Volkswagen was voted overall most reliable van manufacturer - its Caddy and Transporter vans were in the top five, while the Crafter placed sixth.

Mercedes & Volkswagen Win Van Reliability Awards

The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter was voted Britain’s most reliable van in the latest Fleet News FN50 reliability survey, taking top spot from last year’s winner, the Ford Transit.

The FN50 reliability survey polls the UK’s top 50 leasing companies by fleet size to find out their views on manufacturer and model reliability.

However, Volkswagen was voted the most reliable van manufacturer overall – two of its models (Caddy and Transporter) were in the top five, with the Crafter coming close behind in sixth place. Only one Mercedes-Benz model – the Sprinter – was in the top five; the other two places were occupied by the Ford Transit and Transit Connect.

Although some Transit models are built in the UK (in Southampton), no other British-built vans came close to winning an award – Vauxhall, which builds its popular Vivaro van in Luton, did not even feature in the top five most reliable van manufacturers.

Two British-built cars, the Nissan Qashqai ( built in Sunderland) and the Toyota Avensis (built in Burnaston, near Derby) did make it into the top ten most reliable cars, ranking sixth and fifth respectively.

Ford Transit Triumphs at ACFO Awards

Ford won both the Large Van and Small Van awards at this year’s Association of Car Fleet Operators Awards (ACFO). The Transit managed to displace last year’s winner in the Large Van of the Year category, the Mercedes Sprinter, and return to top position for the 15th time in this history of the awards.

The Transit Connect won the Small Van category for the ninth consecutive year – rounding out an impressive night for Ford, in which they won four out of the seven available awards. In addition to the Small and Large Van Awards, the Focus won the Fleet Car of the Year and was also awarded the Fleet Safety Initiative of the Year award for its Ford Focus Driver Assistance Pack option, which is a £750 option on the Focus and includes an impressive range of safety features:

Traffic sign recognition, which uses a forward-facing camera behind the rear view mirror to scan
the roadside for speed limit signs and flashes up helpful reminders on the dash so drivers always
know the speed limit; lane keeping aid; lane departure warning; auto high beam; blind spot alert;
driver alert if sensors detect erratic driving; and Active City Stop, which monitors the road ahead
and brakes the car automatically if a collision is imminent.

Awards also went to BMW (Environmental Initiative of the Year – BMW Efficient Dynamics) and Volkswagen (Green Car of the Year – VW Golf BlueMotion).