Late '95' deliveries hit Leyland Daf's market bid
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• Delivery delays on Leyland Dafs new 95 Series look like affecting the company's bid to finish 1987 at the top of the truck market above 3.5 tonnes.
Over the past few months Leyland Daf and its arch-rival Iveco Ford have been running neck-and-neck on sales of trucks and artics above 3.5tonnes GVW. In October Leyland Daf took the top spot by just 14 vehicles, but production problems at Dots Eindhoven truck assembly plant have been affecting the delivery times of right-hand-drive 95 Series trucks. Leyland Daf marketing director Chris ThorneycroftSmith says the delivery times are "longer than we could like. The delivery situation hasn't been to the required level."
The problem over the supply of some components is now being resolved, and backlogs "are being caught up" — but it is "unlikely" that Leyland Daf will finish 1987 at the top of the trucks and artics sector.
Even so, Thorneycroft-Smith predicts that the gap between the two rivals will be very close and says that Leyland Daf is "very pleased" with its current position.
"While it's good to be on top, at the end of the day we've got to be profitable. It's all very well being number one, but you've got to be number one and profitable — otherwise you can't spend enough on research and development."
Leyland Dots parent company, Daf By, spends around 5% of its annual turnover on R&D, says ThorneycroftSmith. This equates to around £50 million. The company says that response from operators to the 95 Series has also been "very good".
All the dealers in Leyland Dafs UK network have now been nominated and should be operating by the new year, barring a short period of runout from previous Leyland and Daf dealers who have not been awarded LD franchises. The majority of dealers which have not been absorbed into the new dealer network have been paid compensation, but LD will not say how much. • Daf Trucks is to boost the amount of money it spends in Britain on UK components.