Renault seeks clarity with trim/price drop

Fleet confusion is behind Renault’s decision to reduce its model versions by a third to three core trim levels, with a corresponding drop in P11D prices.

The announcement of the changes, which take effect in January, will see average prices fall by 5% in line with the new trims: Expression, Dynamique TomTom and GT Line TomTom.

“It was too complicated – the models didn’t sit within a hierarchy,” said fleet and commercial vehicle operations director Darren Payne. “Now they do.”

The price reductions are also part of an attempt to bring the list price closer to the transaction price while providing P11D tax benefits to fleet drivers.

More than £1,000 has been lopped off the Megane Hatch Dynamique TomTom 1.4 TCe 130, for example, reducing the price to £17,500, while the Grand Espace Dynamique TomTom 2.0 dCi 150 drops £2,050 to £26,550.

Payne calls it the “remaining piece of the jigsaw” in a year that has seen the company overhaul its fleet set-up.

Personnel changes and new initiatives, such as the Renault Business Promise whose pledges include guaranteed delivery dates, parts availability and three-day service booking lead times, have helped Renault to a record 107% rise in fleet car sales this year.

Total market share has moved to 4.7%. Last year it had fallen to just 3.1% from a share consistently above 7% until 2005.

At the peak, short-term activity was responsible for a large slice of annual registrations – Renault took a 15% share of Motability, for example. This year, Renault says corporate deals are underpinning its success.

It has also returned to short-term rental and Motability, doubling market share in both to around 5%.
In the van market, Renault’s share of fleet sales has risen from 7.45% to 9.95% on the back of a 77% increase in sales to 14,543 (year-to-November).

Next year the company anticipates a small increase in fleet car sales.