Laurie Dealer: Manufacturers should put foot down
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When a law is relaxed, as with Euro-5 derogation, it is often difficult to make out who is likely to be the real beneficiary.
Could it be the manufacturers, who say they don't have fields of Euro-5s ready to go? Could it be the dealers, who can get you one at the drop of a hat? Or is it the operators, who know a gift horse when they see one? Manufacturers invested heavily in developing Euro-6 technology, so pushing derogation is cutting off the nose to spite the face, yet dealer
willingly bend over to satisfy customers' Euro-5 demands lest they take their business elsewhere. Last year's UK registrations
speak volumes — more than 49,430 trucks at 6-tonne GVW and heavier, up 28.1% on 2012. Although word is that another 8,000 Euro-5 trucks will be registered under derogation this year, predictions for 2014 are grim. The best guess is 35,000 units. Take away the Euro-5s under derogation and the anticipated Euro-6 truck registrations is a bleak 27,000 units — a drop of 45%. It's a classic boom and bust, especially as manufacturers did nothing to curtail operators bringing their purchases forward. Manufacturers should have put their foot down and said no to derogation — instead there will be stagnation for at least three more years