Truck boom goes on
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• Demand for commercial vehicles continues to boom, with registrations up 16% this year, confounding most of the manufacturers' predictions of near zero growth in 1988.
Of the major heavy truck manufacturers only Renault has suffered a fall in demand this year; down 7.1% on registrations of 731 trucks in the first two months of the year.
Most other manufacturers have enjoyed considerable growth. Iveco Ford, for example, has registered 2,324 trucks so far this year, up more than 64% on the 1,411 it registered in January and February last year. This puts Iveco Ford at the top of the truck sales league, ahead of Leyland Daf which has enjoyed a more modest 10.9% increase in registrations to 2,131 trucks.
In third place is MercedesBenz, which has seen sales jump 21.5% to 1,523 this year. Fourth place Volvo has fared even better, boosted by a sales increase of almost 30% to Iveco Ford's Gibb Grace says the figures so far this year are very good, but the company doubts if total registrations for trucks during 1988 will increase by more than 5%, warning that a number of factors such as the budget could have a marked effect on the truck market during the rest of the year.
Leyland Daf says it is currently happy with its market position, and claims that delivery problems for certain models, including the new 95 Series, are being overcome.
The biggest increases in reg istrations have been enjoyed by the smaller truck builders. Foden, for example, has recorded a 126% increase in registrations in the first two months of the year to 204 trucks. Nearby ERF is maintaining the progress it achieved last year with a 77% increase in registrations to 595 so far this year, putting the company ahead of Scalia in the truck sales league.
In the market for panel vans and light commercial above 1.8 tonnes, Ford continues to dominate with the Transit. Registrations of the Transit are up almost 23% so far this year, to 11,227 vehicles.
The other manufacturers in this sector are experiencing widely fluctuating fortunes. Freight Rover remains second with 2,512 registrations of its Sherpa — but this is down 8.5% on this time last year.
Bedford, now IBC vehicles, has seen its market position fall from third to fifth, with registrations down almost 20% to 1,397. The company has been overtaken by Renault, with 1,937 registrations and Nissan's 1,784 registrations.