{"id":9791,"date":"2017-05-03T14:56:17","date_gmt":"2017-05-03T14:56:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/?p=9791"},"modified":"2017-05-03T14:59:51","modified_gmt":"2017-05-03T14:59:51","slug":"new-vans-and-photo-highlights-from-the-cv-show-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/archives\/9791","title":{"rendered":"New vans and photo highlights from the CV Show 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Commercial Vehicle Show at the\u00a0Birmingham NEC is one of\u00a0the biggest events of the year\u00a0for UK van operators.\u00a0I went along last week on behalf of vanrental.co.uk to find out what was new in the van world in 2017.<\/p>\n

Here’s my\u00a0roundup of new and unusual van models — plus a few others — from this year’s CV Show<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Peugeot had a sizeable stall at the NEC\u00a0and was showing a number of vans in well-known liveries. This Royal Mail Partner Trek model\u00a0has raised ground clearance and is available with an electronic limited slip differential to provide additional traction on muddy tracks and the like:<\/p>\n

\"Peugeot

Peugeot Partner Trek in Royal Mail livery at CV Show 2017<\/p><\/div>\n

Over on the LDV stand, the vans on display bore clear traces of the DNA of the little-lamented LDV Maxus.<\/p>\n

However, LDV is now owned by Chinese firm SAIC and is targeting the value end of the market.\u00a0A basic V80 SWB model starts from about \u00a313,200 according\u00a0or \u00a3168 per month, according to the My LDV website<\/a>. By way of contrast,\u00a0the current Ford\u00a0Transit starts at \u00a323,120 +VAT… Could be worth a look if you’re on a budget:<\/p>\n

\"LDV

The LDV V80 at the CV Show. An all-electric model will also be available shortly. At \u00a310k less than a Ford Transit, these could gain traction in the UK market.<\/p><\/div>\n

Most tipper vans sold in the UK are full-size 3.5t models.\u00a0But\u00a0companies such as converter Ingimex believe there is a market for smaller models, such as this Volkswagen Transport tipper conversion:<\/p>\n

\"Volkswagen

Volkswagen Transport Ingimex tipper at CV Show 2017<\/p><\/div>\n

Renault didn’t bring along any of its trucks, but the\u00a0French\u00a0firm did have a big display of LCVs at\u00a0the CV Show, including\u00a0a\u00a0the UK debut of the Master Z.E. electric van and a rare chance to see the forthcoming Alaska pickup.<\/p>\n

\"Renault

Renault Alaska pickup at the CV Show 2017<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Renault

This F1 car provided an impressive centrepiece for Renault’s CV Show stand.<\/p><\/div>\n

The F1 theme continued with the launch of the new Renault Formula Edition trim level for its Kangoo, Trafic and Master vans.\u00a0Like the Ford Transit Sport models, with which they will compete,\u00a0the differences lie in aesthetic details and\u00a0upgraded\u00a0kit levels. The engines will\u00a0be the same as those found in the\u00a0standard vans:<\/p>\n

\"Renault

The new Renault Trafic Formula Edition model was launched at the CV Show.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Renault

The new 100% electric Renault Master ZE was unveiled at the CV Show. It promises a range of up to 124 miles and should be on sale by the end of this year.<\/p><\/div>\n

Over on the Vauxhall stand, the firm’s concept\u00a0race van\u00a0Vivaro<\/a> was on display, fitted out with a tasty selection of conversion kit:<\/p>\n

\"Vauxhall

This Vauxhall Vivaro race van concept is designed to carry a single motorcycle plus provide workshop facilities and some creature comforts for the rider\/mechanic. Some nice kit is evident — a Waeco fridge, Sortimo racking plus what looks like an expensive Victron inverter.<\/p><\/div>\n

A steady stream of visitors were keen to scale the heights to the cab of MAN’s new\u00a0TGX XXL long-haul tractor unit.\u00a0But\u00a0for most of us, the closest we’ll come to driving a MAN is\u00a0getting behind the\u00a0wheel of the firm’s first can, the MAN TGE.<\/p>\n

Along with its stablemate<\/a> the\u00a0new Volkswagen Crafter, the TGE was one of the\u00a0top launches at the show:<\/p>\n

\"MAN

The new MAN TGE van was on display at the CV Show 2017<\/p><\/div>\n

\"MAN<\/p>\n

\"MAN

The MAN TGE was also on display in crew cab dropside format.<\/p><\/div>\n

Moving on to the Volkswagen stand, the TGE’s sibling, the new\u00a0Crafter, was on display. It’s an important model for VW, as this new\u00a0model is an in-house design, rather than\u00a0a re-engined version of the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter (Mercedes, by the way, was conspicuously absent from the CV Show).<\/p>\n

\"The

The new Volkswagen Crafter at the CV Show 2017<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Inside

Inside the cab of the new Crafter: it’s unmistakeably a Volkswagen<\/p><\/div>\n

Over at Toyota, a range of new\u00a0factory-approved conversions were on display, including this Hilux Tipper:<\/p>\n

\"Toyota

Toyota was showcasing its new range of Trade Plus and Authorised Converter models. Seen here is the Hilux Tipper in Europcar colours. Will any of these feature on Europcar’s UK van rental fleet?<\/p><\/div>\n

And now for something completely different.\u00a0Auction\u00a0and\u00a0remarketing group Manheim\u00a0was\u00a0at the CV Show and had something very special\u00a0on their stand. The high-tech Spy Van\u00a0was owned by HMRC and used — presumably — to spy on\u00a0potential tax dodgers until 2014.<\/p>\n

In 2015, Manheim’s LCV specialist James Davis took possession of the van and decided to restore it to its former glory<\/a> before auctioning the Spy Van\u00a0for charity to raise funds for the Alzheimers Society.<\/p>\n

Here are some photos of the finished result — on Monday 22nd May, the Spy Van will be sold at Manheim Auctions Shepshed without reserve. So if you’re interested in making a bid,\u00a0there’s still time.<\/p>\n

\"The

The Spy Van is a former HMRC undercover vehicle. Fitted with a range of high-tech kit (see below) it’s been restored by Manheim LCV expert James Davis and will go under the hammer to raise funds for Alzheimers Society on 22 May 2017.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Inside

Inside The Spy Van. Tech specs included three charging circuits and front windscreen wipers that could be controlled from the rear in order to keep the view clear for the van’s spy cameras!<\/p><\/div>\n

Last but not least, no CV Show visit would be complete without a few tasty classics, so here are some of the highlights from 2017.<\/p>\n

Citroen’s\u00a0immaculately-restored Type H van drew a lot of admiring glances. This classic was made from 1947 until 1981, so the model celebrates its 70th anniversary this year. This\u00a0le coq sportif<\/em> model has been fitted out as a bicycle workshop and will be used as a promotional vehicle for\u00a0cycling events in France.<\/p>\n

\"Citroen<\/p>\n

Back in the day (c.1986), this DAF 2800 Turbo would have been a top-of-the-range long haul truck.\u00a0The TIR plate suggests this model saw plenty of European work in the days before open borders….\u00a0(post Brexit, will hauliers be dusting off their TIR plates once more?)<\/p>\n

\"DAF<\/p>\n

This E.M. Rogers Volvo F12 is of a similar vintage, but\u00a0the high roof\u00a0and Scandinavian quality would\u00a0have made it an even more desirable steed:<\/p>\n

\"EM

E.M. Rogers Volvo F12 at CV Show 2017<\/p><\/div>\n

Finally, it’s not a\u00a0van but\u00a0it would probably have outdriven\u00a0anything else at the show.\u00a0A 1980s Palletforce Ford Escort rally car in all its glory:<\/p>\n

\"Palletforce

This 1980s Palletforce Ford Escort rally car was on display at the CV Show 2017.<\/p><\/div>\n

That’s about it for this year.\u00a0I hope you’ve enjoyed my photo highlights from this busy show. Roll on 2018…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As the dust settles from the 2017 Commercial Vehicle Show at the Birmingham NEC, we publish our photo highlights from a day at the show.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":9808,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[8],"tags":[2050],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9791"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9791"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9791\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9820,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9791\/revisions\/9820"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9808"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9791"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9791"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanrental.co.uk\/vanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9791"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}