A bulletproof Toyota Hilux in South Africa, and a R45 million Ferrari

Last month, South Africa continued its love affair with bakkies, with three of the top five best-sellers in September 2026 being high-riders.

At the top, the Toyota Hilux maintained its dominance, selling 3,769 units, while the Isuzu D-Max and Ford Ranger also did well, with 2,551 and 2,502 sales, landing them the third and fourth spots, respectively.

When it came to passenger vehicle sales, the evergreen VW Polo Vivo remained the model of choice for buyers in September, landing a second-place overall spot thanks to 2,553 units sold.

In total, the top 20 passenger and light commercial vehicles accounted for 32,705 units, or 53% of the 61,645 cars sold in South Africa last month.

Brent crude oil prices rose by $1 per barrel to $102 since yesterday due to different factors in the Middle East and the Gulf of Mexico.

While shipments have expanded in recent weeks, there have been at least nine attacks in the Hormuz waterway so far this month, with Iran hitting some ships, but not enough to stop the flow of oil.

At the same time, US weather forecasters said a storm forming in the Gulf of Mexico could become the first Atlantic hurricane of 2026 within two days and would likely hit up to six oil and gas facilities.

The South African rand strengthened ever-so-slightly overnight, gaining from R16.65 to R16.58 against the US dollar.

5 important things

What it costs to make the new Toyota Hilux bulletproof in South Africa: It is now possible to buy a next-generation Hilux capable of stopping bullets fired by an AK47 in South Africa. The ninth-generation Hilux made its debut earlier this year, and SVI Engineering has now completed an armour solution for the bakkie that can protect occupants from various firearms [TopAuto].

R1 billion needed to rebuild roads, among other things, in the Kruger National Park: Heavy flooding in the Kruger National Park earlier this year caused widespread damage to the park’s infrastructure, with the scale of the damage calculated at R1 billion [Newsday].

Another blow for South Africa’s ports: South Africa’s Minister of Transport, Barbara Creecy, recently met with the management from the International Container Terminal Services (ICTSI) about severe vessel delays at the Durban Gateway Terminal [BusinessTech].

Jaguar unveils R2.8 million electric car in British brand’s reboot: Jaguar presented the first model of its new fully electric lineup, a £130,000 ($172,000) grand tourer aimed at breathing new life into the storied British brand. Orders for the Type 01 will open in early 2027, more than two years after Jaguar stopped selling new cars in the UK [Bloomberg].

Michael Jordan’s Ferrari 550 sold for a record $2.7 million (R45 million): Michael Jordan’s Ferrari 550 Maranello sold for $2.7 million, making it the most expensive 550 Maranello ever sold at auction [Car and Driver].