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The appliance of sense

What light commercial can an operator buy which will do the job efficiently but still remain within the law? Gross vehicle weights, Operator Licensing, brake performance and the ability to carry your load the way you want to are just a few of the things to consider.

When you consider that there are 27 manufacturers supplying the UK commercial vehicle market below 7.5 tonnes, with literally hundreds of different models on offer, it's a miracle that anybody ends up with the right vehicle at all. And make no mistake, it is easy to go wrong.

What looks like the perfect choice in the showroom can soon turn into a four-wheel albatross on the road.

Part of the problem is a carry-over from the car-buying mentality — "I bought it because I liked the look of it". But when it comes to commercial vehicles, that approach just doesn't work; indeed, the opposite could be said to apply.

Renault's Master could hardly be described as one of the most attractive vans on the road. But beneath that angular body is whopping 13m3 load volume, a payload of almost 1.5 tonnes and, thanks to its front-wheel drive configuration, a particularly low loading height. The Master might look ugly, but as a workhorse it's a swan.

Considering the consequences of getting it wrong, it is vital that the new van buyer has a clear idea of what the vehicle will be doing.

While it is fair to assume that a vehicle manufacturer will have got the power-to-weight ratio about right on a van, it can't legislate for those operators who take a chassis cab, fit an oversize Luton box body to it, and then wonder why it can't do more than 80km/h on the motorway.

Worse still, it gulps fuel at an inordinate rate. The final indignity is when the engine gives up the ghost after being regularly thrashed up and down the motorway pushing the air mass equivalent to the front of a bus. Who is to blame then?

The fact is that overbodying a chassis cab, with a Luton or a tipping body, is one of the most common mistakes made by LCV buyers and one that inevitably leads to wrangles with the chassis manufacturer.

Every vehicle has a "mission" in life. And it simply isn't on to expect a 1,600cm3 petrol-engined Luton van to provide good performance and economy running from London to Glasgow every day. But try telling that to some LCV buyers.

The best way to get the right body for your vehicle is to talk to the dealer, and the more specialised the dealer the better the advice. Renault and Volkswagen, for example, both have specific light commercial dealers in the UK who can match bodywork to the chassis to the best effect.

Body conversions

Many light commercial bodybuilders work closely with vehicle manufacturers to provide approved conversions. A good example is the Ford Transit Parcel Delivery Van, or PDV. The vehicle is actually built by Dormobile, based on a Transit chassis cowl, but marketed through the Ford dealer network.

A manufacturer-approved body, or conversion, will be far better suited to the task than a back-street body fitted on the cheap. When it comes to any hassles over warranty which do you think the chassis manufacturer will come down hard on?

While we are on the subject of bodywork, remember that the quoted volume, particularly in vans, can be deceptive. Largely determined by the load platform length and interior height, the quoted figure won't reveal weirdshaped wheelarches that could well get in the way of your freight. Whatever you do, don't just look in through the rear windows; open the back and have a good poke around.

The side walls of a panel, or carderived van are invariably singleskinned, and even relatively light items, if allowed to roam around the loadbed unrestrained, can easily dent the walls affecting resale prices and providing a bridgehead for rust.

A simple remedy, on pickups and CDVs at least, is to add a contoured loadbed liner, normally made from fibreglass. Not only will a loadbed liner protect the bodywork, but it will also act as a half-height bulkhead.

While that may well solve the problem for a small light commercial, in a larger panel van, carrying heavier items, the only answer is to restrain the load, either by the use of lashing bars or load-restraint rings fitted into the floor. A number of manufacturers, including Leyland Daf, offer loadrestraint kits as an optional extra and they are well worth the investment.

For those service engineers who live out of a van, a racking system is a neat way of preventing everything ending up in a confused heap on the floor. Systems, from the likes of Bri-Stor, can even slide out, providing easy access to trays for the driver.

For really long items, such as ladders or pipework, then a roof rack may be the only solution. But don't overload them, especially those which are fixed to the body by clips on the rain gutters. Be sensible: overloading a roof rack could seriously affect vehicle handling, or, worse still, cause an accident if the load or rack breaks loose.

In recent years many light van operators looking for maximum load volumes have switched to mini-artics — regular shortwheelbase chassis cabs fitted with a fifth wheel and pulling a custom-built semi-trailer, often up to 12.2m in length. One advantage of the mini-artic is that as long as the gross train weight does not exceed 7.5 tonnes, it can be driven by a person holding a regular car driving licence.

A mini-artic operator will still need an Operators Licence, along with a CPC, if he, or she, is hauling goods for a thirdparty. And, of course, the driver will be subject to drivers hours' regulations.

Artic conditions

For those LCV buyers who want to avoid Operator Licensing, it is, however, possible to get a mini-artic pulled, for example, by a Transit chassis cab, which does not exceed the all-important 3.5-tonne breakpoint where Operator Licensing starts. A heavier vehicle, however, is likely to offer greater structural strength.

On paper, mini-artics sound a wonderful solution to a light commercial buyer looking for plenty of cube. But they are the classic example of a potential trap just waiting for the unwary to fall into.

One of the largest suppliers of miniartic combinations is Lynton Commercial Units of Manchester. Although the majority of mini-artics produced by the company are for exhibition units, it also builds a significant number for haulage work.

The mini-artic trailer can have a height of anything up to 3.2 metres, so the mini tractor pulling it must have sufficient power to be able to drag that mass through the air, especially on the motorway where wind resistance can have a serious effect on performance. Hauling a high trailer will also demand a proper air deflector kit on the tractor.

Lynton says that the most popular mini tractors for 7.5-tonne operations are the Volkswagen LT50, lveco Ford Turbo Daily 49.10 and the Renault 50 Series. But it is not simply a matter of fitting a fifth wheel to a small chassis cab and away you go. MAN VW, for example, has a strict policy on miniartics, simply to avoid a vehicle being put to the wrong use. MAN VW dealers are in direct communication with the company's application engineering department at Swindon, which can run a computer programme on a vehicle like a mini-artic, based on its likely operating environment, so the right specification is achieved.

Obviously, a mini-artic is a highlyspecialised vehicle which needs careful consideration, but many van and light commercial buyers could do well to follow through their purchase with the same meticulous attention to detail.

Even fitting the simplest piece of equipment to a vehicle can have a major effect on, for example, the warranty. A truck-mounted crane places a great deal of strain on a chassis or load platform. If properly fitted, loads will be supported through the base plate or frame. Start bending the floor pan of a new van through a badly-fitted loader and you will surely invalidate any vehicle warranty.

Every light commercial vehicle carries its own special "plate" which is usually inside the engine compartment, or fixed close to the seat or door aperture. This plate carries vital information including details of operating weights.

Although each manufacturer tends to have its own style of vehicle plate, the information on it is normally presented in the same way: Front and Rear Maximum Axle Loads; Maximum Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW); and Maximum Gross Train Weight (GTW).

The first two are straightforward enough as they refer to the maximum amount of weight that can be placed over the axle, fitted with the correct wheels and tyres. Few operators ever overload the front axle of a van or chassis cab, but you see plenty of vans with their noses up in the air where the back axle is clearly overloaded.

It is important to note that it is possible to overload the back axle of a van while still remaining within the overall Gross Vehicle Weight, or GVW, which is the overall permitted weight of the van including driver and payload.

For that reason a prospective buyer planning to carry heavy loads should make sure that the van under consideration has plenty of loading latitude, or tolerance, on the vehicle.

Moreover, while some vans may appear to have quite a high maximum payload, when that payload is uniformly distributed around the floor of the vehicle it is actually less. It would be of little satisfaction to buy a car-derived van with a quoted maximum payload of 600kg, only to find that the only way to actually carry that amount was to pile it all up against the bulkhead well ahead of the back axle.

If you're carrying bulky packages, you simply can't do it like that.

When in doubt ask for a demonstration which includes loading up with your goods. That way, you'll know for sure whether you can carry everything you want — legally. If the dealer is reluctant to help you then stop there. Any salesman who isn't interested in helping you improve your business isn't worth buying a van from.

The right weight

Finally, there is Gross Train Weight, or GTW. This refers to the maximum permissable weight of the vehicle when towing a trailer. Gross Train Weights can be anything up to 1,000kg or more above the individual Gross Vehicle Weight. For example, the GTW of the Ford Transit 190 diesel van is 4,940kg, compared to its GVW of 2,600kg.

If you plan to tow a trailer, it could have a major effect on the performance of the prime mover. Remember also that it will influence braking, and you should always check with the dealer to find out whether the GTW is for a braked or unbraked trailer. Vehicles towing trailers are also subject to lower speed limits depending on the GTW. And if your GTW exceeds 3.5 tonnes then you could need a tachograph.

Once again make sure that the vehicle you've chosen matches the trailer and vice-versa. Get it wrong, and you could either overload the prime mover's back axle or end up with a vehicle with rather unusual handling characteristics. In any case, you'll have to put up with the increased brake and tyre wear caused by towing, and if your GTW exceeds 7.5 tonnes, you'll need an HGV licence to drive it.

Talking about weight, if your van or chassis cab weighs more than 1,525kg with no payload or driver on board, it will require an annual Department of Transport vehicle inspection one year after initial registration. If its kerbweight is below 1,525kg then its first annual MoT test is required three years after initial registration. But that could change, very soon.

It's important to note that if you do come above the 1,525kg break point the vehicle will be issued with its own unique plate by the Department of Transport which has to be displayed prominently in the cab. In all events the dealer is the best person to talk over any doubts over unladen weight.

The final message is simple: It's in your best interest to end up with the right vehicle for the job. Rush into a purchase, without fully weighing up what, you want your van or chassis cab to do, and you could be wiping some very expensive egg off your face.