News - Page 1910

SIX years after the demise of the Rover Metro, the British firm is back in the city car sector with the Asian-built CityRover.

CONVERTIBLES are no longer the problem vehicles fleets often assume they are and seasonal changes in demand are becoming less noticeable because of the strength of vehicles and brands available.

BCA claims it has staged the largest sale of Audi products ever held in Europe. Out of the 228 Audi vehicles offered, 203 were sold at a conversion rate of 89% that brought in £3.5 million.

MANHEIM Auctions has signed a deal with Drive Motor Retail to become its preferred auction supplier for the disposal of its part-exchange vehicles.

SKODA has sold its 10,000th approved used vehicle since the current Approved Used Car Programme was launched in January 2001.

ONE of the latest technological trends now seeping into the used car market is the semi-automatic gearbox. With this comes a whole raft of new names which are tending to confuse many in the trade. Among these are Sensotronic, Tipshift, Tiptronic, Geartronic, Easytronic, Selespeed, SMG, DSG and Durashift.'

BUSINESS drivers are being promised relief from some of the country's most congested roads with a £7 billion package of improvements for traffic hotspots.

A LEASING company spending up to a quarter of a million pounds every month paying fines accrued by fleet drivers is calling for better driver education to reduce the massive administrative burden involved.

THE congestion charging zone is pushing accidents out of central London and into the rest of the capital, a survey has found, leading to higher insurance bills for London-based fleets.

VAUXHALL has revealed pictures of the new Astra which goes on sale in the UK next spring.

INCREASED fleet business and a surge in the fitting of low profile tyres has helped Kwik-Fit Fleet achieve a £2.8 million increase in turnover for the first half of this year.

EMPLOYERS should highlight the importance of their drivers keeping to speed limits through roadworks after a surge in the numbers deaths and injuries to road workers last year, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) has claimed.

KWIK-FIT Mobile has taken on 10 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter vans and could increase the number to 170 units over the next three years.

CONTRACT hire, leasing and daily rental vehicles can be offered for sale before the end of their contract, using a new online service from JTK Automotive.

ENTRIES are being sought for the annual Fleet Safety Forum Awards for Excellence.

NEARLY half of Britain's motorists do not know how to change a tyre.

FLEET management and telematics solutions provider Cybit has signed a partnership with Smart Moves, a service provider of city car clubs.

FLEET drivers are ripping Britain's bosses off by a staggering £1.1 billion every year, new research reveals.

NEW sports saloon and hatchback models are to be launched next month to spearhead a major bid by MG Rover to win more sales in the company car market.

INTERNATIONAL outsourcing company Serco has signed a major fleet deal with vehicle management company Arval PHH.

FAST-fit firm Fit4Fleet has opened 50 new centres after expanding its operation across Ireland, bringing the total number of outlets to 900.

A SPORTY new contender in the burgeoning sector for compact multi-activity vehicles is expected to win up to 8,000 extra sales for SEAT UK next year.

ONE of Ford's greatest moments in motorsport was depicted at last weekend's Goodwood Festival of Speed with a 40-metre high display outside Goodwood House.

MAZDA has launched a high-spec four-door saloon version of its Mazda6 Sport with leather trim and sports styling kit as standard.

LCV hire group Northgate plc has announced a 15.5% increase in pre-tax profits from £31.7 million to £36.6 million for the year to April 30.

LDV has supplied 22 Convoy minibuses to bus and coach hire company Amvale in a deal worth more than £660,000 at showroom prices.

MORGAN is offering the option of a vehicle tracker system on its Aero 8, Plus 8 and 4/4 models.

TOWQUEST has launched a new customer relationship management module.

CAN using two-wheel transport give your business a competitive edge? With congestion on the increase and journey times becoming even more unpredictable, a number of fleets are turning to motorbikes as a way to cut through the traffic.

THE fleet industry has done little to exploit the potential of the motorbike. Part of the reason is that bikes remain something of an unknown quantity in a sector dominated by cars and vans.