Mercedes boosts 1834 residuals posai of so many Mercedes 1834
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tractive units at auction has hit their second-hand value, according to MercedesBenz used sales director John Bissettbut he aims to do something about it. "By carefully retailing them ourselves we've managed to improve residuals by around 22,000," he reports. "To retail them successfully though you've got to offer funding packages, a good warranty and a second-life repair-and-maintenance contract. With all that in place, a two-year-old 1834 is a good truck to lea se for three years."
Back in March Mercedes moved its used-truck business from the Midlands to its site at Wentworth Park, Barnsley. "Since then it's been bubbling along nicely," says Bissell.
As well as retailing vans and trucks, Bissett and his team are busy wholesaling vehicles into the Mercedes network; Mercedes is developing a used-truck franchise along the lines of lveco Ford's Mega Dealers concept, Bissett explains. "The aim is for at least 10 dealersiips to take it on," he adds.
The operation has sold 20 Actros demonstrators to date, and still had a dozen in stock at the time of writing. "We've been delighted with the prices they've been fetching," he says. Wentworth Park is continuing to export trucks worldwide, despite the strength of sterling and the economic problems being experienced by some overseas markets. "We convert some of them to left-hand drive and still make a margin," says. Bissett. "At the more price-sensitive end of the market we simply move the steering wheel."