1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190 
Does the public want what the public gets?
Page 12
Page 13
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
CM'S views on the new products on show are all well and good — but it's the buyers who decide success. We've been asking their views.
Seddon Atkinson
THE BIG 'A' has got a new breath of fresh air with the introduction of the R5 Strato rigid. Two ROC Gases driver trainers, Michael Webb and Charlie Marshall were suitably impressed by the new model.
Webb's first impression was that it looks like a good product, especially the interior, and is a big improvement on its predecessor. While the actual spec on the stand wasn't to his liking, especially the under-run bar in front of the front axle, he felt it would sell well. Marshall also praised the Eaton transmission fitted to the show vehicle.
William Phippen runs RW Loxton, a tanker haulage company near Frome. Somerset, and while he runs only tractors, he seemed impressed by the vehicle. "The new cab has got to be better than the old one. They have no complaints about the build quality so they should be alright. It's definitely the Cargo cab. but saying that there is nothing wrong with that," he added.
VW Caddy
VISITORS TO THE Volkswagen stand had their first close up of the new Caddy and the general opinion seems to be good bordering on impressed. Many punters were threatening to dig deep and add them to their fleet while others wished they were simply in a position to buy one.
Steve Cranshaw, LCV project manager for Leaseplan UK, thinks the Caddy has a very bright future. "It's certainly long awaited-when the Ford Connect came along it challenged the established vehicles.But the Caddy should give the Connect a run for its money.
As a company, Leaseplan UK handles 11,000 CVs, with 45% of that accounted for by car-derivedvans.While VW's Caddy doesn't account for many of those, Cranshaw believes the company will be considering increasing its Caddy fleet.
Residuals are an important factor for Cranshaw's business, and he thinks the Caddy will score here. "They have addressed all the areas to keep other manufacturers on their toes. They have done a smashing job; it's got good payload,it looks robust and I think it will do well."
Kevin Fennell of Warwickshire County Council has put it on his wish list. He works as a street lighting engineer and usually drives a Ford Transit. "It looks modern, and Volkswagen has a very good reputation.TheTDI engine is very good on fuel economy and emission levels," he said.The latter two points are big issues for council buying policies.
Fennell was impressed by the dash's practical design and although it was fairly plain, he reckoned it looked durable. Plenty of headroom,good mirrors and the new square-shaped loading space also caught his attention.
But the rental market could be a more likely destination for the Caddy. with it being an obvious competitor for the Ford Connect and Citrodn Dispatch. David Orritt, managing director for County Car and Van Hire in Stockport believes the new Caddy "looks like a good package".
Orritt has 500 vehicles on his rental fleet with 60 car derived vans — mainly Renault Kangoo and Connect products which he off-loads after 18 months to keep the fleet fresh. Like Cranshaw, strong residuals are an important factor in purchasing decisions, as well as good network support.
"It looks good. Clients will be pleased as it has car-like standards,he said, "it looks a bit like a mini-Transporter, and a bit more functional than its predecessor."
He added that even though fuel economy wasn't really an issue for him, it is for his clients. "If they find it is thirsty then they won't be back, it's a competitive sector." he said.
Other show-goers, though, had more specific requirements, and one man CM spoke to believed VW's decision to increase load volume will mean it becomes more popular as a service vehicle. Simon Galloway. who runs Galloway Vehicles Services, a municipal and lease company in London, was busy looking for a definite price tag as he decides between the Caddy and a Connect.
"It seems competitively priced with the Connect, but if they were the same price I'd go for the Caddy," he said, like the twin doors, but they are not standard. I prefer two side doors and a rear door and the hatchback version so you can keep dry when it's raining," he said.
"The interior has plenty of room and plenty of personal space I like the tray overhead for maps and paperwork. It's a practical. user-friendly design, even with dirty mitts." He left the stand very impressed.
New LDV
The new LDV van launch has been a drawn out process. Problems with the demise of Daewoo and then negotiations with its creditors have conspired to delay it. But it was finally unveiled at this week's CV show amid a fanfare of smoke. girls and music and created enough interest to attract a decent crowd.
A new British CV is always an event but this one seemed more eagerly anticipated than most. It's make or break time for the company and anything less than a finally tuned piece of engineering will not suffice against new offerings from Mercedes. Volkswagen and established favourites such as the Vauxhall Movano.
Both the short and long-wheelbase models looked attractive, most agreed. Roger Barton. an LDV dealer from Newcastle, said: "I've been selling LDVs for over 15 years now and the new vehicle has given the range a fresh injection. It's been a long time coming but it looks right up-to-date.1 really like the styling: it's not too futuristic to make it look overly modern but it still has presence."
However, Chris Ryder from Newtown vehicle rentals was less optimistic: "While buying British would be nice, LDV would have to do some serious convincing if we were to consider purchasing it." And little information in the way of residuals also increases the task that LDV faces, he adds. Greg Townsend, a transport engineer from Hull told CM: "Anything could be better than the current range. It looks good but their biggest task will be engineering.That will make or break them." •