Sunday News (Zimbabwe)

Townshend and Butcher quarter finals on

- Ngqwele Dube Sports Correspond­ent

THEY say simplicity is the ultimate sophistica­tion! Kiichiro Toyoda was a simple family man who made simple cars.

Out of simplicity, his company Toyota is now the 6th biggest car manufactur­er in the world. They did it by keeping their cars simple, reliable and durable. The Toyota Allion is just that, it’s a simple car but it does exactly what it’s supposed to do and that is take you where you need to be when you need to.

If you ever fancied a Toyota Corolla for its simplicity and for it durability you will love the Allion. World over the Corolla has earned itself a reputation for never breaking down. Everyone knows that if anybody waves you down with a broken down Corolla they are probably trying to rob you. The Toyota Allion is similar to the Corolla Bubble in the sense that they share a lot of parts from the engine to the drive train although the Allion is the more luxurious of the two.

The Allion has about 3 engine variants, the good, the better and the ugly. First on the line up is the good, a 1,5l 1NZ FE engine. This is a very popular engine

across a lot of small to medium Toyota Sedans and Hatchbacks. It’s a durable engine that won’t hurt your pocket with hefty fuel bills. Parts are plenty and when the day comes for repairs it won’t sit on bricks because of parts unavailabi­lity. A lot of people in the taxi industry find them very reliable as they are the same engines you will find in cars like the Fun Cargo.

Second on the line up as the better is the 1,8l 1ZZ FE engine which is quite popular as well. It is found in other Toyota models like the Corolla Bubble and the Toyota wish just to mention a few. The ZZ engine has been tried and tested even in the South A f r i c an mar k e t . Parts for these are no longer a problem as there are many of these on DEFENDING Townshend and Butcher Trophy champions, Safeguard are on course to defending their title after hammering fellow Bulawayo Amateur Football Associatio­n (Bafa) side, Lobels in the opening round of the 62nd edition of the annual knock-out tournament.

Safeguard showed they will be taking no prisoners in their quest to retain the trophy as they clobbered Lobels 7-0.

Today they are up against Hilltop in the first quarter-final to be played at Barbourfie­lds Outside Grounds. Hilltop, who are in the Ntabazindu­na Football

the market now.

Last on the line up as the ugly is the 2l 1AZ FSE model Allion. This is the model that gives a lot of people problems. It has a 2 L engine with Toyota D4 direct Injection. This system seems to give a lot of nightmares when injectors or the pump start acting up. You might wanna stay away from this model because of that. By design the D4 system saves a lot on fuel but

on ly when it’s working Associatio­n will fancy their chances and would be hoping to upset the apple cart and proceed to the semi-finals ahead of Safeguard.

Rebels, who laboured to a 3-2 victory over Anolle Castings, take on Christian League’s Flying Stars who beat Sondelani 3-0 in the first round. Unity Village are up against Mat High City while Joker FC will have to contend with Lochard for a place in the semi-finals.

Mat High City made it to the quarters at the expense of NGA whom they beat 3-1 while Unity Village saw off Mpilo United 2-0 with Lochard having the better of Victory Fellowship 4-2.

Joker beat Ntafa side, Willowgate 4-1. Area Zones chairman, Charles Chunda said they are happy with the first round and looking forward

well. Once it starts giving problems, you can grow grey hair very fast.

Most modern Toyotas however, are coming with the D4 direct Injection as the war against emissions is being intensifie­d so you will find that most Toyotas from mid 2000s now use D4 and can’t exactly run away from it.

The Allion is by design a front-wheel drive car with front wheels being driven a 4-speed automatic gearbox. Both the 1,5l and the 1,8l are configured this way with 4-speed automatic t r ansmission­s . A four-wheel drive model is available and you will find it in the 1,8l model. The 2l model however, has a continuous­ly var iab le transmissi­on and only available in front wheel drive.

The Allion has a neat interior with fake wood panelling running across to exciting duels this morning.

“The teams played well and showed eagerness to clinch the trophy. The new format saw huge interest coming in from other leagues that have not previously been taking part in the trophy.

“The quarter-finals promise to be more exciting as teams fight to make it to the semis,” he said.

The Townshend and Butcher Trophy matches will be played every weekend until the finals which is scheduled for 13 October.

The knock-out tournament was previously a preserve of Bafa teams but with the restructur­ed Area Zones, this year they decided to incorporat­e teams from other Zifa Area Zones Bulawayo affiliated leagues.

the dashboard and the centre consol. Most cars in its league do not have that much leg room at the back but the Allion can accommodat­e people with long legs at the back with ease. There’s also something unique about the Allion, the rear seats can recline! This is something you’d find in an S-Class Mercedes or a 7 series BMW. It also comes with keyless entry and keyless start though earlier models may not have these smart additions.

Overall, this is a good car to look out for as it is a stylish and sporty car that isn’t very heavy on fuel and parts are very much available now unlike yesteryear. As they are relatively new cars you may find that it may be hard to find parts but most of them are compatible with other Toyotas like the Corolla Bubble. I should tell you that this car doesn’t come too cheap though. Till next time. Happy motoring!

@lovert116 - Automart Used Spares Centre – Quality Used Japanese Spares -+263 772 33 99 38 - automartzw@ gmail.com - Facebook: @automartus­c

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Charles Chunda

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