MOTORING

After cracking an invite to the Tokyo Motor Show in 2009, and rubbing shoulders with Carlos Ghosn (before he became global motoring’s bad boy), Melinda grabbed the steering wheel of her destiny and became a petrol head. She’s written extensively for Daily Maverick. These days, she has her own motoring show on Cape Talk and writes car reviews for City Press.

Daily Maverick

Land Rover Defender: The king is dead! Long live the king!

While diehard fans of the old Defender may still be outraged that their beloved Landy was discontinued, the reimagined Defender range, consisting of the 90, 110 and 130, has become Jaguar Land Rover’s global top seller.

Daily Maverick

Volvo C40: An eco-friendly urban EV masterpiece – but beware of range anxiety

Eight days spent in the all-electric Volvo C40 had me marvelling at my super-quick Swedish ride while fighting the crippling fear that I’d run out of power.

Daily Maverick

Small but sweet: Three sub-R300k hatches from SA’s top-selling manufacturers

Given South Africa’s economic doldrums, finding an affordable car is top of mind for many people. The Toyota Starlet, the VW Polo Vivo and Suzuki Swift are three hatches that won’t break the bank.

Daily Maverick

Broadening a mighty range — the new Ford Ranger Tremor and Platinum

South Africa’s bakkie-mad market has just got even more competitive with the launch of Ford SA’s locally produced Ranger Tremor and upmarket Ranger Platinum.

Daily Maverick

Howzat! The updated Kia Picanto and Seltos hit the road

Kia South Africa launches two updated models as the motoring industry shows its first signs of growth after eight consecutive months of decline.

Daily Maverick

Seeking the sun in Toyota’s new Land Cruiser Prado

As the weather in Cape Town caused misery and mayhem, the writer made a welcome hop to 30-degree Mozambique to test drive Toyota’s highly anticipated new Prado.

Daily Maverick

Big plans for South African Stellantis and the new Citroën C3 Aircross

The Citroën C3 Aircross, priced at R100k less than its predecessor, has just landed and is intended to become a volume seller for Stellantis in SA.

Daily Maverick

Volkswagen SA unveils all-electric ID.4 Pro — but the future of EVs is not clear-cut

The all-electric ID.4 Pro was recently unveiled to South African motoring media, at a time when it seems that EVs are losing their appeal globally.

Daily Maverick

Into the future – first drive in Toyota’s hydrogen-powered Mirai

To celebrate ‘Women in Auto’, Toyota showcased a string of New Energy Vehicles to South Africa’s rare breed of female motoring journos.

Daily Maverick

A fortuitous convergence — the Sun King, Mahindra’s new crossover and a birthday bash at The Palace

Because Mahindra opened shop in South Africa in 2004, the India-based manufacturer found cause to celebrate its 20th birthday at The Palace, Sun City, the brainchild of the legendary Sol Kerzner.

Daily Maverick

Passing the baton — The BMW M Fest and Hyundai Staria panel van

While the journalist lugged a huge load in her Hyundai Staria panel van, her son did hot laps in the all-new BMW M5.

Daily Maverick

Going, going … gone! Audi RS 6 Avant GT fetches a cool R4.5m

Car auctions have the power to make people lose the plot, especially when the prize is a highly collectible, final-edition Audi racing legend.

Daily Maverick

My top five vehicles of 2024 — performance, luxury, and value in today’s automotive market

As we start off down the highway of 2025, here’s a look back at the writer’s favourite rides in a year that saw a huge parking lot of new products launched on local roads.