MORE than 20,000 Mercedes light commercials were sold in the UK last year, an all-time record for the manufacturer giving it 13.3% of the 1.8-3.0-tonne sector by the middle of December. That was up from 12.5% in the previous year end, and it's a performance Mercedes expects to improve upon in 1999.

A spokesman for the company said: 'Vito was the star performer, selling 4,000-plus units into a new market for us. Vario was solid throughout the year and Sprinter was just fantastic. We expect to see even more growth this year.' The one major change lined up for 1999 is a common rail diesel engine for the Vito this spring, with details expected to be announced at the Brussels Motor Show next week. The Vito is also to be fitted with new split doors.

A city van based on the A-class MPV is under development, following European Union approval of a DM219 million grant to DaimlerChrysler, although the first batch is not due off the German factory line until 2001.