News - Page 2156

PEUGEOT is offering fleet customers the chance to check funding packages with the introduction of Quoteline Net. The decision follows the success of the telephone system which allows fleet managers to call a centralised number and speak to an operator to discuss vehicles and funding packages and receive a faxed-back quote.

LAND Rover is to recall 11,000 Discovery vehicles - 4,000 of them in the UK - because of leaks in high-pressure pipes in the active cornering enhancement (ACE) system.

THE Government should introduce a system of environmentally-friendly vehicle rebates to encourage fleets and company car drivers to take to the wheel of ultra-clean hybrid vehicles. Instead of using motorists - and particularly company car drivers - as a cash cow, with plans for a range of new taxes, the Government should reward motorists who opt for the new 'clean' vehicles.

SAAB Great Britain has reorganised and strengthened its fleet operations in a bid to increase business sales. Headed by fleet operations manager Andrew Dunsdon - a former regional sales manager - the enlarged team replaces the previous corporate sales department and will focus on building closer links with fleet buyers and contract hire and leasing companies.

MORE than 8,500 Rover 75s - the car charged with rebuilding fleet confidence in the BMW-owned brand - have been recalled to correct an engine fault. The manufacturer says it is taking the worldwide action as a precautionary measure following a 'very low instance' of reports that the crankshaft position sensor unit could malfunction and cause the engine to cut out while it is being driven.

CENTURY International, one of the largest UK independent non-franchised car hire businesses, has been sold less than three months after going into administration, sparking a overhaul in top management. The company went into administration in December 1999 and was part of a growing list of daily rental firms which have collapsed in the past year under the financial strain of collapsing residual values and cut-throat rental rates.

THE finest in fleet will be revealed on Wednesday, March 15, when the winners of the 2000 Fleet News Awards are revealed. The 12th Fleet News Awards night will be held at the Grosvenor House Hotel, London, and will be attended by 1,200 people from across the fleet industry.

THE full impact of the March 21 Budget on fleets and company car drivers is to be spelt out by industry experts at a special Fleet News Budget Briefing. Starting at 10.30am on Thursday, March 30 at Sopwell House, St Albans, Hertfordshire, the event is sponsored by Kwik-Fit Fleet, ACL autolease and Avis Rent-a-Car.

DRAMATIC new car price cuts have been ruled out by the managing director of a UK manufacturer who instead claims car prices in other European markets could rise. Such a move would have a significant impact on the number of companies importing cut price cars from overseas and on the surge in the number of companies offering cheap cars over the internet such as P&O Stena and Virgin.

TRANSPORT ministers have been told to target buses, taxis, lorries and older cars in a new drive to reduce inner city pollution. On the eve of the Budget, a report by the Commission for Integrated Transport recognises the 'sweeping environmental benefits' of modern car fleets

THE car industry has expressed its astonishment that the Government appears to be endorsing the use of internet businesses offering cut-price cars from the Continent to bypass the established UK dealer network. Patricia Hewitt, former Economic Secretary to the Treasury, launched OneSwoop.com, which claims to be the first pan-European online car buying service, in her new role as minister e-commerce and small business.

LIST prices of new cars have fallen for the eighth successive month as the Competition Commission furore continues. And the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said that new car prices were running at almost 8% below inflation.

Ford has dropped the price of its Focus 1.4 CL five-door entry model by £1,000 and introduced a new 1.4-Zetec three-door for the same price - £12,000 on-the-road.

RENTAL companies will not enter a price war with new cut-price operator easyRentacar, although the news that it will run Mercedes-Benz A-classes exclusively has caused concern. EasyRentacar, operated by low cost airline EasyJet, is promising to undercut big name rivals on launch in April with rates from £9 a day.

STRONG used car operations have helped Sytner Group offset a decline in demand for new cars. Despite growth in turnover by 38% to £405 million to the end of 1999, the group's operating margin fell from 3.4% to 2.6%.

THRIFTY Car Rental UK has signed its biggest supply deal with Vauxhall which will give the manufacturer a 25% slice of its fleet. Thrifty is to take 2,000 Corsa, Astra, Vectra and Zafiras on a buy-back arrangement with the manufacturer on a six-month replacement cycle starting this month.

GE CAPITAL Fleet Services has won a contract purchase deal for the 40-strong vehicle fleet of DAS - the largest legal expense insurance company in the UK.

ENGLISH, Welsh and Scottish Railway has selected Associates Fleet Services to manage its fleet of 750 vehicles.

HEALTH care product company Coloplast has taken delivery of eight Honda Accord 1.8S hatchbacks from Alphabet (GB).

BUILDING services specialist J Tomlinson has placed a £100,000 order with Perrys Contract Hire.

BMW chairman Joachim Milberg stepped into controversy at the Geneva Motor Show by writing off electric vehicles as suffering from so many restrictions they were simply not acceptable. He was speaking before the launch of a new hydrogen powered 12-cylinder BMW 7-series, which would lead to a range of models selling in their thousands within 10 years.

GENERAL Motors launched its first road-going hydrogen fuel cell vehicle at the Geneva Motor Show and the Zafira will be the lead car for the marathon at this year's Olympic Games in Sydney. The Opel/Vauxhall Zafira fuel cell vehicle is the latest step in the evolution towards emission-free vehicles and the mini-MPV has a range of about 400 kilometres and a top speed of 87mph.

VAUXHALL gave a world premiere to its new Agila small car which will enter the burgeoning micro-MPV sector in June. Almost identical to the new Suzuki Wagon R+ which also debuted in Geneva and will be built at Suzuki's Hungarian factory, the Agila is the first mini people carrier to be produced by a European manufacturer.

PRICE cuts could follow a ground-breaking internet parts buying deal between the world's leading vehicle manufacturers. On the eve of the Geneva Motor Show, arch-rivals General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler announced they were planning a link-up with their suppliers on the internet to buy all parts.

AFTER a year which saw Lexus double UK sales, the company is expecting similar growth with more launches during 2000. At the Geneva Motor Show, Lexus unveiled the flagship LS430 along with a new IS200 variant and gave a further glimpse of the RX300 which is on sale in the UK later this year.

COMPACT car specialist Daihatsu has launched yet another small car - the YRV - which will enter the UK in September. Powered by a 1.3-litre 16v engine, the YRV's European premiere took place at the Geneva Motor Show.

INDIAN car company TATA plans to be a new force in UK fleets from next year with launches into the car and off-road market. Taking part in its third show, the firm was showing off two new models - the Safari off-roader and the Indica Focus rival.

Vauxhall holds the key to the prices Suzuki GB will charge for the revitalised Wagon R+ model it will launch at easter. Showroom prices will be revealed to the company's dealer network early next month - but they will effectively be set by the charges Vauxhall announces for its version of the jointly-developed 'crossover' city car.

HONDA'S new generation of petrol engines will be launched in the summer, initially in the Civic and the Accord. The new VTEC engines will kick off with the 2.0-litre and will be followed by 1.4, 1.6, 1.8 and 2.2-litre variants in order to replace all the current types of engine by 2005.

A RAFT of new models and a radical reappraisal of its fleet strategy with the withdrawal from daily rental business heralds a new millennium transformation at Nissan, following hard on its alliance with Renault. With the Almera now on sale, the Geneva Motor Show saw the world launch of three more Nissans all destined for the UK this year - the Maxima QX, the Patrol GR and the Almera Tino.