Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. a black taxi.

1991

C. Van Ulmenstein in Weekend Argus 12 Jan. (Supplement) 5: Taxis are called Zola Budds and Mary Deckers, but these are not linked to any specific brand name of minibuses [DSAE].

2. a fast armoured police vehicle.

1985		H. Prendini in Style Oct. 41: ‘Johnnies’ (soldiers), ‘Zola Budds’ (slow SADF hippos) and ‘Mary Deckers’ (fast hippos) [DSAE].
1990		M. Malunga in Style 8 June 9: It is just after four in the morning and the streets of Soweto are already filled with roaring Zola Budds and zooming Mary Deckers flying up and down to swallow as many workers [...] as possible [DSAE].
1996		CyberBraai Lex. at www.matriots.com 🌐 They have also learned that ‘Zola Budd’ is township slang for a police armored personnel carrier, that ‘Mary Decker’ is a faster model of the Zola Budd.