• Most Bedford dealers we spoke to were not surprised by the announcement, nor particularly downhearted.
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"The future of Bedford has been a question mark for a few weeks now," said Bob Picking, managing director of Bolton-based dealers, Kirkby Central. "I am just relieved that an announcement has been made at last. The hints in the press have not been good for sales of the product range as a whole and obviously operators need to be informed of the situation."
In common with many other Bedford dealers Kirkby Central sells the manufacturer's light van range alongside the commercial vehicles and belief in the strength of the van franchise is evident.
The current level of sales of the Astra and Midi vans seems to be very healthy and the latest addition of the Rascal microvan has been accepted well by operators. "The van side is buoyant and should stay that way for the foreseeable future," said one dealer, who did not wish to be named.
Dealers generally felt Bedford's wind-down of truck production was inevitable. Many pointed to the gross overcapacity of commercial vehicle manufacturers and the change in the market place.
For some dealers the poor sales performance of Bedford's TL chassis range has softened what could have been a bitter blow. Picking echoed the comments of others when he said, "Losing the TL range is no great loss. It was so heavily subsidised by Bedford that our profits "Losing the TL range is no great loss," says Bob Picking.
have been minimal."
Disappointment was strongly expressed that the General Motors' takeover bid for British Leyland was thwarted earlier in the year. "That would have been the best answer to the problem," said Picking, "but interference from some MPs meant it didn't come off. The decision to phase out truck production was the only solution left."