SECTOR ANALYSIS – Medium vans: Well accustomed to life at the top

Date: Tuesday, June 5, 2018

 

Ford Transit Custom High Roof

The facelifted Ford Transit Custom went on sale in April

There were two other medium vans in the top 10 sellers’ list for March: the Volkswagen Transporter at number three on 4,292 units and the Vauxhall Vivaro at number six on 2,736. These models also made it into the top 10 for the first three months of the year.

In 2017, registrations of 2.5-3.5t vans dipped by 3.1% to 225,837 units year-on-year. The Transit Custom was the nation’s bestseller by a clear distance – with 51,885 units shifted it was 24,823 ahead of its big brother, the Transit. The next-biggest volume medium vans were the VW Transporter (21,898), the Vauxhall Vivaro (18,808), the Renault Trafic (12,391) and the Mercedes Vito (6,472).

The facelifted Transit Custom is now in showrooms, as is the passenger-carrying Tourneo version, following an outing at the CV Show. The van features exterior styling changes and alterations to the cabin, including a new steering wheel, new seats and an 8.0in touchscreen with Ford’s Sync3 infotainment system.

Ford has added a cross-traffic alert to the van’s blind spot information system and another addition is adaptive cruise control with pedestrian detection.

Having started its trial of plug-in hybrid Transit Customs with 13 organisations, Ford plans to move the model into full production next year.

Lifeline for Luton

After a period of uncertainty following PSA Peugeot-Citroen’s acquisition of Opel/Vauxhall last year there was good news for light commercial vehicle production in the UK with PSA’s confirmation that it will continue to use Vauxhall’s Luton plant to build medium vans.

The current Vivaro results from a partnership between Opel/Vauxhall and Renault and has been based on the Renault Trafic since 2001. The next generation of the model, which Vauxhall is set to introduce in 2019, is likely to have far more in common with the Citroen Dispatch, Peugeot Expert and Toyota Proace, which all share the same PSA platform in Hordain, France.

Timeline

Ford Transit Custom   April 2018
Ford Transit Custom PHEV       2019
Vauxhall Vivaro          2019



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