GERARD NL4NN 11* Birmingham Mercedes-Benz dealer Gerard Mann has taken
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over the Neachalls Hall Garage Mercedes operation in Wolverhampton and will have at least 20 second-hand trucks and vans in stock, says sales manager David Morgan.
Despite talk of recession, there's still demand for second-hand 7.5 and 17-tanners, he says. "Finding good-quality 17-tonners is a problem though," he admits. "Light CVs account for 70% of what we do—there's still a lot of demand for the old T1, and for Sprinter 312s. Luton-bodied Sprinters are in short supply."
PIP BAYLEY
The Pip Bayley Truck Centre of Blunham, Bedfordshire, has become a Scania service dealer under Derek Jones Commercials. On the Ridgeway Industrial Park, it's open 07:30hrs to 18:00hrs Mondays to Fridays, and 07:30hrs to 13:00hrs on Saturdays.
VAN SALES + Light commercial manufacturers and dealers may be tumbling into the same trap as their heavy truck counterparts, warns Alex Wright, in charge of light CV sales countrywide at the ICA/CMA/NCA auction group. "There's a lot of over-optimism in the van market at present when it comes to setting residuals," he says. Car dealers who also happen to sell vans are especially guilty, he claims. "They don't appreciate that a light CV that's done 20,000 miles over 12 months, say, isn't going to come back to them in the same state as a car on that mileage."
Van makers have also been guilty of pre-registering vehicles to boost market share artificially, he contends. "Dealers are sitting on them, and gradually filtering them into the market."
KEE.BERG • The strong pound may be causing used truck exporters to So what's the catch? There isn't one, says Hall. The vehicles are protected by the factory warranty, although you won't benefit from any special additional warranty packages offered by British importers and dealers.
Anybody tempted to do their own importing should beware of the complicated paperwork. "It takes up to six months to sort out, and is our biggest headache," says Hall.