Manufacturer CDV rethink
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• With Ford planning the launch of its car-derived Fiesta van for April 13 (CM 30 March), other manufacturers are considering the wisdom of offering car-derived vans as opposed to box-bodied vans like the Renault Extra, Citroen Visa, or Fiat Fiorino.
The problem is that CDVs are expensive to produce, and offer very little in the way of carrying capacity.
The Renault Extra diesel costs 5.7% more than the equivalent Renault 5 CDV, yet its payload is a massive 170% greater, and its load space is 136% greater. .
Renault is now considering whether to drop the Renault 5 van from its range. Fiat does not import an Uno-based CDV, instead importing the boxy Florino and the Uno estatebased Citivan, although it too has problems in pricing the two vans. Citroen will not be importing the AX CDV, because it is uncompetitive against the Visa.
Ford has denied that it is considering a box body to go on to the back of the Fiesta (CM 23-29 March), but Commercial Motor understands that the company is working on an Escort-based van that will have a box-type body on the back instead of the Escort combi body.