October issue out now!

The automotive industry’s creative side is kicking in as companies innovate in the face of Covid-19 adversity.

Changing alert levels, travel restrictions, meeting consumers’ expectations and contactless trading have forced many to rethink how they do business – from how vehicles are imported to using biometrics.

Autofile finds out how Autoterminal, JEVIC, Oxford Finance and AutoPlay have adapted in the face of the pandemic, while VINZ has opened a new testing station as planned before coronavirus hit.

AdTorque Edge’s Todd Fuller has some top tips in the digital space for dealers and covers off how e-commerce sales have been booming. In July this year, it saw 156 per cent growth in digital enquiries at dealerships compared to January. 

In non-Covid news, about 3,000 cars still with alpha-type Takata airbag systems will fail their warrants of fitness (WOFs) from the end of March 2021 unless these systems have been replaced, says the NZTA.

And the deadline for WOFs to be renewed after expiring due to the Covid-19 crisis is October 10. As of September 14, there were about 620,000 extension tests still to be completed on top of warrants expiring last and this month as a matter of course. 

The Motor Trade Association (MTA) warns it will all put huge pressure on the vehicle-inspection industry because there’s “only so much capacity in the system”.

Japan’s car industry is working to reduce the pollution it creates by improving fuel efficiency and making more environmentally friendly models. Out of 1.687 million new vehicles registered there last year, only 21,281 were pure electric vehicles (EVs). We explore how green the country’s fleet is.

The emissions profile of New Zealand’s light-vehicle fleet has become a political football with the country’s two major political parties shining the spotlight on the issue in the run-up to election day.

The MTA’s Tony Everett investigates the evolving introduction in Japan of intelligent transportation systems (ITS) based on using the 760Mhz transmission frequency and the potential impact this puts on the choice of used vehicles that can be legally imported here.

Plus: Vehicle safety-ratings explained, Bordercheck’s operation in Osaka, Drive Electric’s campaign to speed up the shift to EVs and we talk to “the three wise men” behind the new Racing World podcast.

Autofile – first with the news that matters.