At a recent Mercedes-Benz van experience day, a demonstration of the effectiveness of their ESP system pitted a single wheel Sprinter against a twin wheel Ford Transit. You would expect the traction of the extra wheels to make a difference, but the Sprinter appeared to outperform the Transit. Look at the top of the roofs and you will see which one is moving around more….
Read moreArchive for June, 2011
Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Vs Ford Transit Luton in Slalom Test
Thursday, June 30th, 2011
Mercedes-Sprinter demonstrates Importance of Correct Tyres
Thursday, June 30th, 2011In this clip there are four vans, one with new ‘budget’ tyres, apparently bought on Ebay for £65 a set, a second with a set of ‘premium’ tyres, but just on the legal limit for tread, the third with tyre pressures all over the place and the last with new, properly inflated Continentals on.
Read moreMercedes-Benz Vito Skid test – with and without ESP
Thursday, June 30th, 2011You aren’t able to turn off the ESP from a Mercedes Vito – unless you are Mercedes-Benz, of course. At a recent Mercedes-Benz Van Experience day on Prodrive’s Warwickshire test circuit the company put together an excellent demonstration of the effectiveness of the ESP safety system, originally developed by Mercedes back in 1995 for their passenger cars and mandatory from 2014 in the UK.
BCA BRIDGWATER Monster Van Sale
Tuesday, June 28th, 2011This could be a great chance for a good deal on a van. On Friday 1st July, British Car Auctions, is holding a huge sale of vans this at its Bridgwater Auction Centre. Local Auction Manager, Gareth Musgrove, is urging businesses who might be thinking of getting a new van to make the most of the opportunity, as supply of commercial vehicles traditionally dries up in the Summer months.
Read moreVauxhall Luton Celebrates Vivaro Manufacturing Deal with a Sign
Friday, June 24th, 2011
A new Vauxhall Griffin logo has reared its head over the company’s Vauxhall Vivaro manufacturing plant in Luton. The factory has recently been awarded the contract to build the new model short-wheel based Vivaro from 2013. Also worth celebrating are the increasing sales of the Vivaro van – by the end of May, Vivaro sales in the UK year-to-date were up 61.3 per cent year-on-year.
Financing New Vans
Friday, June 24th, 2011An interview with Gary Leitch, Managing Director, Lombard Corporate Asset Finance
Vanlocator: These are tough times for van operators – what are Lombard doing to help the cash-strapped van buyer?
Despite the economic downturn, Lombard remains committed to providing asset finance to businesses making van purchases.
Vanlocator: How has the market changed over the last few years?
Where hire purchase, finance lease and operating lease have remained the mainstream products, the more traditional hire purchase is generally favoured by smaller companies while owner/operators with bigger fleets have opted for operating lease. Smaller companies should not however overlook the advantages of van leasing, as there are many associated benefits that the business can capitalise on.
Vanlocator: Why are so many now interested in leasing a new van?
A lease can minimise the ownership risk by taking responsibility for the management costs associated with ownership as well for the disposal of the vehicle. A lease can free up cash that may be needed elsewhere in the business and that can be used to fund growth. It can also open up additional credit lines by acting as an extra facility that uses the financial value of your business’ assets to complement cash resources and existing bank credit lines, such as overdraft facilities. Funds can be delivered efficiently and because we operate a standardised credit procedure based exclusively on the assets being funded our customers find our credit decision process prompt.
GK Chesterfield’s Peak Ford Transit
Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011
It makes sense for a mountain rescue team to have a four-wheel-drive vehicle. It was the flexibility of the Ford Transit that won over the volunteers of the Buxton Mountain Rescue Team.
Used Van Prices Back on the Up
Tuesday, June 21st, 2011According to commercial vehicle auction specialists, BCA, used van prices bounced back strongly in May following the disruption caused by the combination of increasing fuel costs, the late Easter, the Royal nuptials, and the hottest April on record.
Figures for May show that average values climbed to £4,218 after dipping to a seventeen month low of £3,969 in April. Sold volumes also climbed – by 6.7% – but have a long way to go to fully recover from the 31% fall recorded between March and April. All three sectors – fleet & lease, dealer part-exchange and nearly-new – saw values improve during May.
Read moreNissan have updated their Nissan NV200 van and Combi
Monday, June 20th, 2011Nissan have upgraded the specification of their NV200 vans with a new power output – 110hp joins the existing 85hp model. The whole range gets Nissan’s Bluetooth system -even the ‘e’ grade. The se grade get a reversing camera as standard – aircon remains an option, however. There is also a new n-tech version [...]
Read moreFIAT VANS RIDE L.E.Z. WAVE
Saturday, June 18th, 2011
Fiat have launched a series of special finance packages for van operators effected by January’s impending L.E.Z. restrictions for vans. The main feature of the package is a six-month payment holiday, which in many cases will allow the vehicle to be used with no capital repayment until the L.E.Z.charges come in to place on 3 January 2012.
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