“Your motor's first line of defense against high temperatures is engine oil” says Basem Wasef of DriverSide, a car owners’ website based in San Franciso.
K2 and Mwala Elephant Charge 2015 – a celebration of the great outdoors, by David Findlay
As much as the Elephant Charge is a whole lot of action-filled fun for the whole family, we all need to remember its great purpose - wildlife conservation. If we teach the young generation of today about the importance of wildlife and conserving it, we can put a stop to declining numbers of our beautiful wildlife and forests. The Elephant Charge supports projects and programs that are specifically designed to educate young communities living in those rural areas where wildlife live. They are being taught the importance of wildlife and how they can benefit from it.
An answer to power cuts – ECOGEN generators with back up spares
The Elephant Charge – looking back, looking forward. By David Findlay
The Elephant Charge is an annual off-road motorsport challenge for both cars and motorbikes that raises money for conservation and wildlife education. Autoworld has been competing in the Elephant Charge for the last 5 years. In 2014 after a whole year of preparation, it was finally a win for Team Autoworld. Winning the Elephant Charge had been one of my biggest dreams. Now let’s see if we can make it a double!
Staff News - competition winners
We recently held a couple of in-house promotions: Best Spanjaard Salesman and Hardest Working Warehouse Storeman. Here are the competition winners.
1. Competition winner - Best Spanjaard Salesman
In April 2015 salesmen at Autoworld and its sister company Impala Service Station were set a challenge – to sell as many Spanjaard products as they could! Just to make the challenge worth fighting for, Spanjaard South Africa generously donated a smart phone. With such a great prize up for grabs, conversation amongst the salesmen centred on the great Spanjaard product range stocked across all Autoworld branches, as well as Impala Service Station.
For a whole month every salesman put in their best effort marketing Spanjaard. However there could only be one winner! The “man with a plan” for the month of April was Mr Lloyd Simwami, a key salesman at Impala Service station. Well done Lloyd for this remarkable achievement!
Lloyd has worked for Impala Service Station for the last 8 years. Before taking up the role of salesman Lloyd was an impressive fuel attendant, the first face you would see on the forecourt. Now he sells, and has acquired a great deal of knowledge on a huge range of products.
2. Competition winner - Hardest Working Warehouse Storeman
The Autoworld warehouse at Head Office recently held a competition to award the hardest working employee in that department over a 15 week period. The warehouse is the heart beat of Autoworld and it wasn’t easy to choose a winner as everyone works hard. We used the following criteria to choose the one who most deserved to be in first place:
- Identify the fastest moving items in your product range and make sure these items are fully stocked at all times
- Notice any items that are damaged or defaced and have them removed or replaced
- Spot items with bar-code errors and correct them
- Regularly keep management informed about your stock
The winner was Mambwe Chanda, who walked away with a Samsung S4mini cell phone. 2nd place was Musa Mumba; and 3rd place was Paul Machwani. Many congratulations to Mambwe.
So what do we know about the winner? Mambwe Chanda, nick named ‘the walking computer’, joined Autoworld in 2001. He enjoys being part of the team that ‘keeps Zambia moving’. On receiving his prize he thanked management for recognising the hard work he puts in. He warned the rest of the warehouse team that he is ready to compete and win everything in the near future!
Let’s not forget that without team work all this would not be possible.
TJM tubeless repair kit & mini compressors - Avoid the flat tyre nightmare
Get yourself equipped, so you can stay safe and enjoy your journey!
Have you ever been on a long journey and noticed one of your tyres was slightly flat? Have you enjoyed a day at the mall only to find you have a puncture? Your heart may sink further when you realise there are no workshops nearby (especially if you are on a long Zambian road in the middle of nowhere). A flat tyre can be a real pain.
In most cases you will find a puncture is caused by a nail or a foreign object that has engaged itself in the tyre resulting in low pressure. To stay safe and enjoy your trip, we recommend changing your tyres well before the tread gets low. This will help avoid flat tyres altogether. To help you on your way, this month’s 15% off special is on tyres and tubes (from 7th-13th May).
Even with a good tread, a tyre may still sometimes develop a puncture. When this happens, you can ensure you finish your journey safely with the TJM tubeless repair kit and mini compressor which come with an instruction manual and guarantee. Both are small enough to permanently stay in the boot of your vehicle. With the kit you can be equipped for any quick fix regardless of the car you drive.
Nowadays most vehicles run on tubeless tyres. This makes it very easy to repair them without needing to remove the tyre from the vehicle.
How can I tell the difference between a tyre with a tube or one without?
Tyres with tubes have a valve protruding from the tube. Tubeless tyres have a tubeless valve which is fitted to the rim of the tyre. Our workshop and sales staff are happy to help you identify the difference so you can establish if the tubeless repair kit is right for your vehicle.
What does the TJM tubeless kit consist of?
- A cord needle tool
- A tyre rasp (file)
- Replacement needle for the needle tool
- An allen key to fix the needle tool when replacing needles
- A trim tool (sharp cutter) and tyre lubricant to help make it easy to insert the rasp (file)
- 20 x tubeless repair chords (patches)
- Robust storage case
- Spare valve cores
- Valve key and long nose pliers
How much will it cost you? At any Autoworld branch you can get the tubeless repair kit for K330* and the mini compressor at an amazing K1,815*.
7 steps to repairing your tubeless tyre with repair kit and compressor
- Use the pliers supplied to remove any obstructions in the damaged area of the tyre.
- Clean out the hole using the rasp tool (file). Inserting the rasp tool into the hole a few times will sufficiently clean the hole and make room for finally inserting a patch.
- Apply the lubricant supplied to the shaft of the rasp tool (file). This will assist when the rasp is inserted into the hole created by the removed obstruction.
- Thread the repairing cord (patch) through the eye of the needle tool. The lubricant can be applied to the tip of the needle tool to help you easily insert the cord (patch) into the tyre.
- Press the needle tool and cord (patch) into the filled out hole in the tyre. Ensure a small amount of the cord (patch) is visible even after it’s inserted into the tyre. Slowly pull out the needle tool by slightly pulling up on the handle. The cord (patch) should remain in the tyre sealing the hole. Do not twist the needle tool in this process.
- With the cutter supplied trim any excess cord (patch) protruding from the tyre.
- Re-inflate the tyre with your TJM air compressor to the desired pressure. Check the repaired area for any leaks by simply pouring a little bit of water and checking that no bubbles appear.
As a safety measure, consider taking your car to the nearest Autoworld garage once you are able to drive. It's important to have your tyre re-checked by a professional to ensure it is permanently sealed.
Contact any of our Autoworld stores for more information on tyres, tubes, the TJM tubeless repair kits and mini compressors. Visit us or reach us on Twitter and Facebook.
Don’t miss out on this month’s 15% discount on tyres and tubes - visit us before 13th May.
Safe driving!
* All prices include 16% VAT
Autoworld's International Women's Day celebrations in 2015
2015 International Women's Day theme: Gender is my agenda, make it happen
Sunday 8th March was International Women’s Day, a day designed to give women all around the world confidence and joy through the celebration of women and their achievements. This year’s theme, ‘gender is my agenda, make it happen,’ applied to Zambian women in a more touching way because at present, women in Zambia are gaining momentum in holding positions of influence. Our Vice President Inonge Wina, Chief justice Ireen Mambilima and other women participating in national matters traditionally classed as ‘manly’ are certainly setting the standards for Zambian women of the future. On that Sunday morning Autoworld women joined events in Lusaka beautifully dressed in traditional Chitenge outfits.
International Women's Day celebration
The day was filled with singing and interaction as people marched from Muleya Basic School in Emmasdale to the National Heroes' Stadium. Although International Women’s Day is obviously about women, it was such an encouragement to have men from all walks of life support the event, including the President Mr. E. C. Lungu who graced the occasion at the stadium together with women from different political parties and organisations. We commend men who can honour our women and work with us to make this a more equal society that encourages Zambian women to do more and reach higher for the good of the country. And as Autoworld women might be few in number, working in an industry that is dominated by men, it was very encouraging to be one of the few in our sector to take part at this prestigious occasion.
A speech by the Minister of Gender
A speech was given by the Minister of Gender Prof Nkandu Luo. She bravely addressed an issue concerning abuse and gender based violence. Sadly, this continues to be a concerning matter in our country. Men, women, girls and boys are entitled to have equal rights under the laws of Zambia and the Human Rights Commission supports this noble and right cause.
Our International Women's Day experience
The International Women's Day occasion was a humbling experience and a well deserved break. It instilled the feeling of being appreciated as women in society. We would like to thank Autoworld management for the effort and help rendered towards the eventful day. In fact Autoworld continues to lead the way by being open to employing more women who would like to work in the automotive sector. It may take guts but success is there, as demonstrated by the inspiring Phanny who is our Workshop Supervisor at Downtown Fitment Centre. Indeed, ‘Gender is my Agenda, make it happen’. I am doing what I can to make it happen!
By Annie Zulu
Latest Autoworld Staff News
We as employers like to recognise the achievements of Autoworld staff and the value they bring to the company. Through the things we do as employers, we want to make a lasting impact on our employees, helping them feel part and parcel of the company and motivating them to be even more committed. The month of March was a busy but exciting month for us all. We had training with our team, a competition and two birthdays.
Pirelli Tyres Sales Training
We had the privilege of having some of our staff members undergo tyre sales training. There were 15 Autoworld participants from different departments. The trainers were a team of three who arrived in Zambia on 3rd March, 2015 to conduct the product and marketing session which lasted a day and a half. This training was held at Intercontinental Hotel.
The participants were trained on how to read tyres in terms of size, width, profile and even the rim size. They were also trained on how much pressure should be pumped into the tyre, making it easier for a salesman to immediately point out what a customer needs. At the end of the session participants from various organisations mingled, shared knowledge and took pictures.
Sales Staff Competition
In our quest to serve our clients better, we believe our Sales Staff are our ambassadors as they are the people who uphold the image of the company. In this regard, we introduced a competition to motivate and appreciate their hard work and contribution and to acknowledge the value they bring to the organisation.
We asked our sales team to be attentive and note down products that were not current stock items but could possibly be on demand. This information would come from customer requests at our sales counters.
The response was tremendous and we received very helpful feedback every day. Of course there can only be one deserving winner. As with many other competitions, this one came with a surprising winner, a man popular for controversy also known as the 'mad scientist.' Mr Arnold Chooka, a Senior Salesman walked away with the prize - a Samsung Galaxy S4 mini which was presented by Director Mr Glenn Findlay. Mr Chooka put in unprecedented effort which was jokingly described by the Purchasing Manager Mr. David Findlay as that of a 'moving computer.' Mr Chooka had a very good month as he also celebrated his birthday with his team mates on 20th March.