New vans for sale in 2011

Tuesday, 04 January 2011 04:56 |

Written by Ian Kemp

Without a doubt the focus of attention for the launch of new light commercials in 2011 will be the resurrected Commercial Vehicle Show, taking place at the NEC, Birmingham, from 12 to 14 April. Cancelled completely in 2009 it was re-invented as the downscaled CV Operator Show in 2010.

Vans
Mercedes-Benz rolled out the revised Vito at the end of 2010 and will be promoting it heavily at the show. It gets a new front-end — although the differences are pretty subtle — a redesigned cab, a tweaked chassis and a new 2.1-litre engine line-up.

Available at 95hp (110CDI), 136hp (113CDI) or 163hp (116CDI) the rear wheels are driven via a six-speed ECO Gear manual gearbox as standard. It’s got a short first gear, but an overdrive sixth. At the top of the range there’s the 122CDI with a 3.0-litre V6 common rail diesel generating a hefty 224hp and marketed solely with a five-speed automatic.

The headline act at the show, however, will be the Nissan NV400. Unveiled at the Hanover CV Show in September 2010 and due to go on sale in the UK in the summer it is Nissan’s take on the latest generation Renault Master and Vauxhall Movano.

Available with either front- or rear-wheel drive it has a dramatically different front-end to that of its close relatives and will feature the same, extensive, selection of common rail turbodiesel engines.

Joining the award-winning NV200 light van in Nissan’s rapidly changing light commercial range it will provide its dealers with serious ammunition to increase sales. They will be aided by a full selection of chassis cabs and standard factory-fitted conversions shortly after the launch. See News Video.

Volkswagen will be refreshing its Crafter at some stage during the year; the first time since its introduction in 2006. Expect to see a new front-end to bring it in line with the rest of the LCV line-up and the adoption of new 2.0-litre, four cylinder turbodiesels based on those powering the Transporter and Amarok pick-up.

The advent of an updated Vauxhall Corsa at the beginning of 2011 means that we can look forward to a new Corsavan shortly after the introduction. A re-designed front-end brings Corsa in line with other new Vauxhalls. The current ‘V’ grille is replaced by a chrome signature bar featuring the new Griffin badge and the headlamp units are all-new.

Anyone expecting an all-new Combo light van, however, will have to wait until the beginning of 2012. Vauxhall has teamed up with Fiat and the next generation Combo will be based on the Doblò platform. As yet there is no news about a new Astravan. The current models are based on the previous generation estate car.

Citroën will be busy updating its diesel engines to Euro 5 throughout the year; beginning with the Nemo. The end of this month will see Nemo exchange its 1.4HDI Euro 4 for a 1.3HDi Euro 5. See Launch Video.

Pick-ups

At the time of writing Volkswagen has not committed to attend the CV Show, but by the summer potential customers should be able to clap eyes on its all-new one tonne pick-up, the Amarok.

It will be introduced initially as a five-seater double cab with a single cab following some time later. Powered by a range of 2.0-litre turbodiesels derived from the Transporter, Amarok will be a real game-changer in the marketplace. It brings with it unrivalled levels of refinement and drivability to the table.

Not to be outdone Ford will be launching the all-new Ranger right at the end of 2011 and this will be a serious Amarok-challenger.

Electric

Manufacturer developed battery-powered vans become a reality in 2011. Ford and Renault will be going head-to-head with electric versions of the Transit Connect and Kangoo respectively.

Renault’s approach is of particular interest as it is taking the burden of the initial high cost of the battery pack off the customer by leasing it for about £70 per month. This will keep the list price down to about £16,500.

Ford would be wise to take a similar approach with the Connect. High purchase price will be one of the factors that will hold back the uptake of electric vans. Unlike electric passenger cars, the up-to-£5,000 government subsidy does not apply to light commercials.

These are just the headline new products due for launch in 2011. There will be others and there are bound to be updates to existing models so check our News section for the latest announcements.