What Van? Britain's biggest and best van buyers' guide

Operators choosing new vans nowadays are faced with a bewildering array of trim levels and paid for options to wade through before deciding upon the vans that suit their requirements.

The choices of large fleets and small businesses or owner-drivers can differ greatly – traditionally the fleet manager buying a batch of delivery vans would plump for base models with no frills included, after all they wouldn’t be getting behind the wheel themselves, whereas the buyer spending more time in the van – either just for work or perhaps choosing a vehicle to double up as the family transport, would look for something more luxurious and stylish.

When it comes to safety equipment the lines become blurred – companies have a duty of care to look after their employees and if drivers are injured or vans damaged they will lose money through them being off the road.

More and more safety kit is becoming standard and, after prolonged lobbying, Electronic Stability Control (ESC), which helps to prevent skidding, became mandatory under EU law in November 2014. But it is up to manufacturers how many more additional features they lay on as standard or offer as extras.

Mercedes-Benz, a pioneer of safety in general and ESC in particular, includes Crosswind Assist as standard on its Sprinter but if you want to add features such as Blind Spot Assist, Lane Keeping Assist and Collision Prevention Assist you will have to pay extra for them.

Mercedes tends to offer its vans with limited trim levels but a great deal of options that can be bolted on. Air-conditioning on its new Vito medium van, for example, costs £895 (all prices exclude VAT), while a reversing camera can be had for £450 but may be considered an unnecessary luxury on top of the standard parking sensor.

A spokeswoman for the brand explains its strategy concerning specification and options.

“Option packs offer the customer a greater opportunity to tailor the vehicle to their individual requirements. Vehicles with option packs can be more attractive propositions in the used market. Options are bundled together offering a cost-effective solution for customers.”

She adds that safety and functional features are the ones LCV customers value the most, pointing out that all Mercedes vans come with wood floors as standard to protect against damage and drawing attention to the standard twin side loading doors on the new Vito, which increase loading practicality.

But Mercedes is also seeing an increase in demand for air-conditioning, which indicates that fleets, as well as owner-drivers, are taking more interest in driver-comfort, satellite navigation and cosmetic, stylish features such as metallic paint, which the spokeswoman says boost used value. On a new van metallic paint is likely to set you back a few hundred pounds – it cost £400 on a Renault Trafic, for example.

In contrast to Mercedes and other commercial vehicle manufacturers such as Iveco, which also concentrates on option packs, Volkswagen has a well-defined band of trim levels (introduced in 2012), which it maintains group together the most desired options in terms of safety, functionality and style.

“Customers interested in these options pay less by choosing a trim line than selecting these options individually,” claims product marketing manager Jenny Maeckelmann.

“If you are interested in air con and alloy wheels on a Caddy panel van, it is a good opportunity to have a closer look at our Highline.”

The Highline also includes items such as front fog lights and a Thatcham Category 1 alarm as standard.

Maeckelmann believes trim levels offer customers more clarity than option packs by providing  a simple and complete package to aid decision making and uphold resale values, although she concedes option packs serve an important role in allowing customers to personalise their vans according to their priorities.

Accordingly, the brand says most large fleets opt for the trim level that matches the majority of their requirements while smaller buyers look for more bespoke solutions.

VW says the most popular features are air conditioning, wheel upgrades, infotainment systems, parking aids and connectivity devices.

“Based on our analysis of the current generation Caddy and Transporter, we have taken these customer choices into account when tailoring our trim lines on the new products,” says Maeckelmann.

She says entry-level Startline models are most popular with large fleets, which may then enhance this configuration with optional items. Retail customers and owner-drivers on the other hand are more inclined to go for Trendline or Highline in the first place.

VW argues that over the last five years demand for items such as air con, cruise control and sat nav, which were previously considered luxuries, have move into the mainstream and are increasingly expected to be included by customers within standard specifications.

The brand also points out that commercial vehicle drivers are no longer prepared to accept the sort of rough and ready interior environments, with their inherent lack of comfort and refinement, which passenger car owners would not tolerate.

Noise suppression has become an important consideration, says Maeckelmann, and features such as DAB radio, air con and Bluetooth are now standard on all models.

Vauxhall also bands its LCVs into trim levels and a spokesman argues this is important because customers now “expect similar levels of specification and creature comforts in a van as a passenger car. We were one of the first to recognise this and now offer the Sportive trim across three of our four models (Corsavan, Combo, Vivaro). On Movano, retail customers get a free of charge option pack.”