hen Vauxhall launched the Movano in 1999 it was difficult
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to predict how well it would do in the shadow of the Renault Master. In what has become a very competitive market Vauxhall claims to have taken 7% of the large (2.8-3.5-tonne) van sector.
The dropside market is dominated by construction and local authorities; major buying factors include load accessibility, longevity and service costs. LDV's Pilot and Convoy have prospered as cash-strapped councils have snapped them up in their many guises.
• Nissan is also making significant inroads with its low-weight/high-payload package.
Last September Vauxhall followed in Renault's footsteps by revealing details of an "all-new" 2.2DTi common-rail engine (from Renault) to replace the 2.5D in the frontwheel-drive Movano range. While the new engine will take most of the sales, there's a
The 2.8D11 gives you plenty of engine power, but overall the Movano lacks manoeuvrability, like many CVs,
perennial market for larger-capacity engines: the 2.8-litre turbo-diesel tested here is a reliable choice which should prove popular.
Product profile
Movano chassis-cab options extend to a crewcab and medium and long wheelbases with four core conversions: box, tipper, Luton and dropside. All the chassis-cabs offer more than 1,900kg for the body/payload capacity; the crew-cabs allow a maximum of r,73okg.
Buyers can choose from three engines. As well as the outgoing 2.50 (developing 8ohp at 4,000rpm) there's the 2.2DTi common-rail 16v engine rated at 90hp at 3,65orpm and the 2.8DTi tested here, offering ir5hp at 3,600rpm with 26oNm at 1,800rpm.
The 2.8DTi Movano is fitted with a 70-litre tank—Vauxhall promises a roo-litre tank with the 2.2DTi. Optional extras include a tacho, a imA alternator, air conditioning and a PTO.
Our test vehicle had a 400kg Ingimex Fr aluminium dropside with galvanised steel headboards, removable corner posts and sideboards and metal buckles at each end.
Productivity
Dropsiders are perceived as underachievers when it comes to fuel efficiency, so we didn't expect world-beating results. After all, these vehicles are designed with tradesmen and the amenity sector in mind rather than as a commercial distribution vehicle.
We put the 2.8DTi dropside version of the 3.5-tonne Movano through its paces in the run-up to Christmas, when there was rain, wind and flooding in abundance, so we were particularly impressed by laden fuel figures that are well above average for a 3.5-tonne panel van. Round our Kent test route it returned 27.9mpg (ro.rlit/rookm), beating the new Transit's figure of 26.7mpg (CM 2026 July 2000) and the Iveco Daily's 27.5mpg (CM 13-19 July 2000).
It also beat the old style-Transit dropsider's 27mpg (CM 20-26 Aug 1998) and the Peugeot Boxer 350 LWB crew-cab's 25.9mpg 0 (CM 12-18 March 1998). The most recent dropside vehicle we tested was the Nissan Cabstar E90 (CM 21 Dec 2000-3 Jan 2001) which returned 22.8mpg.
To date the lighter LDV Pilot Pickup holds the honours in this category with 28.4mpg (CM18-24 March 1999).
But the most important competitor for the Movano is its Renault counterpart. The Master panel van returned 25mpg (CM 2-8 April 1998) while the 2.5D dropside tipper came in at 2o.8mpg, well below the 2.8DTi Movano's figure (CM 11-17 June i998).
The payload for the 3.5-tonne LWB Movano is an impressive 1.5 tonnes with a loadbed length of 3.8m. The payload eclipses the Nissan Cabstar E90 3.2-tonne pickup, which weighs out at 1,34okg.
When loading a dropsider the driver will want sides that are easy to drop with plenty of hooks for roping, and a step to facilitate access to the loadbed.
The Movano does handsomely on the first two counts but lacks a step. This leaves the driver to chose between leaping up with the side down or putting his foot on the rear wheel and hoping he doesn't trap it under the wheel arch as he scales the sideboard.
On the road
Acceleration through the gears is brisk; on the flat and in urban areas there is a tendency to hit fifth gear around the 40mph mark; on Aroads and motorways the Movano is occasionally left behind by the "must get there now" pace of today's traffic.
The gearstick is mounted on a small casing between the seats, despite the modern trend to stick it on the dash and give a walk-through floor. However, it doesn't get in the way of a passenger in the middle seat.
The box feels comfortable and working up through the box is efficient, but it borders more on slack than close fitting when it comes to gear selection. The engine can be a little too noisy for comfort when using higher revs at lower speeds when accelerating, or when using the gearbox to slow down.
This might have more to do with driving techniques, but the lack of noise during higher revs in low gears tends to entice you to change sooner rather than later. Not that this hinders the driving experience, and it does save costly fuel.
The dropside came without modernday creature comforts like ABS (an optional extra) and during the brake tests (which had to be aborted due to extreme conditions) the wheels locked up easily at 3omph. However, under normal traffic circumstances the brakes were very responsive.
Close manoeuvres around a work site might well involve one or two shunts more than you would like, but few commercial vehicles turn on a sixpence. The acid test could well be moving around the tight Safeway carpark in Mile End, east London on market day without upsetting the locals.
The forward view is excellent, as are views left and right. The only problem for taller drivers is the driver's window pillar separating it from the quarter light, which blocks the top right of the mirror. This is not particularly annoying but does stop you moving the mirror out for a better view.
Cab comfort
These days cab comfort is taken for granted. The driver's seat has enough flexibility for you to get used to the seat, but not enough to feel comfortable at the first time of asking. Vauxhall boasts that the Movano has a car-like fascia and if your car was built in the 198os they aren't far wrong.
If you're a tradesman you will appreciate the functional design of the dash but might be slightly disappointed that only the air vent will hold a pen. The document clipboard works fine but tends to let paperwork flap around, which adds to the noise.
Other storage points are far more impressive. There's a hidden tray beneath the dual passenger seat for lesser used map books, and the side door pockets are ample for odds and sods as well as that oversized hardback A-to-Z mapbook. Fit a single passenger seat and you can also opt for a lidded 50-litre box complete with a suspended filing system.
With a chassis-cab the heater traditionally comes into its own as it does not have the back of the van to heat as well. During the winter months level two is plenty enough to heat the cab and if you have time in the frosty mornings level three on just under full warmth onto the windscreen works remarkably well.
The central locking system (well, dual-door locking system on the dropside) proved tricky to hit when on the move as it sits between the reading lights above the middle of the windscreen.
Summary
Hard-pressed local authorities and the trade sector buying in fleets tend to go for a cheaper dropside because of the lowmileage/varied-volume nature of the work. But smaller and independent companies requiring a dropside will struggle to beat the Movano. It has comfort and plenty of engine power, as you might expect in a 2.8DTi, without dominating the driving experience.
It does lack manoeuvrability in tight spaces but this seems to be a common problem with vans.
It is becoming par for the course that operators are having to choose from a dwindling selection of vans as manufacturers continue to re-badge similar models. Nevertheless a thrifty fuel performance on our Kent route and good driveability make the Movano a wise investment.
• by Kevin Swallow