MAN hopes dealers can boost flagging sales
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MAN-VW has reduced its psv sales force to a single sales manager based at Swindon, but says it is not pulling out of the British coach market.
The move reflects the small number of MAN coaches being sold at present, but the company says it is seeking a way to sell its products through dealerships. Discussions are taking place at present with several prospective dealers, but none has yet been appointed.
The sole psv sales manager is Richard Noy, who is responsible for coach and bus sales. The three regional coach salesmen and bus sales manager Peter Crewe were made redundant at the beginning of this month.
MAN, which won some spectacular fleet orders in 1980 when it entered the British coach market, says it still receives operator interest in its SR280 Highliner coach, the flagship of its entire British commercial vehicle range.
Luckett's Travel, based at Fareham, Hampshire, recently took delivery of the first example fitted with the optional 12-speed splitter transmission.
There are still "long-term plans" to market a rear-engined coach chassis in Britain, for bodying by independent coachbuilders. The first example was shipped to Britain last year and was subsequently taken to Spain for bodying by Ayats to the order of De Cotta Coach masters of Coventry, an importer now in liquidation.
A prototype midibus for the British market appears to have been stillborn. A Wadham Stringer Vanguard-bodied vehicle, based on the MT-Series goods chassis with a set-back front axle, was built last year, but it is now a display unit.
MAN was unable to resolve weight distribution problems with this vehicle, and there were also problems associated with its small circumference wheels.