News - Page 2126

FLEET drivers' expectations of lower benefit-in-kind tax bills could be dashed because of the way manufacturers approach price cuts. HSBC Vehicle Finance managing director Tim Holmes warned that although special offers were pushing down prices for private buyers, list prices could go relatively unaffected.

SPECULATION is mounting that Government action to reduce new car prices in the UK is merely a fortaste of more wide-ranging car retail reform following a review of the European Commission block exemption governing car sales through the European Union.

Volvo Car Finance is to take its 'back office' business away from Lloyds-UDT and move it in-house with Ford Credit. The company has been part of Ford Credit since January this year and has been considering the move for some time.

FALLING residual values and higher investment in internet trading pushed down half-year profits at Inchape, the international automotive service group. Turnover for the six months to June 30 fell by £381 million, from £2,407.1 million in 1999 to £2,025.4 million in 1999, while headline pre-tax profits fell from £40.9 million to £30 million in the same period.

FORD'S battle to buy debt-burdened Daewoo Motor is 'all over bar the shouting' after the car manufacturing giant was named exclusive bidder at the end of June despite rival bids from General Motors, Fiat, DaimlerChrysler, Hyundai.

FALLS in the list prices of new cars have slowed, according to the latest CAP Motor Research New Car Prices Index. The index reveals that last month the average price drop across all sectors was 1.1% - the smallest this year - with the largest price cuts of 2.1% coming in the executive sector.

ROVER will begin collaboration on new models with a major manufacturer in early 2001, Rover chairman John Towers has said, but talks about a partnership will only begin once Rover's new owners are confident they have placed the company in a 'robust' position for the future.

PERODUA has secured its largest yet fleet deal - 125 Nippas taken on by Enterprise Rent-A-Car for its UK rental business. Most of the 850cc-engined five-door hatchbacks, the cheapest new car in Britain at £4,620 on-the-road, are destined to become courtesy cars.

KENNING Car Van & Truck Rental has added more than 400 Fiat Multipla and Fiat Scudo Combinatos to its rental fleet. The Multipla is offered with 1.6-litre petrol and 1.9-litre diesel engines in SX and ELX trim.

NISSAN has won a solus deal to supply 25 Primera estates to the Welsh Rugby Union.

PANASONIC UK is using 15 Mercedes-Benz A-classes as mobile showcases to demonstrate its latest DVD video and navigation equipment.

LAND Rover is to supply Boyzone star Ronan Keating with a Range Rover for his personal use and with additional vehicles to support his promotions worldwide.

FLEET discounts have been officially given the all clear with the publication of new legislation designed to cut car prices by up to £1,100. The Department of Trade and Industry has revealed a six-point plan for bringing down car prices in the UK following a lengthy investigation into the industry by the Competition Commission.

CONTROVERSIAL plans for road-user charging in London are set to cause chaos for fleets, rental firms and leasing, the industry has warned. London mayor Ken Livingstone is set to levy a £5 per day charge for cars and £15 for lorries entering the capital within two years in a bid to slash traffic levels by 12%.

BOYCOTTING petrol pumps won't help fleets save the millions of pounds wasted each year in fuel mismanagement, organisers of the Government-backed greener fleet certification scheme Motorvate claim.

FIRST National Vehicle Holdings has announced it has bought Highway Vehicle Management, the contract hire and leasing arm of GUS plc, for about £170 million. The deal is the latest in a series of acquisitions as Abbey National-owned First National pursues its stated aim of becoming one of the top three contract hire companies in the UK.

PRIME Minister Tony Blair is standing firm on his pledge not to reduce the 76p in the pound the Government takes in fuel duty following Dump the Pump protests and the national campaign to boycott filling stations every Monday. It was business as usual for fleets who, while in favour of any move which would reduce operating costs, were clearly not changing routines to accommodate the campaign's call that 'doing nothing achieves nothing'.

CURRENCY stability is key to Nissan's manufacturing future in the UK, the Japanese car firm's president has told Prime Minister Tony Blair. Carlos Ghosn had been invited to Downing Street earlier in the week to discuss Nissan's concerns about future investment at the company's Sunderland plant.

FLEETS are being invited to comment on a ten-point plan for road user-charging in London which could send costs and paperwork soaring for the industry. The plan is unveiled in a discussion document, which claims charges are vital to combat congestion.

TWO former GE Capital Fleet Services executives are to launch a company which, they claim, will set new standards in leasing and provide a new model for the fleet industry. Joint managing directors Tom Stephenson and Tim Grant believe Tuskerdirect, due to go operational in the last quarter of this year, will establish new quality standards for the 21st century.

SPEEDING company car drivers in Nottingham who hit the brakes when they see a speed camera will still be caught by new digital cameras. The new automatic SPECS speed cameras, which went live in the city on Friday, monitor average speeds over a controlled zone.

THE Metropolitan Police is to fit 'black box' data recorders to its 2,900-strong liveried fleet in a move which could trigger rocketing demand for the devices throughout the fleet industry. The £1.3 million commitment to cut accidents involving police vehicles in London was announced following a tender for the contract, won by VDO Kienzle.

INCHCAPE, the international automotive services group, is to sell its 49% interest in Toyota (GB) to Toyota Motor Corporation for £42.1 million. Cash from the sale will be used to reduce Inchcape's debt, but will also provide funds for investment in new areas of business.

PSA Peugeot Citroen has reported consolidated sales for the first six months of 2000 of 22,490 million euros - up 18.2% from the 19,020 million euros reported in the first half of 1999.

CONTRACT hire and leasing company MEVC has formed a strategic alliance with Drive & Survive which will see MEVC customers being recommended the company's range of fleet driver risk management products.

MAZDA UK is recalling 5,431 petrol-engined 626 models produced between May and November 1997 to inspect the timing belt tensioner.

BMW is en-route to record car sales and a significant improvement on last year's net profits after selling its 'English patient' Rover to Phoenix Consortium.

LEX Vehicle Leasing has signed a three-year contract to receive technical data from Glass's Information Services. The information will assist in the authorisation of maintenance invoices and in underpinning the contract hire company's maintenance forecasting processes.

VEHICLE racking, storage and security systems specialist Bri-Stor Systems has won a contract to supply more than 1,400 racking and storage kits for British Gas vehicles following a competitive tender.

CITROEN cars and vans are being used for the first time by the Ministry of Defence Police.