 876 metres above sea level – there could be no better place to take final pre-production models of the new INEOS Grenadier than up the steep Sani Pass into Lesotho, coincidentally on Moshoeshoe's Day …