A van driver’s best friend
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A new survey by Swinton Commercial has revealed the white van man’s must-have driving accessory, and it’s not his England flag! The online survey conducted by the van and van insurance retailer asked 1200 drivers nationwide for their ultimate driving accessory and discovered that a huge 38% claim the sat nav system is their “can’t live without” tool.
The study also reveals that commercial van drivers nationwide are more concerned about practicality than enjoyment when on the job, with the sat nav finishing first in the poll ahead of an MP3 stereo with 20% of the vote and good company, with just 15%.
According to Swinton, the top five van driving essentials are:
1. Sat Nav 38%
2. Mobile Phone 24%
3. MP3 Stereo 20%
4. Good company 15%
5. Flask of Tea 3%.
Phil Moss, Commercial Vehicle Manager at Swinton Commercial, said: “Although the sat nav has taken some recent flack due to stories of it leading drivers astray, it is an essential piece of technology for any van driver who travels with his job.” He added: “… nowadays commercial van drivers have a wide range of choices available and are able to select models which can alert them to traffic jams or speed cameras, helping reduce the chance of accidents and subsequently lower insurance premiums.”
@ August 11, 2010
Home deliveries in green-powered vehicles
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Following an announcement in July this year that food retailer Waitrose had submitted a planning application to the council that could see its 18,000 square foot supermarket in the Isle of Wight powered by biomass, the company is now switching to green transport fuel.
Five of Waitrose’s home delivery vans – Mercedes Sprinter van– will run on liquid biomethane (LBM), a renewable vehicle fuel produced from landfill gas, delivering groceries to homes in central London.
Europe’s first commercial producer of LBM Gasrec will supply the transport fuel and also provide the Camden-based refuelling facility where the Waitrose Mercedes van can fill up.
All the Waitrose drivers who will be operating the new Gasrec vehicles will be fully trained and familiarised with the new vehicles.
‘The John Lewis Partnership is committed to reducing its carbon footprint and to using, where possible, locally sourced materials. Gasrec’s liquid biomethane gives us a high-performance vehicle, using local sustainable fuel that will reduce our CO2 emissions. It is a real alternative to diesel for us,’ says Waitrose fleet engineer Ray Collington.
@ August 10, 2010
GM invests in plug-in hybrid commercial van
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General Motors will pour five million dollars into a plug-in hybrid commercial van being developed by an Indiana firm.
The IDEA van will be able to drive up to 40 miles (64 kilometers) on its electric battery before switching over to a hybrid gas-electric engine, which offers a fuel economy of 36 miles per gallon (6.5 liters/100 km).
“It’s an opportunity to bring more efficient, greener utility to the country’s commercial and government fleets and to do it in a way that they save money,” said Reuben Munger, chairman and chief executive officer of Bright Automotive.
Most light-duty commercial vans get fewer than 15 miles to the gallon (15.68 liters/100 km) and are driven an average of 25,000 miles (40,232 km) a year, Bright said. The IDEA would save the average customer about 1,500 gallons (5,678 liters) of fuel per year.
GM will also share its technology and the IDEA will run on a GM engine. It is expected to hit US showrooms by 2014 and is also being aimed at the European market, says Munger.
@ August 9, 2010
Use vans for sale to transport the whole family
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Do you have a big family? Or maybe you need something that can hold a lot of luggage? So you need a new van that can not only accommodate your family but also cargo. Well then you came to the right article. In this article we are going to talk about luxury Mercedes vans for sale. We all know who Mercedes Benz is I am sure. We all know that they put out luxury vehicles. They are well known all over the world. Their vans are just as luxurious as their cars.
The Mercedes vans for sale are passenger vans and also cargo vans. They are used for personal use and for commercial use. We will tell you about a couple of these vans.
One of the Mercedes vans for sale that Mercedes Benz has is the Mercedes Sprinter. These vans are six speeds with a manual transmission. They have all of the luxuries that you could ever want. They have everything from AC to a CD player. They even have an Echo start/ stop button. Of course there are more then one models of these Mercedes Sprinter vans. They are different lengths and have different seating. For example some have a higher roof.
Another Mercedes Vans for sale are the ones that can be used for commercial use or passenger use. For example there are the Mercedes Vito vans. There are three different ones for you to choose from. The first is the panel vans. These are the kinds most often used as a commercial van. There is a large cargo space in these vans. They have air bags and 3 point seat belts for extra safety. They come in compact, long and extra long lengths. The engine is quiet and they use low amounts of fuel.
The next Mercedes vans for sale are the Dual liner. This van can hold up to 6 people. It also has a cargo space so that you can carry people and cargo at the same time. There are three you can choose from. There is the standard high roof model, the practical standard version and the comfort package.
@ August 6, 2010
The world’s best van manufacturers
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Year 2010 turned out to be a new venture for all the van dealers across the globe. As the world’s leading automobile companies launching their latest release in the market. The world’s best van manufacturers are putting there best effort for the release of high technology imbibed vans. For this they believe they need the strong support from the van dealers across the globe to reach out their technologies to the people. In recent months popular van manufacturers are putting emphasize on van dealers. BMW India has decided to start its pre-owned van business, called BMW Premium Selection from April 1.
BMW will leverage its existing van dealer network to push its pre-owned car business. BMW currently owned 17 dealer locations across India, which will go up to 24 this year. The BMW authority expect that once there pre-owned car dealer networks get spread over the country, nearly 30% of BMW India’s sales could come from pre-owned cars.BMW will encourage their dealers for selling second hand vans as well as other brands products. As McLaren is back to the van business again this year it is a fresh breath of relieve for most of the van dealers. The Formula one launcher McLaren is all set for their new launches in the year 2010.They would be launching MP4-12C in the recent months. They believe to create global impact of their recent launch and it is very much important to network with the world’s best van dealers who could sell the vans in world’s best markets.
Despite of everything Ford couldn’t show much of its effect at Indian roads. But as the automobile market emerging big and there is huge competition with other new launches of other brands, Ford is busy to gear in the market, The most-awaited ford figo is out and all set for competition with other brands in the market.
@ August 5, 2010
Get a conversion van to suite your needs
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A van which is actually converted by a third party in order to fit the requirements of the particular user is known as a conversion van. It can be used for various activities like camping, and also can be used in the form of a moving house or a caravan. Initially conversion vans were built with seats installed into them along with some side painted murals. However the trend changed after the mid 1980s when some good quality padded seats were used instead of just simple ones. They were actually meant for families who wanted to travel long distances for events like camping and road trips. Initially the vans were a crude windowless type similar to a cargo van, however, nowadays trends have changed a lot and lot of features can be obtained as well.
Some sort of control was exerted in this segment for the concern of the safety of the passengers. Since conversion vans are customised and they are used by third parties for conversion, so no one can guarantee whether the conversion is safe of not, however with the set of some standards and regulations for safety, this appeared to have done smoothly, and safety being the main concern is taken care of. You can now upgrade your safety vans with cooking utilities and sleeping accommodations, some accessories like television and internet is also available on board. Since the pricing of the vans were very high in the smaller market, hence the sales have decreased, also the gas prices have shown an increase which is unsuitable for the V-8 engines of the cargo van which have poor fuel efficiency.
Due to the drawback of fuel efficiency and conversion prices other cars like SUV are taking more control, and hence have actually taken over the customers which actually were fond of conversion vans. However, with improvements in design the conversion vans sales gained momentum and now we have around 200,000 conversion vans which were sold in the year 1994.
@ August 4, 2010
The Vito vans for sale are perfect for your business
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Are you looking for some vans for your business? But you really cannot afford brand new ones? Have you ever thought about checking out some of the Vito Vans for sale? They have used ones that could be exactly what you are looking for.
There are many Vito vans for sale that are used and can be bought at a decent price. There are three different models of these vans that you can find used and also new.
All of these vans can be found on used Mercedes Benz dealership lots. They can also be found online. There are many sites that are advertizing the Vito vans for sale. A lot of these sites offer used ones as well. They will give you all the information that you need on the van along with a picture. They will even give you a price and tell you how to get a hold of someone to buy the van.
The first of the three different kinds of Mercedes Vito vans for sale is the panel vans. These are the kinds most often used as a commercial van. There is a large cargo space in these vans. They have air bags and 3 point seat belts for extra safety. They come in compact, long and extra long lengths. The engine is quiet and they use low amounts of fuel.
The next Vito vans for sale are the Dual liner. This van can hold up to 6 people. It also has a cargo space so that you can carry people and cargo at the same time. There are three you can choose from. There is the standard high roof model, the practical standard version and the comfort package.
The third of the Vito vans for sale is the Traveliner. This van holds up to 9 people. These seats can be arranged in sixteen different ways. These seats can be easily removed so that you can have as much cargo space as you need. It has state of the art technology. It also has three different lengths. These vans also have the three point seat belts. They also have airbags. They have child safety locks.
@ August 3, 2010
UK production of Ford Transit vans ‘extended into 2012′
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The vehicle manufacturer has told the BBC that the production of Transit panel vans in the UK is to be extended into 2012,
In Southampton last year the firm axed half of its 1,100 workforce at the UK’s only assembly plant.
Ford had said production of the panel vans would cease at the factory in 2011 to be replaced by Transit chassis cabs as production is being moved to Turkey.
The manufacturer, which makes about 35,000 vans a year at the site, said the move should not affect jobs.
The site will produce similar numbers of chassis cabs, which allows users to adapt the body of the vehicle for specific use.
Once the next generation of Transit vans are ready to be manufactured in Turkey, the final vans will roll off the production line.
‘Last outpost’
A Ford spokesman said: “The plan remains the same at Southampton but we are unsure when the next generation of Transit will come in which pushes production of the current panel vans beyond 2011 at the site.
“Ford has outlined a multi-million pound investment plan for Southampton as lead plant for the chassis cab variants of the next model.
“The UK remains an important market for Transit.”
Steve Banner, from What Van? magazine, said it would be a sad day when the final panel van rolls off the production line in the UK.
He said: “The Transit plant in Southampton is the last outpost of vehicle assembly in the UK for Ford.
“The Transit will continue in chassis cab form, but of course it won’t be a van.”
Last May more than 500 workers at the factory in Swaythling took voluntary redundancy or retirement.
The plant has also been reduced to a single shift.
The manufacturer blamed “unprecedented” economic conditions.
@ August 2, 2010
The A team movie with same old van!
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The GMC van from the TV series The A-Team was undeniably cool. Even now, looking back, it’s totally awesome in an 80′s, A-Team sort of way. Thankfully, the legacy of the van continues in the upcoming A-Team movie.
The film was one of the few big releases this summer that I was actually excited for, and I’m glad to say that it lived up to my expectations completely. Carnahan, along with screenwriters Brian Bloom (who also plays a major villain role in the film) and Skip Woods, have crafted a dumb-yet-fun action film that pays homage to the original series, but also manages to modernize the material well. It’s also surprisingly hilarious at times, thanks to some inspired casting (Sharlto Copley, in particular), and Carnahan’s own quirky sensibilities.
Overall, the film worked for me because Carnahan managed to find the exact right tone for the film, while doling out enough action beats to make us forget about the simplistic plot.
But what did you think?
@ July 29, 2010
Vito vans for sale has two roof heights
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Vito vans for sale made it big as and when they were launched. When we talk of potency or of manufacturing excellence or of consistency then we are talking of the Mercedes Vito Van. These are the reasons as to why people purchase, hire or sometimes lease this vehicle too. This vehicle has achieved tremendous success and has witnessed sales growth at a very fast pace. The sale of these vans is usually a grand success and is welcomed by all worldwide. People find this vehicle very convenient and prefer it when it comes to business needs. This van is definitely not for private use. It has excellent features which has made it the most sought after business use vehicle.
The Vito vans for sale not only has two roof heights but it also has three wheelbases. It has six engines which is a huge added attraction. It has very spacious interiors but the exterior is quite compact. This is what makes it very unique and different from several other vans. It has very high storage capacity and even excellent loading space. This is the main reason as to why this vehicle is mainly preferred for business usage. However it has an extremely luxurious and realistic interior. For people who are tired and sick of congested and dingy vans the Mercedes Vito van is a blessing in disguise.
Even though this van is not affordable by all people are still satisfied with leasing it. It is close to owning the van and at the same time one does not have to shell out the entire amount required to purchase the van. This is a lot convenient and is the perfect option for many. Like all other vans this also requires to be serviced one a month and with proper maintenance this van is nothing less than awesome!
@ July 29, 2010
