ZA Car Show: Episode 112

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One third of the 2011 ZACS lineup, Trevor van de Ven, is off on parental duties. So while captain consumption gets his daddy on, his polar opposite is on the red microphone: Tom Falkiner, auto journo deluxe and historics race driver extraordinaire. See, while Trev enjoys driving new cars slowly, Tom drives old ones. Quickly.

With Patrick Gearing on his side, Tom attempts to explain to Christo why historics racing is the best, and possibly cheapest motorsport in South Africa.

In normal news, we talk about:

BMW’s M5 concept, to be shown at the Shanghai motor show, had its pics leaked online. Obviously. Because that’s what happens before every major motorshow, now. Thanks, information era!

Quick specs: 4.4-litre Twinpower V8, tickled by the M-division – who else? It’ll produce around 430kW and a billion torques, with promises of an evocative engine and exhaust note, too. Harnessing those 580-odd German ponies will be a 7-speed M-DCT gearbox, of sorts, and the requisite M-diff. Smart.

On local shores, VW’s decided to spice up its showroom floors with the introduction of two performance models. Tom Falkiner was present at the launch of both cars and gives us the low-down.

First up, the Golf R. Interestingly this gets called a Golf, while the GTI lacks “Golf” badging of any sort. Weird sub-brand strategy, guys! The R-ange-topping VW hatch has 188kW and 350Nm, courtesy of a similar 2.0TFSI lump found in the Audi S3 and TT-S. In the UK this engine produces 195kW. So does the Audi S3. But in SA the Golf is said to produce 188kW due to a “hot weather” remap. We think it’s probably because they couldn’t have a Golf that’s faster than an Audi. You can have your R for just over R400k (ouch), with a stack of options, and choice of DSG or manual gearboxes.

The big daddy is joined by its baby brother – and a car Tom says is probably closer to the original hot hatch concept – the Polo GTI. Praise is heaped onto the small, twin-charged 1.4-litre engine (132kW/250Nm), mated to a 7-speed DSG transmission. Along the Cape Test route, consisting of the best roads in the country, it performed admirably and displayed massive amounts of grip. It’s lively, too – just the way a proper hatch should be. Yours for R260k – right up against the Opel Corsa OPC and Renault Clio RS. Listen to the show to find out which is worth your cash.

Finally, there’s Toyota’s Aygo. Yes, it’s a clever play on words. Think iGo. Fresh, funky and tiny. It’s also a car first introduced in 2006 – but now it’s in SA to help take up slack at the bottom end of the car market. Will uGo crazy over this dinky toy?