Specialist contractor MJ Abbott has added to its commercial fleet, including its first examples from the new Citan small van range, as well as a pair of Sprinter 4x4s.

The company has purchased another 13 fuel-efficient vehicles from the local branch of Rygor, Britain’s biggest Mercedes-Benz Dealer.

Most are 3.5-tonne Sprinter 313 CDIs – while four are standard panels vans, the line-up also includes the two 4x4s as well as a Dualiner crew variant with a second row of seats, and a chassis cab with dropside body. Completing the order are three Citan 109 CDIs and a pair of Vito 116 CDI Dualiners.    

The latest arrivals represent a combination of replacements, upgrades and additions to the company’s fleet of 60 commercial vehicles, which is dominated by Mercedes-Benz. All are speed-limited and fitted with telematics systems.

Technical director Adrian Abbott explained: “The 4x4 Sprinters will certainly improve our off-road capability, as they offer a much higher carrying capacity than our other four wheel-drive vehicles.   

“The dropsider has a longer body than the vehicle it replaces, so will be more versatile as an additional delivery vehicle for our direct sales operation.

“And the Citan is a very welcome addition to the Mercedes-Benz range. We’ll be monitoring the performance of our first Citans closely, to see how they shape up against our established small vans. First impressions are certainly very positive though – the guys who drive them tell me the Mercedes are more comfortable and much quieter.”

Abbott added: “The fact that Rygor now also offer a small van is great news, as there’s a big attraction to being able to source all of our vehicles from a single supplier. Our relationship with the dealer dates back to 2001 and they look after us very well.”

MJ Abbott maintains its vans in house, using Mercedes-Benz diagnostic equipment supplied by Rygor, which also makes regular deliveries of parts to its customer’s workshop, as well as undertaking any warranty repairs.

Abbott continued: “Mercedes-Benz vans are cost-effective to operate, impressively reliable and able to withstand the rigours of our demanding operation. In fact, we’ve only just stood down the first Sprinter we bought, after 13 years and nearly half a million kilometres of outstanding service.

 Van sales executive Andy Dummer added: “MJ Abbott is a local business with a national reputation and, as such, a highly valued customer. With this latest order it has taken full advantage of the fact that we can now offer a truly comprehensive range of light commercial vehicles able to meet any requirement.”