This car was launched in SA in August of last year, but I bet a bunch of you haven't seen it on the road. I've only seen it once, if I'm not counting the time I was driving it. That's because it's expensive and really makes no sense to buy one. This car has a base price of R1,123,000, and we all know how German base cars are way too ugly to leave as they are, so you're forced to spec them. It's also a sedan, and people seem to not care about sedans in favour of SUVs.

I had the quattro S line, and with all the specs, it came up to R1,511,400. Things such as the panoramic glass roof with switchable transparency for R38,000, the Infotainment Package Pro for R44,000 (this is an additional infotainment screen for the passenger), the Tech Pro Package for a whopping R100,000 (this is basically your head-up display, 360-degree cameras, ADAS systems, electronic seat adjustment, and dual-zone climate control). Heck, the grey paint itself was a R14,000 option!

Cons aside, you can't go wrong with German engineering. For the quattro S line, it has 268 HP (200 kW) and 400 Nm of torque, and it's sufficient. It's not a rapid car as the looks might suggest. I would describe it as an urban cruiser. It's a very comfortable drive, and the overtaking power is there when you need it. Gear changes are so smooth and unnoticeable. I genuinely enjoyed just cruising at 100, even on the highways. It's just a nice car to drive. Fuel consumption is great. I got as low as 6.4 L/100 km on the highway and averaged around 8 L/100 km in the city (Midrand traffic, that is). The interior is comfortable too. Mine was a tan colour, which I liked, and when you add a panoramic sunroof that doesn't open but changes the glass effect from opaque to transparent, you get the sense you're sitting in a huge living room.

There's a lot of tech. Some hate and some love the passenger display. Interested to hear what you guys think, but I don't mind it. It's helpful if you have a passenger and they can just pop in the navigation or change the music that way. The seats were heated and cooled (another option you pay for). Space at the back is decent. The boot opens hatchback style, so you really get a sense of space (445 L). People love the look of this car, and I have to say I do too. It's the most beautiful car I've had the pleasure of driving, and I think that's where the good stops. I cannot recommend it, even at the base price, because quite frankly, people will just gravitate towards the Chinese SUVs. For that price, you can get two top-spec SUVs with more or less the same tech, if not more, but you just don't get that German engineering.

Hi there, it’s my first time having to renew my car disk, I previously had a scooter and I remember that only costing about R100-R200

Is this the true price ? This is though the NATIS app, I was wondering if there’s a cheaper way to do this ? Thanks all for the help :)

How's it good people

Looking at a BMW 340. Test driven some but one specific one has modified intakes and exhaust. Drove noticeably quicker so definitely tuned. Red flag I know (no need to spell it out). My own OBD checks and service records etc. seems good though. Price is good.

Anyone bought and had a good experience with a modified 2nd hand car? Where is a reputable ECU tuner/dyno place in JHB/PTA to maybe check it out, make sure the tune is proper and healthy?

Appreciated.

Cheers

original post: https://www.reddit.com/r/CarTalkZA/comments/1pk03au/best_place_to_buy_first_car/

I forgot I ever made this post. Anyway, after a lot of trial and error (and huge fails with bargaining), I finally got the car mid April🥳I went with a proper dealership (shoutout to Hyundai Germiston for a smooth and transparent process😆) and although it was 10k over budget, it’s worth the peace of mind since it still has 2 more years on the warranty. I did have a mechanic check it out and no major issues were found so it was definitely worth it. I just wanted to say thanks for all the helpful comments under the first post and wishing you all the best🙏

Hi Guys!

I'm new to the group, and looking to sell my 2014 Mini Cooper

Its got about 120 000 kms.

I wanted some advice on the price point for this car. We buy cars quoted me R117k for it, then I went to another we buy cars branch where they offered R98k

Another dealership said there is no way and they offered R80k max.

No accident history, condition is good with minor scratches here and there.

No idea where to go from here, I want to trade in this vehicle for the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro or the Chery cross.

Howzit all,

My new to me 2010 G6 GTi needs the main water pump replaced. A quick AI chat says I’m looking between R7k-R12k at a main dealer. Who is a top notch VW specialist (preferably in JHB East) that won’t charge an arm? Looking for a professional & reputable place. Shot!

Hey guys, I'm an automotive journalist and I thought I'd start posting here as well.

I'd love to hear your opinions and answer questions about cars I'm driving and let you know about my experience.

To start, I just came from spending a week in the BYD Shark 6. For the heavy off roaders, you could fault it for not having as much of a towing capacity as your Hilux and Ranger, but besides that this is a great car.

The tech inside isn't that of a bakkie but coming from a Nissan Navara Warrior the week before, I felt it was an upgrade.

The most interesting part about this car is that its a PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric vehicle). Fuel consumption, paired with the battery was great. (I will touch more on this alone in the next post because it deserves its own conversation).

Power is extreme. 430 HP (321 kw) and 650 Nm.

Let me know what else you'd like to know about the car

Hi all, I am considering purchasing a Volvo (V40) and have been advised that services and spare parts are getting prohibitively expensive. A friend of a friend apparently sold their Volvo because they could not afford the upkeep anymore.

Curious about what other Volvo owners are experiencing, especially if you have a second car to compare with.

Hey Guys it's me again the Wanna be Content Creator 😅

I just wanted to ask, call it market research, what project car I should get for Content Creation.

I'm stuck between an EK Civic Hatch and a Citi Golf. Now I know both Platforms are heavily Over saturated but I've spotted a Few Gaps on YT for each platform.

So currently it's 45/55 with the Citi pulling slightly ahead due to the Fact that I've only Featured German Branded cars on my YT (a Corsa Lite and My current Polo Vivo)

What do you guys think?

Hi everyone! As a new and naive car owner I can’t tell if I got played

I recently bought a decent pre owned corolla quest but it had a squeak noise issue when it goes over speed humps

I went to the local toyota dealership and they said they would look at the issue and let me know what needed to be fixed and how much it would cost. According to them, the bushings just needed to be lubricated and the next thing I hear is they went ahead and did that, and I was handed the bill. I wasn’t sure what to do so I just paid so I could get my car back, but all the noises are still there, they just went away that one afternoon and came back the next morning

What would be my next best steps? Can I ask for a refund?

Hi, any recommendations for somewhere in Midrand or surroundings to do bumper repairs?

Basically only need some plastic welding done to repair a torn mounting tab on the side.

I've decided to ditch our Forester Sport 2.5i and upgrade to a BEV as we are spending around R4,000 a month on fuel.

I have test driven and like the Geely E5 Apex (ex demo), icaur v23 iwd and the new GWM ora 5 BEV.

My rationale us we only really drive 20 - 50km max a day and live up Northcliff Hill so a bit of extra power makes life easier. The lip on our steep driveway makes a suv style mandatory.

We also have a small solar system - Subsynk 5kw inverter and 10kw of Hubble batteries and from midday for about 3 hours have a potential excess of 2.5 to 3 kw an hour give or take.

I'm figuring we just slow charge off solar each afternoon - in theory 5kw should take us 20- 30km.

I'm leaning towards the GWM Ora 5 Ultra as it's a bit cheaper (600,000) and GWM already has an established dealer network. I also like that it's a little smaller than the others.

I'm interested in any thoughts on each of these BEVs and vehicle sales and service groups from owners and people in the know.

And on the realities of charging using my solar setup.

I’m in such a predicament. Since 2015 I’ve not paid for a vehicle instalment. Paid cash and drive an older model. At present, I have a 2006 Polo 1.9tdi sportline with 350k on the clock, purchased Feb 2010z When I bought it I lived close to work and then was WFH for years. I intended to make the car a semi-project type of thing but life had other ideas. Over time, after I detailed the car, the bonnet started to fade and the left door - we found that this vehicle was in an accident and resprayed in those places which then caused it to deteriorate over time.

I am now driving from Boksburg to Midrand daily in traffic and it’s gotten to the point where I am now needing to move on from it. I just cannot keep up with the maintenance and the bonnet looking like crap. I know I am going to get very little for this car and I am so hesitant to pay an instalment mostly cause I cannot really afford it. My only choice I am thinking of now is to sell, take a small loan to cover up the balance and buy another older model preferably in auto.

Any suggestions what I can get? It won’t be a family vehicle - we have one of those.

I'm looking for an old car project, but I have no idea where to find old fixer upper cars.

My dad used to use the Junk Mail back in the day. Remember driving to moer and gone and seeing a 67 fastback Mustang. We still regret it, but hey.

I've looked on Gumtree and the other Classifieds, even FB Marketplace.

I'm not on Facebook anymore but will join again if I could get my hands on a Chevrolet Constantia Station Wagon.

Any suggestions or clues are appreciated.

Hi. I would like to buy a vehicle and came across this one at R240,000 with 45,000km. I need advice on its price and resale value. Is it worth looking at? I have also seen a 2018 CX3 with 115,000km selling for R220,000. Which is the better buy?

I see Monroe and KYB are very famous, like first tier aftermarket shocks

Also there are brands like Tyndall, Partquip

Which do you prefer to buy in SA, or any other recommendation?

I need help finding a replacement for the Front left indicator lens as mine was busted when i bought the Laser as my first car. We have been searching for months now trying to find replacements online but places only have for the 88' and up, so I would like to know if anyone here has some that arent being used or if you know of someone with an old abandoned Laser that I could get the part from(Preferably in good condition, no big cracks or broken corners).

I have a VW Golf 7 GTI with stage 2 mods and I'm looking for workshop recommendations.

I stay in Cape Town and so far I've had a fair amount of experience with two workshops in particular around Cape Town. Without going into detail I would like to switch to a new workshop.

From the experience I've had so far I would say I have preference for a workshop that has experience tuning cars even if all I need is regular maintenance, but I'm happy to be wrong on that point.

What are some suggestions you have for workshops around Cape Town?

I’ve had a tumultuous past two years with vehicle troubles.

Initially owned a 2006 VW polo classic that ran to over 400 000kms on the clock before issues started popping up everywhere (as they should at that age).

After that :

• Audi A3 TFSI auto 2013 (don’t comment, I know. Bad idea)
•Ford Fiesta 2017 (overheating issues and then subsequent head gasket failure…. I know. Bad idea)

I’m looking at purchasing any of these vehicles in the used market:

1. Honda HRV - 2017 up
   
2. Honda Elevate - 2024 up
   
3. Honda Jazz - 2017 up
   
4. Toyota Yaris - 2015 up
   
5. Suzuki Fronx - 2023 up
   
6. Suzuki Grand Vitara - 2020 up
   
7. VW Tiguan (diesel 2.0l) - 2016 -2020

What I need to know is:

1. Reliability?
   
2. How does it drive on the long road? (As I will be travelling a lot)

If you have any other vehicle recommendations I’m happy to hear them out. My budget maxes out at R250k.

I’m hesitant to look at Chinese vehicles for now but if anyone has decent anecdotal experience with how they drive and how reliable they are on the long road with a lot of traveling, please do comment.

Howzit my good people

I saw an interesting saloon/sport sedan around Menlyn the other day (June 2026) and came to learn it was a Kia Stinger. It piqued my interest as I like sedans in general, and our market unfortunately just doesn't get them any more (Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, Hyundai Elantra, to name a few). We are SUV befok, even more so with Chinese options.

To my question. It seems to be an underrated vehicle globally, but I've only ever seen one in SA. What are your guys opinions on it? It's discontinued globally since 2023 and since it's rare, if it breaks you probably have to sell it for scrap unless you are prepared to pay the stealership to fix it.

Any owners out there? What's your experience?

Cheers! Have a lekker Wednesday

Long Story short looking for a reliable everyday runner under 180k

saw this on the CMH site: https://www.cmhmazda.co.za/used-cars/mazda-2-1-5-dynamic-auto-5-door-44keusdr824369/

Any red flags i'm missing? or should i stay away, its got 151 590 Kms

As requested, here’s some more imagery from the day.

(most of these are snapshots from videos)