Marketing Case 5

At the beginning of the year, the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders (SMMT) were feeling confident that the UK's light commercial vehicle (LCV) market would see the registration of 348,000 vans in 2020. Now, with the Covid-19 outbreak locking the trade down, that figure has changed to 263,000.

However, I always feel confident. I believe the LCV market is tougher than others because vans & pickup trucks carry tradespeople to work, deliver shopping, transport cleaning crews & more. These people in their vans & trucks have kept the country going, so, let's dive into the SMMT's top 10 list & see what the backbone of the British economy is driving.

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Cards on the table time… I'm a big fan of the PSA Group vans. Some people knock platform sharing, saying it dilutes innovation & makes manufacturers lazy. In fact, I think completely the opposite! I believe it makes manufacturers work harder to make sure each brand remains identifiable even while sharing so much & nowhere is that more obvious than in the Vauxhall Combo (which platform shares with the Peugeot Partner, Citroen Berlingo & the new Toyota Proace City).

It's capable of staggering payloads of nearly 1000kg & is available in 2 lengths with only 1 height option. If you need it, the longest of the wheelbases can even be converted into a crew van for up to 5 people. The trim levels - Edition, Sportive & LE Nav - add various comforts & tech additions including overload warnings, tractions control & more. Engine sizes centre on different power outputs from the same 1.5-litre Turbo D BlueInjection engine (76hp, 102hp & 130hp) with the option of a 1.2-litre PureTech 110hp petrol engine (if you like that sort of thing) - all are available as manual or auto.

The Peugeot Partner may be selling more right now, but the Combo has the Vauxhall badge - a sign of British quality that a lot of UK trades will find hard to ignore.

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Now we're at the top of the pile - the Ford Transit Custom isn't just the best-selling medium van in the UK, it's the best-selling van in the UK. Personally, I rate the Custom highly for its looks, incredibly well thought out cabin, excellent engines & practical payloads. THIS is the all-round package & it has outsold its big brother - the Transit - by nearly 100% year-to-date in 2020.

Under the bonnet is Ford's excellent 2.0-litre EcoBlue diesel engine that returns excellent running costs & a smooth drive to boot. Payloads are nearly class-topping with the smallest version capable of carrying 1459kg, just 10kg shy of the Citroen Dispatch & Peugeot Partner. Multiple trim levels, height & length options only add to the versatility of this magnificent medium van - even the most picky van operator will find a version that suits them - my advice would be to go for the Limited trim level (you get a range of tech & comfort options, alongside excellent external stylings including alloy wheels). Also, I've mentioned Ford's ability to make a class interior already, but the Custom features my personal favourite cabin in any van on the market right now - the cup holders are my all-time favourites.

This van succeeds in sales where others fail thanks to it being a competitively-priced all-round package deal. In my video review I say that for many people, the search for a medium van usually starts with the Ford Transit Custom… & for most people, once they've seen what the Custom can offer, that's where their search will end.

This list is based on the SMMT registration figures up to March 2020: https://www.smmt.co.uk/2020/04/uk-new-van-market-feels-covid-19-impact-as-registrations-halve-in-march/