Van Guard News

The Volkswagen Crafter has won the 2007 ‘What Van? Van of the Year’ awards. The van is the largest in the Volkswagen range and comes with either a four or five cyclinder engine and a six gear gearbox which can be changed to an automated manual transmission as an optional extra. It is also fuel efficient and has low emissions which all helped it to win this award.

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles is once again demonstrating its commitment to van buyers by launching a number of ‘off the shelf’ conversions for its Crafter range. Rather than having to purchase a vehicle and then find a converter, buyers can now take delivery of the right van for the job direct from a UK Van Centre, safe in the knowledge that the vehicle and conversion are of the highest quality and covered by a three year bumper-to-bumper warranty.

Dorset tree surgeon Stephen Evans has acquired a Mitsubishi Fuso Canter 3C13 3.5-tonner for Heritage Coast Tree Services, his Weymouth-based business.

Fitted with a purpose-built high-sided aluminium body by Musselwhite’s of Romsey into which wood can be chipped, it’s also equipped with a tool box mounted behind the cab. The box contains chainsaws and other equipment.

Volkswagen has added two high specification models to its Transporter line-up. The Sportline duo (short- or long-wheelbase) are distinguished by their colour-coded front and rear bumpers, deeper front spoiler with chrome grilles, chrome side rails, colour-coded door mirrors and door handles.

Customers after LDV’s desperately needed chassis cab version of Maxus may have to wait until 2007 before it appears in dealerships. That’s despite the fact that the Birmingham-based manufacturer has already constructed finished prototypes.

New to the exhibitor line-up at this year’s Commercial Vehicle Show will be Yuejin UK, which plans to start importing light trucks from China later this year.

The next-generation Nissan Cabstar will be badged as a Renault and sold through Renault Truck dealerships as well as through Nissan outlets. It will be marketed alongside Master and Mascott.

Sales will start during the first half of next year. Like the existing model, the new Cabstar will be produced at Nissan’s plant at Avila in Spain.

Heavy discounts on new vans will depress their second-hand value warns George Alexander, chief commercial vehicle editor at Glass’s Guide.

“When new commercial vehicle market sectors become overly competitive and incentives escalate, this has a big effect on subsequent price levels for the used product,” he warns. “For healthy residual values a well-designed new van has to be sold for its full worth.”

All warranties issued by LDV prior to the company’s slide into administration before Christmas will be honoured by the new owners, says marketing director, Steve Miller. The firm is now controlled by American finance giant Sun Capital Partners, has been renamed LDV Group, and is very much back in business, he contends.

A new franchise enterprise, Professional Car Cleaning provides a mobile car valeting service to private and corporate clients throughout the UK.
Operating from smartly liveried, 2.0-litre 69 PS SDI-engined Caddy vans, PCC franchisees have discovered how versatile Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles’ smallest van is.