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Import market hits used sales
Page 49
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• Competitively-priced new trucks imported independently are affecting demand for late-registered used examples, says Matt Hammond, used vehicle sales manager at West Thurrock, Essex dealership Harris Daf.
"We had a Daf 95XF Super Space Cab tractor in stock that was less than two years old," he says. "The price difference between that and a new one from ourselves was f2 o ,o o o, but the difference between that and a new import was £12,000.
"That's proving narrow enough to persuade some customers to go for the import," he reports.
At the other end of the weight scale, Hammond is happy to stock anything at 7.5 tonnes that doesn't have a box body.
"For every used 7.5-tonne dropside in the Daf network, there must be 30 with box bodies," he contends.
At 18 tonnes, however, it doesn't matter what the body is, he says. "Daf 65 Series will sell all day long regardless," he remarks.
Returning to tractors, there's a shortage of desirable used 4x2s, Hammond says—not surprising given the number of new 6x25 sold in recent years. "in a way it's surprising that 4x25 are so popular in our area given the number of con tainer hauliers running at 44 tonnes on six axles, but that's the way it is," he comments. Mike Curtis, used truck sales manager at Daf dealership Watts Gloucester, is also finding that demand for late, low-mileage used trucks is being blunted, not so much by imports, but by the competitive prices of new trucks on offer through official channels. "There are certainly no big margins on second-hand vehicles at the moment," he remarks. More specialised trucks will sell, however.
"We've done well with multiwheeler tippers with muckaway bodies," he comments. "It's the same with skip wagons and anything with a crane."
Graham Precious, used sales manager at Mercedes-Benz dealership H&L Garages, says that buyers of second-hand tractors are being very specific about their requirements.
"They want around tohp per tonne, so it's 43ohp to 46ohp at 44 tonnes, and 400hp at 40 tonnes," he says.
The low prices commanded by older tractors are causing difficulties when operators attempt to trade them in, says Precious.
"We're dealing with people with N and P registered Scanias who think they're worth f7,000 to I9,000 as a trade-in, and are shocked to discover their true value may be as low as £3,500. That means they have M borrow more money to get the truck they want," he adds.