Did you know?

 

In 1980 over 400 000 new vehicles were manufactured and sold in South Africa for the first time, according to CAR magazine South Africa.

Of these, some 280 000 were passenger cars, and the remaining were commercial vehicles.

The top-selling passenger car in South Africa in 1980 was the VW Golf,followed by the Mazda 323 and the Ford Cortina.

 

Highlights

 

What were some of the highlights of the road tests carried out by CAR magazine in that year? 

 

For the average motorist, it was probably the new Toyota Corolla, Series 4 (P-170) range.

The testers commented that the new model set new standards in terms of user-friendliness. In time, this vehicle set standards in terms of reliability and running costs.

It would become the best-selling car in South Africa for many years to come.

 

Opel released their new Kadett D,a body shape completely different from its predecessor.

The Kadett D was the first hatchback made by Opel.It was now also a front- wheel drive car.

CAR tested the 1.3 GLS for their May 1980 issue. It had good performance for its small engine capacity and clocked a top speed of 158 Km/h.

 

The slightly more well-heeled motorist would have taken an interest in the Audi 100 GLS 5E, now available with a 5-speed gearbox.

The GLS 5E had fuel injection and electronic ignition, which was rare at that time. Its 100 KW  5 cylinder engine gave it solid performance,with 0-80 km/h acceleration taking 7,4 seconds. And, with a reading of 70 dba recorded at a steady 80 km/h, it was one of the quietest cars tested at that time.

 

In the September 1980 issue the updated Ford Cortina range was introduced.

 

This very popular range was now headed up by the all new XR-6,which shared the same 2993cc  6 cylinder powertrain as the existing 3.0 S.

This unit delivered 101 KW.As well as delivering satisfying performance,it was great for towing caravans,too.

 

BMW fans would have liked the 528i Automatic, which was also featured in the September 1980 edition.

 

This vehicle accelerated from 0-80 km/h in 8 seconds and was considered to be one of the sporty executive cars of the time.

 

Luxury car enthusiasts would have taken notice of the BMW 733i Automatic,published in the May 1980 issue of CAR. Its 3210cc 6-cylinder engine produced 197 hp(145 KW) which enabled it to record a top speed of 190 km/h.

The test summary concluded that the 733i had superlative comfort, but they found it hard to justify paying R 25 000 for a car!

 

Lowest priced and special imports

 

The lowest-priced new car in the CAR magazine car guide was the Mini 1275 E, which sold for R 4 300.

The most expensive new car in the car guide was the special import BMW 635 CSI, which was to be had for R 55 000.

 

The South African government had implemented Phase Five of the local content programme which meant that vehicles that did not contain 66 per cent of locally produced components,needed to be imported.

A payment of a 100 per cent import tax and 7,5 percent import surcharge needed to be complied with,before any vehicle was allowed into the country.This made imported cars very expensive.

I hear that Porsches were only sold through Lindsay Saker in 1980 (not featured in the guide). One can assume they sold for over R 60 000 for the top 928 S and 930 turbo models. 

 

Written by Kenneth Neuse, your All Things Motoring correspondent in Charlotte, North Carolina.