Leyland tops the ot
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A LAST MINUTE rush to have vehicles registered before type approval started on April 1 boosted Leyland's commercial vehicle sales figures into first place in March. It sold nearly 140 vehicles more than Ford.
It captured 19.5 per cent of the over-3.5 tonne sector last month, against only 8.9 per cent in March 1982. The company was badly affected by a strike in February last year.
While Leyland acknowledges that the pre-type approval rush will not be repeated, it is nonetheless confident that its sales are climbing and reports "good customer response" to the lightweight Freighter models.
Ford is equally confident that its sales will climb again, and was unaffected by the type approval panic as its complete range has been type approved for some months.
A better picture can be built up from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders' total figures for the first quarter of 1983, where sales have risen in the over-3.5 tonne sector from 12,111 last year to 12,896. British manufacturers' share has fallen from 73.7 to 69.8 per cent.
Ford held on to market Hargreaves Quarries of Pickering, North Yorkshire has added a Leyland Constructor 30-ton four-axle tipper to its fleet. it is powered by a Rolls Royce 12-litre 198kW (265bhp) turbocharged engine and drives through a Spicer SST10 gearbox. Horde rubber suspension, aluminium wheels and fuel tank are specified to save weight.
leadership, but with its share down from 28 to 19 per cent, while Leyland regained second place from Bedford, with sales up from 10.5 to 16.3 per cent. Bedford's share fell from 13.2 to 11.3 per cent.
Mercedes-Benz is climbing fast, up from seven to 10.3 per cent, ahead of Karrier's 9.5 per cent (1982: 10.3pc) and Volvo's 7.1 per cent (1982: 11 per cent).
The Ford Transit remains ahead of other medium/heavy vans, with 38.4 per cent of the 30,021 sales in the sector. The P100 pick-up imported from South Africa boosted Ford's sales by another 6.7 per cent, although it is still short of the freak 48 per cent won by the Transit alone in the same period last year.
BL can take added comfort from the Freight Rover Sherpa still without a 3.5 tonner to compete with other vans in the sector beating Bedford into third place and increasing its market share from nine to 11.3 per cent. Major fleet orders have helped here.
Bedford's share, including its KB pick-up from Japan, rose slightly from 10 to 10.1 per cent. Ford is market leader in the light van sector, up from 31 to 34.2 per cent, and Land Rover is well ahead in the light 4x4 sector, with sales up from 51/1 to 59.7 per cent of a much enlarged market.