SAUDI-MADE CAR UNVEILED

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia unveiled Saudi Arabia’s first car, which was manufactured by engineers at King Saud University (KSU) in Riyadh. The car is named Ghazal 1. The car is designed to match the climate of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries. KSU President Abdullah Al-Othman informed that this was a national strategic product. KSU holds its patent rights and intellectual property rights. Professor Said Darwish of KSU’s industrial engineering department said the car model was based on tests of category development (wheelbase) in collaboration with several major companies such as Motorola, Mercedes and Magna Canada. Ghazal 1 is 4.8 metres long with a width of about 1.9 metres. The plan is to produce 20,000 cars annually. The significance of the name of the car is that Ghazal is a desert deer, which is one of the fastest animals that can combine elegance with life in a harsh environment.