1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186 
ere's to the new year
Page 72
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
The used truck sector has been busy all year and most dealers expect
more of the same in 2005. Steve Banner reports.
USED TRUCK dealers are generally optimistic about the prospects for 2005 after what has been a good year for most of them.
"I think next year will be as good as 2004, if not better, and I reckon there'll be a big jump in demand for late-registered trucks midyear," says Phil Holmes, group used sales director at Burton onTrent Scania dealership East Midland Commercials.
He predicts that hauliers who might otherwise have bought new will be tempted to go for late-registered used instead because they'll want to put off getting to grips with digital tachographs for as long as possible.
"I see no sign of the stock situation easing," Holmes adds. "We'll be getting some nice trucks coming in, but they won't be arriving in big numbers and that will be the case throughout 2005."
Independent dealer Martin Rhodes says: "People are still having to wait ages for new trucks to be delivered so there aren't the numbers of desirable part-exchanges coming into dealerships At least the situation is keeping prices forlate stuff buoyant though,and older, cheaper trucks aren't too much of a problem because the export market is so healthy."
Tony Mudd, area manager,used sales, at Hildenborough,Tonbridge, Kent-based Iveco dealership Stormont Truck & Van,reckons next year is going to be good. But he mentions the continued demand for big-cab, high-power tractor units:"It's got to be 10hp per tonne they don't want to accept less."
Salesman Ian Wildman, of Mercedes-Benz dealership Gerard Mann's Willenhall,Wolverhampton branch, says: "We've had a cracking year this year, and we're confident about 2005. In fact,we're recruiting another sales person."
But Simon Hall, sales and leasing executive at Weston on the Green, Oxfordshire-based Kel-Berg, says: " I thin.k 2005 will be quite hard initially as some operators start to panic about the WorkingTune Directive..I think it will create a lot of upset and confusion, and that could slow sales down."