Category: Motoring

Tajudeen Adebanjo

Foremost auto company in Nigeria, Massilia Motors, (sole distributor of Mitsubishi Motors in Nigeria), has provided food items to 1000 homes at Ijora in Lagos, where the company’s headquarters is located.

Food items including bags of rice, beans, sugar, salt, vegetable oil, pasta, tomato and pastes among others were handed over to Ojora of Ijora Oba Abdul Fatai Aremu Aromire by a Massilia Motors team led by the Deputy Managing Director, Mr. Kunle Jaiyesimi.

While commending the efforts of government in checking the spread of COVID-19, the DMD said the gesture was a way of alleviating the hardship the COVID-19 lockdown may have on the people in the neighbouring community.

Read Also: Pensioners demand govt’s palliatives

It would be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari recently imposed a lockdown on Lagos and Ogun states as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) as a measure to cope with the spread of Covid-19 in the country.

Masilia Motors is a joint venture of CFAO and Chanrai Group, focused on automotive needs in Nigeria.

Tajudeen Adebanjo

German automaker Volkswagen last Thursday restarted production at its plant in Zwickau, where its crucial mass-market electric vehicle is being made ahead of its launch later this year.

The company said the plan was “health before production numbers” as the assembly line started up after a five-week closure under new health rules agreed with worker representatives that include wearing face protection where a 1.5 meter (six-foot) distance can’t always be observed.

Other measures include regular cleanings. Distancing is required in washrooms, changing rooms and lunchrooms.

At restart, the plan was to make 50 cars per day, about a third of previous output.

Volkswagen worker Heiko Gruner told the DPA news agency he was grateful to be back.

“For the past weeks I missed the purpose and the usual structure of the day,” he said.

The plant makes the ID.3 electric compact, which is key to Volkswagen’s plan to make battery only cars a mass-market product. Currently, electrics remain a niche product with sales in single digits and many of the offerings are in the luxury category. Volkswagen aims to sell the car for prices starting below 30,000 euros ($32,400).

Manufacturing plants in several European countries have resumed work in recent days as some governments look to ease some of the lockdown measures that have dealt a blow to the economy.

Tajudeen Adebanjo

Kona Electric has been acknowledged as the best small family car in the inaugural Topgear Electric Awards, after it completed a 1,600-kilometers road trip across nine European countries.

Hyundai Motor’s fully electric sport utility vehicle (SUV) was not only praised for its efficiency and long-distance capability but also for its smooth and effortless performance.

The 24-hour-long drive took place last December 2019, with BBC Topgear magazine’s Editor-In-Chief Charlie Turner using the European rapid charger network to supply the Kona Electric with 316kwh of electricity, choosing to only charge to 80 per cent capacity to maximise driving time.

In total, nine countries were visited with the trip starting in the Czech Republic and the 1,600-kilometre drive taking in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Lichtenstein, France, Luxembourg, Belgium and Holland.

Charlie Turner Said: “Whilst we find ourselves in lockdown, having the freedom to travel through as many countries as you want is the stuff of distant dreams. It’s reassuring, however, to know that as electrification becomes an ever growing part of our vehicular future, cars like Kona Electric can already deliver and whilst most won’t cover the miles in the way we did, we’ve proved that range anxiety shouldn’t play a part in long-distance travel.”

Vice Marketing and Product at Hyundai Motor Europe Andreas-Christoph Hofmann, said: “Following its launch in 2018, Kona Electric has continued to prove itself as an affordable zero-emission all-rounder, combining practicality with range and performance. The most recent updates have brought enhanced connectivity and a three-phase on-board charger, making the overall package even more compelling. We are delighted that Topgear has acknowledged the strengths of Kona Electric, adding to the many previous awards for this remarkable car.”

Vice President, Head of Middle East and Africa Operation Bang Sun Jeong, said: “This award is a recognition of Hyundai’s desire to introduce zero emissions mobility while also meeting to the consumer expectations when it comes to safety, comfort, and performance.”

Jide Owantunmise

Without doubt, Government has been paying more attention to vehicles than pedestrians in road construction and in the provision of road infrastructure. About 90 per cent of roads constructed in Nigerian cities are without pedestrian walkways. I have carried out lots of research covering schools, bus stops, markets, and other areas with heavy human traffic but to my amazement, over 80 per cent of these areas had no pedestrian crossing marks across the roads.

I hereby appeal to the governments and their agencies to dedicate more attention to pedestrian safety by providing standard walkways, zebra crossing markings, PELICAN crossing facilities and pedestrian bridges with day and night security measures put in place. The pedestrian bridges should also take into consideration the physically challenged and other vulnerable people.

In places where pedestrian crossing facilities are provided, most pedestrians don’t use the zebra crossing points. It is disheartening that many pedestrians don’t even know what the zebra crossing marking stands for not to talk of using it. Where provided, pedestrians are expected to gather at the pedestrian crossing point and cross as soon as the vehicles stop for them. Drivers are to stop when they sight pedestrians waiting to cross and when  pedestrian steps on the white and black marking (zebra crossing marking). Pedestrians must watch both sides of the road even if it is a one way road also avoid rushing or running to cross the line.

Research has revealed that so many drivers are guilty of disregarding the pedestrian crossing rules. So many people particularly school children have been knocked down on pedestrian crossing lines by aggressive and disobedient drivers. Drivers must approach all pedestrian crossings at slow speed. When pedestrians are waiting to cross, drivers must stop safely and allow them to cross before moving off. The rule is that drivers must stop if pedestrians  are already waiting to cross or they reach the crossing point before the vehicle. On approaching the zebra or pedestrian crossings, slow down and be prepared to stop safely and in good time. Where provided, drivers must stop behind the stop line. Drivers must not overtake another vehicle around pedestrian crossing marking.

In a nutshell, drivers must recognise the pedestrian crossing in good time. They must follow the MSM/PSL routine to ensure safety in that environment. Drivers must be particularly alert near schools, shopping areas, hospitals, markets, shopping malls, bus stops, crowdy areas and near junctions. In addition, efforts must be made by the government to ensure that these crossings are also controlled by traffic signals particularly at junctions, traffic control officers and school crossing wardens.

With genuine commitment to safety by governments, drivers, riders, pedestrians and other organisations, more lives will be saved on Nigerian roads.

Volkswagen Passenger Cars is to gradually resume production in Europe, starting with its plants in Zwickau and Bratislava (Slovakia).

The other plants in Germany and in Portugal, Spain, Russia and the USA are to restart production next week. Subsequently, during May, production will be resumed successively in South Africa, Argentina, Brazil and Mexico.

Volkswagen brand Chief Operating Officer Ralf Brandstätter, said: “With the decisions by the federal and state governments in Germany and the loosening of restrictions in other European states, conditions have been established for the gradual resumption of production.”

Production will be resumed in line with the current availability of parts, government requirements in Germany and Europe, the development of sales markets and the resulting modes of operation at the plants. Irrespective of these developments, compliance with the stringent health protection measures for employees will always be the top priority for the company.

Read Also: Honda unveils electric vehicle battery recycle plan

In the resumption of production, the company can also call upon the experience gained with the production ramp-up at its plants in China where a large number of consistent health protection measures have been successfully implemented.

All but one of the 33 plants Volkswagen has in China have now returned to production. No cases of coronavirus have been reported among the employees there since the restart. Volkswagen said it continues to closely monitor the global situation.

Honda has introduced a new initiative for recycling electric vehicle and batteries once they reach the end of their usable life in cars.

While the term ‘recycling’ suggests stripping the cells back to extract valuable elements like cobalt, nickel and copper, this is a process used only on batteries that have suffered irreparable damage.

In most cases, the batteries are destined for a ‘second life, such as when they are used in home energy storage to make more efficient use of the electricity generated by organisations like the National Grid.

Honda’s initiative is in partnership with SNAM (Société Nouvelle d’Affinage des Métaux). It has worked with SNAM since 2013, researching potential uses for second-hand EV batteries.

SNAM will collect old lithium-ion and nickel-hydride batteries from Honda dealers across 22 countries, and find the appropriate next use for them from there.

Honda’s European Senior Vice President, Tom Gardner, said: “As demand for Honda’s expanding range of hybrid and electric cars continues to grow, so does the requirement to manage batteries in the most environmentally-friendly way possible.

Recent market developments may allow us to make use of these batteries in a second life application for powering businesses or by using recent improved recycling techniques to recover useful raw materials which can be used as feedstock into the production of new batteries.”

Second hand batteries complement renewable energy sources like wind and solar. While fossil-fueled power is generally constant, wind and solar energy is subject to higher peaks (where too much electricity is generated) and lower troughs (where there’s not enough) depending on weather conditions.

On an exceptionally breezy day, wind energy might generate more electricity than the grid demands; second life batteries would allow this energy to be stored, and then deployed, when weather conditions become calmer and windmills produce less electricity.

SNAM says that the batteries can be repurposed for both industrial and domestic use – so homeowners with second life batteries installed could potentially charge them overnight when electricity is cheaper, and use this energy during the day.

As the rainy season approaches, I would like to re-iterate some vital points to enhance safety on  the roads. Drivers must remind themselves of the factors that affect friction (lack of friction leads to skidding and road crashes).

• The road surface -The smoother the road surface, the lesser the friction coefficient during the rainy season.

There are several deep potholes on the roads which drivers can misconstrue.

Always drive slowly on such roads.

• During the raining days, many roads will be flooded with waters. Drivers must therefore bear in mind the principle of hydroplaning before driving during the raining season.
• Condition of the tyre – It is very disheartening that some drivers still use second hand and worn out tyres even on inter-state trips. Drivers must know that their tyres may be having high friction on dry road surface but this is not so on wet road surface.Drivers must opt for new tyres with good treads as the rainy season is approaching (and at all times). You may bribe your way with the road traffic officers but remember the lives at risk.
• Drivers must avoid over- speeding. It is not necessarily a speed above the 100kph speed limit. It is actually any speed above what the road condition permits though still under the speed limit. It must always be noted that the higher the speed, the lesser the friction.
• The temperature of tyre is also a significant factor since after rainfall, there will be sunshine. Drivers must not over-inflate their tyres (Higher tyre pressure will lessen the friction).They must also manage their brake system and speed to avoid heating up the tyre temperature because the co-efficient of friction will decrease when the temperature of the tyre increase. Apart from poor friction, drivers could also experience tyre blowout with an increase in the tyre temperature.
• Overloading of vehicle is another factor that can lessen the friction, particularly when it rains. This is because the law of kinetic energy will surely come to play.
• Preventive maintenance must be carried out on vehicles before the rainy season sets in. There are some commercial vehicles that the roofs are so bad that you will need an umbrella to avoid being soaked inside the vehicle.
  All the vehicles that are not rain-friendly should be taken to the workshop for immediate repairs in the interest of comfort and safety.
• Whenever it rains, drivers must increase the following distance from two seconds to four seconds because it will take a longer time and distance for the vehicle to stop when the brake is applied.
• Construction companies must not make the road surface to be too smooth. Road surface must be friction-friendly.

Research has revealed that there are usually more crashes and other road traffic problems during the raining season than the dry season.

This is the reason why I am using this media to sound a very loud warning to all categories of drivers and vehicle owners that “Drivers Beware”. While we are appealing to all levels of government to repair the bad roads and construct more essential roads, “Drivers beware. A stitch in time saves mine”.