THE fleet industry's top manufacturers have said that they will not be changing warranties in the foreseeable future following Rover's decision to offer three-year/60,000-mile warranty cover for its new 75 flagship model. Mercedes also unveiled a three-year unlimited mileage warranty, replacing its former 12-month cover package.

Despite these moves, and hints from Rover that the extended warranty could also be introduced to more of the range when the face-lifted 200 and 400 models go on sale early next year, the key fleet manufacturers are sticking to one year's cover. Of Ford, Vauxhall, Renault, Peugeot and Volkswagen, only VW offers a warranty package of over 12 months.

The news from Rover and Mercedes has not brought about any sign of a change of heart. A Ford spokesman, for example, said: 'It's one year and that's the way it is staying' while the comment at Vauxhall was: 'There are no immediate plans to change anything. It's something we will be monitoring, but that's as far as it goes.'