News - Page 2215

VAUXHALL has completed a new deal with British Gas for the supply of Astra estates with a total value of about £3million. British Gas has purchased 215 estates, 163 of which will be used by heating quality engineers while the rest are for British Gas Home Security, the domestic alarm installation division.

PEUGEOT'S long-awaited successor to the 205 GTi - the 206 GTi - will go on sale on June 1 with an on-the-road price tag of £13,995, the manufacturer has announced.

FUEL retailer Murco has launched a fuel card which will be administered by Cendant Business Partners.

A SPORTS package has been launched for the Saab 9-5 saloon. Enhancements include engine remapping to raise maximum power for the 2.0-litre Ecopower models from 150bhp to 192bhp, front and rear spoilers and side sill extensions, larger alloy wheels with low profile tyres, facia insert and leather sports steering wheel.

CASTROL has launched an internet site - see our links page - that will provide motorists with a wide range of information from buying a car to maintenance help and information on engine lubricants and route planning.

CAR security company Toad is planning to expand into Europe in the second half of this year with its sights set on Holland, France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Spain and Portugal.

CAMBRIDGESHIRE-based contract hire company Powermarque and air conditioning maintenance and repair company National Aircon, signed a deal worth more than £250,000.

TOYOTA has signed a deal with VW and DaimlerChrysler to enable them to use its 'NOx Storage Reduction 3-Way Catalyst System', which helps to reduce vehicle exhaust emissions and improve fuel.

A NEW Bill before the House of Lords is attempting to ban the use of mobile phones while driving. Labour peer Lord Davies of Oldham, chairman of the Further Eduction Funding Council and deputy president of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, has introduced the Bill which would make it an offence to drive while using a hand-held mobile telephone.

LUNN Poly has awarded a 105-vehicle leasing contract to Lease Plan in what could grow to be a deal involving several hundred vehicles. The company is part of Thomson Travel Group, which not only operates the 105-strong Lunn Poly fleet but also a 150-strong Britannia Airways fleet and a 100-strong Thomson Holidays fleet.

CONTRACT hire companies are being urged to target small businesses which, unlike their larger counterparts, continue to favour outright purchase vehicles over leasing. The finding is revealed in an independent survey commissioned by contract hire specialists Ryland Multifleet.

FIRST National Bank has paid £12.2million to acquire NatWest's 50% stake in PSA Finance, which provides point-of-sale finance to Peugeot and Citroen dealers in the UK. The finance house subsidiary of Abbey National acquired an option to buy the 50% shareholding last year as part of its purchase of Lombard Motor Finance (now renamed First National Motor Finance).

MITSUBISHI has announced the development of a GDI Sigma Series engine which claims improved fuel consumption and lower emissions. The manufacturer says the new technology combines the advances made with the GDI engine, now used in 11 Mitsubishi models in Japan and four in the UK.

CONTRACT staff specialist Draefern has signed with Leicester-based Francis Honda for the supply of 11 Honda Accords. The dealership is providing the 1.8i S Accords for use by the management team of the company, which supplies temporary staff to the food manufacturing industry and industrial sectors from 23 sites.

A GLIMPSE of the future has been on show in the UK as Toyota prepares to launch its Prius hybrid car next year. The car represents a technological breakthrough, using a combination of an electric motor and a petrol engine to slash emissions and fuel costs. The car, which drew crowds of fleet managers at the Fleet Show, is already on sale in Japan and is due to arrive in the UK next year.

THE AA has launched a comprehensive new car safety guide for fleet managers. Detailing all the results from the crash tests carried out under European New Car Assessment Programme in the supermini, lower medium, upper medium and executive car sectors, it has information on every model tested to date as well as manufacturer data on design and specification changes.

NEW fuel cards and improved services have been introduced by BP Oil UK, recently voted retail fuel card supplier of the year by the Institute of Transport Management in recognition of its 'outstanding service to the fleet industry'.

GOVERNMENT incentives to downsize vehicles to less than 1,100cc to cut Vehicle Excise Duty bills have had little to no effect on fleet buying policies, according to a poll of 30 members of the Association of Car Fleet Operators. In the poll, taken at a Midlands regional meeting, found that none had changed buying patterns to take advantage of the £55 drop in VED for smaller engined cars from June 1.

VOLKSWAGEN is to launch a new version of the 1.0-litre Polo. Called the Match, it will cost from £7,940 on the road on June 1 when the price of a year's VED for sub-1,100cc cars changes to £100 — saving £640 over its equivalent model in the standard Polo range.

JESSUPS Vehicle Contracts has delivered a fleet of 38 Renault Clios to Caledonian Airways. The cars will be supplied to pilots subcontracted from Ryan Air.

MONDIAL Assistance has created a new fleet management division to provide dedicated support to its motor services business. The new division is headed by Steve Hook, customer vehicle logistics manager, who played a key role in the implementation and development of the Volkswagen emergency assistance service.

NEW car sales figures last month were surprisingly ahead of April 1998 as a result of fleets holding off buying until the start of the new tax year, consumers reacting late to the launch of the T-plate and the launch of a Ford Mondeo price cuts programme.

FLEET diesel sales fell last month, although the 2.7% year-on-year drop was one of the lowest falls for several months and total market diesel sales were fractionally up.

VAN sales last month were enjoying a knock-on effect of the introduction of the T-plate in March with figures 1,400 units up on April last year. Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show that 18,758 vans were sold compared to 17,364 in April 1998.

CAR dealership DC Cook says it is still planning a year of major expansion despite issuing a warning to the Stock Market that its annual losses could run into millions of pounds. The company blames the losses on a one-off attempt to write off damage caused by falling residual values, at a cost of £2.5 million, although it does not believe any stock will realise less than net book value.

CURRENT vehicle emission testing is inconsistent and inaccurate, says a critical report from the National Audit Office. Its latest report for Parliament claims that 10%-20% of vehicles are driven every day with illegal emissions, and suggests that testing has only improved the emission levels of a quarter of the vehicles on UK roads.

BRAKE'S Road Risk Forum is holding a series of one-day training seminars exclusively for fleet managers on best-practice safety measures and their financial and social benefits. They begin next month, at venues in Solihull, Leeds and Liverpool.

FORD will later this month announce a £300million investment plan to revamp its Dagenham plant to increase capacity and pave the way for the production of a new small car. The manufacturer is in negotiations with local authorities and the Government about a programme of investment to modernise the Essex plant and rejuvenate the surrounding area. It is due to give details about its plans on May 26.

DEALERS are pessimistic about their profit potential over the next year with half the 29 manufacturer franchises returning lower scores than six months ago, according to the latest National Franchised Dealers' Association dealer attitude survey.

THREE former fleet and motor industry figuress have joined forces to launch a new company, Motoreasy, which they say will revolutionise the way drivers service and maintain their cars.