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Ford edges back

12th July 1986, Page 9
12th July 1986
Page 9
Page 9, 12th July 1986 — Ford edges back
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

• A major sales recovery by Ford last month has pushed Mercedes-Benz back into third place in the UK truck market for the first six months of the year.

Figures just released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show Leyland still comfortably ahead in a market down by 1.2% from 28,575 trucks over 3.5 tonnes to 28,233 this year. Its share is up from 15.3% in the first half of 1985 to 17.5%, with its registrations up by 12.5%.

Ford, which lost its longheld dominance over Leyland at the beginning of this year, has regained lost share by registering 1,113 trucks last month, 400 more than in June 1985.

Its market share is down from 17% in the first half of last year to 15.1% this year, but it is back in second place ahead of Mercedes-Benz, which has boosted its market share from 11.6% to 13.7%.

Mercedes' surprise rise to second place in the market in April and May is attributed in part to market resistance to the Ford/Iveco and Leyland/ Bedford uncertainty, and is acknowledged by Mercedes as a freak.

Theoretically, the Iveco Ford merger on July I would add lveco's 3.4% (1985: 3.6%) half-year share to push Leyland back into second place, but many industry observers suspect it will be hard to sustain that.

Bedford's fast declining fortunes are underlined by its collapse from 12.1% to 9.7%, only just ahead of Volvo with 8.6% (1985: 9%) and Renault/ Dodge with 7.9% (1985: 9.5%).

They are followed by Daf with 5.7% (1985: 5.5%), MAN-VW with 5.3% (1985: 2.8%) a rise boosted by early year registrations of TNT newspaper delivery vans and Scania also boosted by TNT newspaper trucks with 5% (1985: 5.1%).

Of the four smaller British manufacturers, Seddon Atkinson managed to secure 2.9% (1985: 3%), ERF got 2.7% (1985: 3%), Foden 1.2% (1985: 1%) and Dennis 0.8% (1985: 0.9%).

Van registrations for the half-year are up significantly, in the case of the sector up to 1.8 tonnes GVW from 48,316 last year to 50,374, but in the 1.8 to 3.5 tonnes sector they are down from 65,246 to 52,962.

In the lighter sector, Bedford's Rascal and Astra/Astramax ranges have pushed it up into second place with 25.7% (1985: 19.7%), ahead of Austin Rover with 22.8% (1985: 24.6%), but behind Ford's 26.5% (1985: 33.3%).

In the heavier van sector, Ford's Transit affected by supply difficulties secured 36.5% of the market (1985: 34.2%).

Bus and coach registrations are down 11.7% from 1,693 to 1,494.

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