New Launches
Show Report: CV Show 2012
What a cracking event the 2012 Commercial Vehicle Show turned out to be, thanks in no small part to Ford… Read More
Mitsubishi L200 4x4 Long-Term Test 1
We has just taken delivery of a Mitsubishi L200 4x4 Club Cab for long-term appraisal… Read More
Ford Transit ECOnetic Brief Test
We’ve been putting a SWB 100hp 2.2TDi Euro 5 Transit 280 ECOnetic through its paces… Read More
Renault Kangoo ZE 2011 European Launch
Renault is at the forefront of manufacturers offering a mass produced factory-built electric van… Read More
Fuso Canter 2011 European Launch
Fuso has completely revamped its range of light and heavy truck Canter chassis and chassis crew cabs… Read More
Iveco Daily 2011 European Launch
Iveco has introduced new, latest generation diesels to its Daily range, along with detail changes inside and out… Read More
Ford Transit 2011 European Launch
Ford takes the iconic Transit to the next stage with an all-new range of 2.2-litre Euro 5 diesels… Read More
Volkswagen Crafter 2011 UK Launch
VW’s large panel van has undergone a serious makeover with changes to the front-end styling and the cab interior, as well as new Euro 5 diesels… Read More
Ford Transit Connect Electric Brief Test
We spent a day with the battery-powered Connect to get a better idea of what it’s like to live with in its natural, urban environment. Read More
Mercedes-Benz Vito E-CELL Brief Test
Currently undergoing trials with selected fleet customers in the UK, we managed to get behind the wheel of a battery-powered Vito E-CELL… Read More
Volkswagen Crafter 2011 European Launch
Volkswagen’s Crafter has undergone a midlife makeover and gets a new front-end along with new Euro 5 engines… Read More
Toyota withdraws from UK panel van market
With no Euro 5-compliant diesel available for the Hiace (see News Story), Toyota has dropped it from the 2012 UK light commercial vehicle line-up, leaving the Japanese manufacturer bereft of a panel van offering. And there are no plans to re-introduce Hiace at a later date.According to a spokesman, however, Toyota is looking to launch an all-new small panel van range in the UK some time in the future, but don’t hold your breath. There is no indication as to what sort of timespan we’re talking about. For the time-being buyers wishing to purchase a Hiace-style van should take a look at the Hyundai iLoad.
Meanwhile, it has also seriously cut back the line-up of chassis cab-based Dyna light truck models available in the UK for 2012. It can be had in medium- or long-wheelbase guise only; the short-wheelbase variant has vanished. Not only that, the sole ready-bodied, off-the-shelf variant is a LWB Dropside.
Not wishing to overstate the case, but is does appear that Toyota GB has pretty much given up on the LCV market in the UK for the short-term, the exception being the Hilux 4x4 pick-up. But even that is under serious threat, despite a recent revision (see News Story), from the altogether next generation Ford Ranger and Volkswagen Amarok.
