Category Archives: Van News

News and articles about UK vans – especially information relevant to the van hire market. Coverage of new van model launches from all the major manufacturers – Ford, Mercedes, Volkswagen, Peugeot, Fiat and Citroen.

First Pics: New Renault Trafic & Vauxhall Vivaro

Leave a reply

This summer will see the long-awaited replacement for the Vauxhall Vivaro hit the UK’s roads. Naturally, this will also mean a brand-new Renault Trafic, as the two manufacturers have been long-time collaborators in the light commercial vehicle market.

Today saw both companies release teaser illustrations showing what the new van will look like, which I’ve reproduced below. My first impression is how similar the new Trafic/Vivaro looks to the Ford Transit Custom, but I’m sure that it will have its own character — past and current model Vivaros have always been quite distinct in look and feel from the Transit.

The all-new Vauxhall Vivaro.

The all-new Vauxhall Vivaro will go on sale in summer 2014.

The all-new Renault Trafic

The all-new Renault Trafic (based on the same vehicle) will also go on sale this summer.

Both companies say that the new vans will bring car-like sophistication, more efficient engines and new technology to the LCV sector, as you’d expect.

The new Vivaro will be built at Luton, like the outgoing model, and I suspect we won’t have to wait more than another month or two for a more detailed and photographic unveiling of the new model — watch this space for more details.

Vauxhall Props Up UK CV Manufacturing As Output Drops 22% In 2013

2 Replies
Vauxhall Vivaro - built in Britain

Vauxhall built 44,657 Vivaro vans at Luton in 2013 — more than half of all commercial vehicles manufactured in the UK last year.

Despite the 14.7% rise in commercial vehicle registrations last year, British commercial vehicle manufacturers had a fairly dire year, producing 21.7% fewer vehicles than in 2012.

In total, 87,671 commercial vehicles (vans and trucks) were produced in 2013, down from 112,039 in 2012.

However, things would have been far worse without UK van stalwart Vauxhall, which produced 44,657 Vivaro vans at its Luton plant last year — more than half the UK’s total commercial vehicle output.

Vauxhall has stayed loyal to the UK, despite the departure of Ford for Turkish shores last summer, and the new model Vivaro, which is due to be introduced later this year, will also be made at Luton.

It’s the twelfth consecutive year that Vauxhall has been the UK’s biggest van manufacturer, and the firm has already invested more than €200m in preparing to manufacturer the new model Vivaro at Luton, where it employs 1,200 people directly.

Commenting on the figures for the UK CV manufacturing industry as a whole, Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said:

“Production of commercial vehicles struggled in 2013, due to restructuring of manufacturing operations and difficult economic conditions across Europe. With early signs of recovery on the continent and better performance in the truck and bus sectors, there are reasons to be positive, but we expect overall volumes to remain subdued for some months yet.”

The final month of 2013 saw a 25% fall in CV manufacturing output, and the European weakness referred to by Mr Hawes was evident in the year-long figures, which showed a 24.8% drop in export demand for UK-made CVs:

CV manufacturing Dec-12 Dec-13 % Change YTD-12 YTD-13 % Change
Total 6,851 5,136 -25.0% 112,039 87,671 -21.7%
Home 3,301 1,014 -69.3% 48,306 39,761 -17.7%
Export 3,550 4,122 16.1% 63,733 47,910 -24.8%
% export 51.8% 80.3% 56.9% 54.6%

Data courtesy of SMMT (www.smmt.co.uk)

However, perhaps the simplest way to see what’s changed is to take a look at this graph, which shows UK CV output since 2007:

UK CV output 2007 - 2013

UK CV output 2007 – 2013

It’s pretty clear that even if the UK population likes UK-built cars (and it does), it isn’t so keen on UK-built CVs.

BCA Introduces Video Appraisal For Van Auctions

Leave a reply
BCA LCV auction

Buyers at many BCA commercial vehicle auctions will now be able to inspect vehicles online, prior to the auction, using BCA’s online video appraisal service.

Buying a vehicle through an online auction may go against the grain for many buyers, but as the success of eBay Motors has shown, it’s both workable and popular.

Vehicle auctioneers BCA picked up on this theme some time ago and offers a Live Online service allowing buyers to bid online.

However, the firm hasn’t rested on its laurels — BCA has spent the last year trialling an online video appraisal service for commercial vehicles that makes it much easier to inspect and select vehicles to bid on prior to the auction.

Buyers can use BCA’s Commercial Vehicle Video Appraisal service this to make absentee bids or to cut down viewing time before auctions starts, and after last year’s trials, the video appraisal service is being rolled out to “many of the biggest blue chip vendors of light commercial vehicles” in 2014, according to BCA.

BCA’s General Manager Commercial Vehicles Duncan Ward says that videos help boost prices:

“Average residual value performance increased notably when our Vehicle Video Appraisal service was used as part of the pre-sale marketing and first-time sale percentages improved.  Buyer response was overwhelmingly positive and the service proved very popular with BCA Live Online bidders.”

BCA uses the latest generation tablet technology to produce a 360-degree video of the vehicle’s interior, exterior, roof and loadbay condition. The video runs in HD format on PC, tablet and mobile devices and takes 2 minutes to view with a fast scroll option if required. It also offers multiple still images with a zoom feature, to give buyers more flexibility. The video appraisals are accessed through the online BCA stock locator (bca.co.uk).

BCA polled its buyer customers about the new service during the pilot period. Over 70% of buyers polled said BCA’s Online Video Appraisals give them the confidence to bid higher, while 73% said they would be more confident to bid via Live Online.  72% said they would recommend the stock to friends/other buyers. LCV dealers said it gave them the opportunity to pre-sell stock to potential retail customers.

Ward commented:

“Buyers – including those from overseas – have said the videos are the next best thing to being there in person, proof indeed that this latest innovation from BCA helps maximise buying power and residual values for fleet vendors.”

Fiat Van Sales Rise By 70% In 2013 As Van Market Rebounds

Leave a reply
Fiat Doblo Cargo Tecnico

Fiat Doblo Cargo Tecnico

Van sales finally begun to rebound last year, but some manufacturers fared better than others in terms of sales growth — and near the top of the pile was Fiat Professional, the firm’s van division, which recorded 70% increase in UK sales, which rose to 13,500 in 2013.

The rise took Fiat’s share of the UK light commercial vehicle (LCV) market to 4.4%, a new UK record for Fiat, which has traditionally been stronger in continental Europe. Fiat claims that its 70% growth rate was ‘twice the rate of growth of its nearest rival’  and that when passenger variants and 4t Ducato vans are taken into account, its total share of the UK LCV market rose to 5.1%.

The growth leapfrogged Fiat to 8th place in the UK LCV market, but its vans have always been more popular in continental Europe, where it is the third largest LCV manufacturer in terms of market share and the leading supplier of motorhome base vehicles, underpinning approximately two-thirds of motorhomes built in 2013.

The sales results come on top of a critically successful year for FIAT Professional in the UK. In 2013 the brand and its products scooped a host of major awards from numerous influential UK publications including (in chronological order) VansA2Z, Trade Van Driver, Fleet Van World, GreenFleet, Fleet Van and What Van?

Renault, Citroën & Volkswagen Collect Awards At Business Van Of The Year

Leave a reply

Several of the UK’s most popular vans picked up a awards at the inaugural Business Van of the Year Awards today, presented by Business Vans. Here are some of the highlights of today’s event.

City Van Award

Citroen Nemo van

Citroen Nemo van

The Citroën Nemo was the judges’ choice in the City Van category, thanks to its compact dimensions, high payload and low running costs — the Nemo is only 3.86m long, but has a high 660kg payload and a large 2.5m3 (extendable to 2.8 m3) load compartment, which can accommodate a Euro pallet, or load lengths of up to 2,493mm with the standard Extenso® front passenger seat folded flat.

Combined cycle fuel consumption of up to 62.8mpg means that fuel costs can be kept under control, while CO2 emissions of just under 119g/km ensure that the van’s environmental credentials aren’t questioned.

The final clincher for the Nemo was probably Citroën’s strong presence in the SME and small fleet markets. Since the Nemo is also available from Peugeot (as the Bipper) and Fiat (as the Fiorino), Citroën’s UK Business Centre network is one of the few ways of differentiating between the three company’s offerings — and there aren’t really any other van models that compete directly in this category.

Small & Green…

Renault Kangoo Van Z.E. electric van

The Renault Kangoo Van Z.E. electric van has already sold more than 11,000 units, making it the best-selling electric van in Europe.

The Renault Kangoo was the victor in two categories, taking home the awards for both Small Trades Van and Green Van of the Year, in the form of the all-electric Kangoo Van Z.E.

Proving that the presence of the Kangoo-based Citan hasn’t reduced the appeal of Renault’s offering, judge Ralph Morton, Business Van Manager’s editorial director, said that:

“The small trades van sector is supremely competitive, but the Kangoo wins for us because it’s the best example of how a small trades van can appeal to a wide variety of users in many business sectors.”

It’s a notable victory against the all-conquering Citroën Berlingo, and the judges acknowledged that Renault’s electric offering, the multi-award winnning Kangoo Van Z.E., is also a strong real-world performer, with Mr Morton describing it as, “an excellent choice for small businesses wanting to operate a green van in city environments”.

The Germans make it five

Volkswagen Transporter Sportline

The Volksagen Transporter was the Business Van judges choice for Van of the Year.

Renault managed two awards, but Volkswagen went three better and left the awards ceremony with no fewer than five titles. The German marque’s ever-popular Transporter van was the judges’ choice in the Van of the Year and Best Large Trades Van categories, with judge Ralph Morton describing the Transporter as “the ideal all-rounder for the trades, offering quality, value and reliability in equal measure”.

Meanwhile, the Crafter picked up the award for Best Heavy Van, beating the ever-popular Sprinter to the title, thanks in part to the reduced running costs provided by its BlueMotion specification.

Finally, the Volkswagen’s big pick-up, the Amarok, romped home with the Best Utility Pick-Up and Best Double Cab awards, with Mr Morton describing the Amarok as “delivering high standards of quality and reliability. Everything you would expect from a Volkswagen”.

Away from the vehicles, Volkswagen also won the Best Service Package for Van Owners award, thanks to the “service offering and back-up provided by the brand’s dedicated Van Centre network”

Today’s Judges included Mark Cartwright, head of vans and light commercial vehicles at FTA (Freight Transport Association), Marcus Puddy, director of commercial vehicles with the biggest leasing company in the UK, LexAutolease, Richard Bunn, director of White Hot Vans, Eddie Parker, fleet LCV consultant at GE Capital Fleet Services, Rod Lloyd, managing director of Low Cost Vans, and chairman Keith Hawes, managing director of Magma Automotive Services.

New VW Caddy BlueMotion Delivers 61mpg

Leave a reply
Volkswagen Caddy BlueMotion interior

Inside the new Caddy BlueMotion.

Volkswagen has announced the arrival of the new Caddy BlueMotion van.

Available to order from February, the new Caddy BlueMotion is the cleanest and most fuel-efficient Caddy ever, and boasts combined cycle fuel consumption of 61.4mpg, and CO2 emissions of just 119g/km.

The new Caddy BlueMotion comes in short-wheelbase panel van form only, and is powered by a frugal 1.6-litre TDI common rail direct injection engine that develops 102 PS and 250 Nm of torque.

The Caddy BlueMotion’s 61mpg official figure is 6mpg higher than the outgoing Caddy BlueMotion model, and 11mpg better than a standard base Caddy.

These gains have been achieved through the application of Volkswagen’s standard BlueMotion Technology features – Cruise Control, Hill-Hold Assist, Start/Stop and Energy Recuperation – plus three additional new BlueMotion design and engineering advancements:

  • 15″ Reduced Rolling Resistance Tyres – tyres that reduce friction, and need less effort as they roll, minimise the energy wasted.
  • Reduced Ride Height – lowering the ride height by 27 mm reduces aerodynamic drag.
  • More efficient Engine Control– the reduced gross weight makes improved engine control and revised calibration possible.

Based on an annual mileage of 30,000 and an average diesel price of 140p per litre, the new Caddy model delivers a fuel cost saving of up to £744 over the standard 1.6-litre TDI 102 PS model, and to help the new model stand out, it boasts body-coloured side strips and a black and blue trim fabric that is only available on the BlueMotion model.

Used Van Values Up 24% In Two Years

1 Reply

Average used van values rose by 3.9% in December, according to the latest figures from vehicle auctioneers BCA, leaving them a massive 24% higher than they were two years ago, in December 2011.

The increase took the average value for all used vans to £5,311, with all-time record values achieved for dealer part-exchange and nearly-new vans.

On a yearly basis, used van values rose by 12.1% in 2013, despite a rise in both average age and average mileage, as the figures in this table show:

Year-on-year table: All vans

All vans Avg Age (mnths) Avg Mileage Avg Value Sale vs CAP
Dec 2012 55.93 78,793 £4,736 101.12%
Dec 2013 59.37 81,351 £5,311 102.07%

Data courtesy of BCA (www.british-car-auctions.co.uk)

Commenting on the results, Duncan Ward, BCA’s General Manager – Commercial Vehicles, said that he expected more of the same in 2014:

“Average values for used LCVs remained high in December as buyers competed for the limited volume of stock on offer.  Many corporate sellers held vehicles over for the New Year and dealer part-exchange stock filled the gap, resulting in a significant price rise for this sector during the month.   Supply remains the key factor driving the market and this means there is plenty of competition for the best examples reaching the market.”

“While this is good news for sellers, from the buyers’ perspective the outlook for 2014 is that supply issues could actually worsen.   Our view is that the overall shortage of used product and the issues of supply versus demand will see a continuation of high conversions and higher selling prices in 2014, effectively meaning we are going to see more of what is best described as a “sellers’ market”.

A one-way market?

As the graph below shows, prices have risen steadily since 2011 — but this situation cannot last forever:

BCA Used van values Dec 2011-13

Recent growth in new van registrations will eventually feed through to the used market and dampen price inflation. If the economic recovery continues to gather pace, demand for new vans, as opposed to used vans, could also rise.

Despite this, I’m tempted to agree with Ward’s expectations that 2014 will be another expensive year for used van buyers, as it is likely to be 18-24 months before the increase in new van registrations feeds through to the used market.

Van Registrations Up 13.1% In 2013

3 Replies

Following their surge in November, van registrations rose by 13.1% in the UK last year, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

The new figures show that 271,073 new vans were registered in the UK last year, including 20,949 in December, which represents a 32.5% increase over December 2012.

UK van and truck registrations: 2013 and % change on 2012

December % change Year-to-date % change Rolling year % change
Vans 20,949 32.5% 271,073 13.1% 271,073 13.1%
Trucks 11,351 217.2% 56,218 23.0% 56,218 23.0%
Total 32,300 66.6% 327,291 14.7% 327,291 14.7%

Data courtesy of SMMT (www.smmt.co.uk)

The biggest sector of the UK van market by far is the 2.5 – 3.5t sector, which accounted for 153,428 of the 271,073 vans registered in the UK last year, and 11% increase in registrations compared to the previous year. However, the sector that saw the largest growth was the next one down in size — there was a 27.7% increase in 2.0 – 2.5t van registrations in 2013, taking the total number registered to 39,613.

Commenting on the figures Mike Hawes, the SMMT’s chief executive, believes that there may be more good news to come in 2014:

“The 2013 commercial vehicle market rose 14.7%, making it the best performance in the last five years … van owners and operators responded positively to the wider economic recovery finishing the year more than 13% up on 2012.

The introduction of new Euro 6 trucks will be of key interest to the heavy end of the market in 2014, while we expect the forthcoming launches of several new light commercial vans to deliver further growth in this important sector.”

All-new Ford Transit 2-tonne model

The all-new Ford Transit 2-tonne model is now available to order.

One of the new vans referred to by Hawes in his comments is the all-new two-tonne Ford Transit, which is now available to order and is due to go on sale later this year.

The new Transit will, for the first time in many years, give Ford a large van with which to directly challenge the dominant Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, as well as other large models such as the Citroen Relay, Fiat Ducato and Volkswagen Crafter.

It’s easy to see why Ford has adopted the new format, as the 2.5t – 3.5t sector accounts for 55% of the vans sold in the UK, and the new model will also be suitable for sale in the US and Canada, in-line with Ford’s global vision.

However, it will be interesting to see how many tradesmen and small businesses miss the old jack-of-all-trades Transit format — Ford sold 47,507 of the 2007-13 Transit in 2013, giving the legacy model a 29% share of the overall UK market for one- and two-tonne vans.

The Transit Custom and forthcoming new Transit will have a lot to live up to.

Commercial Vehicle Manufacturing Falls 35.7% In November

Leave a reply

Another month, another dismal set of commercial vehicle manufacturing figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

UK CV manufacturing fell by 35.7% in November, compared to the same period the previous year, resulting in just 7,051 vehicles being produced. Last month’s fall takes the cumulative drop this year to 21.5% — just 82,535 commercial vehicles have been built in the UK this year:

CV manufacturing Nov-12 Nov-13 %
Change		 YTD-12 YTD-13 %
Change
Total 10,974 7,051 -35.7% 105,188 82,535 -21.5%
Home 5,343 3,673 -31.3% 45,005 38,747 -13.9%
Export 5,631 3,378 -40.0% 60,183 43,788 -27.2%
% export 51.3% 47.9% 57.2% 53.1%

Data courtesy of SMMT (www.smmt.co.uk)

The recent surge in new van and truck registrations hasn’t been reflected in the CV manufacturing figures, and isn’t likely to — most of the vans and trucks on our roads are built abroad, with the honourable exception, among volume manufacturers, of Vauxhall, whose Vivaro medium van is built at Luton, and will continue to be so when it is replaced with a new model in the near future.

Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, tried to put a positive spin on the figures:

“Ongoing weak European demand and changes to UK manufacturing operations impacted commercial vehicle production in November. While we expect the downward trend to continue for a few months yet, CV manufacturing in the UK has a solid base from which to build with more than 200 vans, trucks and buses rolling off domestic production lines every day.”

I’m not completely convinced. If people are buying more trucks and vans, but they’re not buying the ones built in the UK, what’s likely to happen next? I hope I’m wrong, obviously, but it’s not something I’d bet money on, and this graph shows why, I hope:

CV manufacturing output in UK November 2013

CV manufacturing output is now lower than it was in 2009, with no sign of any recovery.

CV manufacturing in the UK is now much lower than it was in 2009, and although it’s fair to put some of the blame on exports, it’s clear from the top line on the graph that domestic demand for home-built CVs isn’t that strong either.

All-New Ford Transit Goes On Sales As Transit Custom Wins Van of the Year

2 Replies
All-new Ford Transit 2-tonne model

The all-new Ford Transit 2-tonne model is now available to order.

The all-new Ford Transit two-tonne van is due to go on sale in the UK early in 2014, and is now available to order. Will it be as successful as the Transit Custom, which has just won the What Van? Van of the Year award for the second year running?

Don’t bet against it. Ford’s new vehicles — cars and vans — are really hitting a sweet spot at the moment, and the firm’s One Ford initiative, aimed at selling the same models in Europe and the US, is a policy that other manufacturers are starting to follow.

The big Transit is a completely new model, and will be pitched directly against other large vans, like the Sprinter and Ducato, leaving Ford’s smaller Transit Custom model to compete with smaller models like the Volkswagen Transporter and Mercedes-Benz Vito.

Ford’s two-pronged approach should enable it to compete more effectively in both the medium and large van markets than previously, when the Transit was a jack of all trades that participated in both markets.

According to Ford, the Transit ECOnetic will be able to deliver CO2 emissions from just 169g/km and fuel consumption of as little as 44mpg — impressive stuff.

Ford reckons that the new model will have best-in-class running costs and load capacity, and says that it will offer extended 2-year/30,000 mile service intervals, with just 4.2 hours of scheduled maintenance required during the first 90,000 miles — down from 5.4 hours for the outgoing model. Non-scheduled maintenance times have also been cut, according to Ford — for example, a rear brake disc replacement will take 1.3 hours, rather than the outgoing model’s deeply extravagant 2.6 hours.

The new Transit will be powered by a 2.2-litre Duratorq diesel with a choice of three power ratings (100PS, 125PS and 155PS) and a 6-speed manual transmission. The ECOnetic specification will be available up to 3.5t for the first time, and will feature Auto Start-Stop and Ford’s Acceleration Control feature, which limits the acceleration of unladen vans to avoid drivers hoofing it when empty…

Overall, the new model looks set to be a corker of a van that should be popular with van rental fleets and businesses alike — can’t wait to see how it compares to the new Sprinter.