VAUXHALL is offering bonuses of up to £1,000 on Vectra, £1,500 on Omega and £1,800 on Astra diesel in reponse to Ford's recently unveiled bonus programme. The offers apply to smaller fleets on pre-97 model year cars.

Montereys built before 1996 attract a £3,000 bonus. A Vectra sold to a VAT-registered business with a fleet of fewer than 99 cars attracts a £500 bonus, with Omega, Monterey and Calibra being backed with £1,000 each. Other pre-97 bonuses include £1,200 on petrol Astras, and £1,000 on Fronteras. 'We do not encourage these bonus schemes,' said a Vauxhall spokesman. 'This is purely tactical in response to competitive market conditions.'

The news follows Ford's decision to shift stocks of Escort, Scorpio and Galaxy with rumoured bonuses of up to £2,000 plus VAT on Scorpio. At the time of the move, the market leader was rumoured to have more than 20,000 pre-97 Escorts unsold.