Makers “New Look Fleet”
Finally, after a wait of some 10 months the first batch of new Ford Hybrid vans have been delivered and boy do they look great! Covid has impacted many areas of life but has also had a dramatic affect in the motor industry which has been hit by a shortage of semi-conductor chips which has prevented manufacturers across Europe struggling to complete orders on time but we are delighted to have received our first installment.
“This is part of a 3 year investment programme as we look to renew 90% of our fleet which traditionally has seen us adopt the Vauxhall Vivaros but with the rising cost in running repairs and consistent faults and off road time we took the decision to move over to ford after a successful trial with the Ford Ranger.”
Stuart Rooker FD
Along with the new sliver vans comes a striking design including a car park wrap to the rear doors depicting one of the many sites that we have been installing electrical power pods during our car park refurbishment projects. Theses Ford Custom Hybrid Transits are the top of the range and represent significant investment at around £30,000 pounds each with another 14 units on order over the next 2 years.
“We have seen a gathering of pace through local authorities applying for “clean air status”, London, Bath, Birmingham and soon to be Stoke on Trent, and it won’t be long before others follow suit, so as we travel across the motorway network, we felt it was time to align ourselves with the moves within the industry and sit alongside our clients who are also wanting to become more green and embrace the Climate Change agenda”.
“After careful evaluation we couldn’t take the plunge with full electric as we felt the infrastructure wasn’t quite there in either the commercial or domestic situations despite the number of charging points we have installed throughout the year, I am sure as the network continues to grow and reliability improve then full electric will be considered once more…”
Simon Lamb MD
The Ford Transit Custom 340 comes with a fuel efficient 2.0l diesel and electric battery combination that self-charges during travel, returning over 40MPG and crammed with the latest technology and safety equipment features for the modern demands of today’s highways.
“These vans are incredible, the cabin layout is fantastic with full blue tooth connectivity, heated seats, aircon and charging points… they drive beautifully and are so quiet …. delighted I’ve got one”.
Lee Stewart, Site Manager
“The decision to invest in better spec models was an easy one, the guys are spending a significant amount of time in them so we wanted higher levels of equipment and safety and with full controls through the steering wheel we feel the Ford Custom delivers on both counts”.
Darren Wootton, Operations Director
“We are delighted with the reaction from the guys who have received the vans and as you can imagine the jungle drums have been beating so we are now under more pressure from those waiting but hopefully the delivery times are much shorter according to our supplier. I am sure the feedback from customers and Clients alike will be very positive as we try and move with the times. We speed limit all our vehicles and coupled with the tracker systems we have, we are ensuring we have the best fleet we can provide to the guys”.
Simon Lamb MD.
The Ford 340 carries over a tonne and with its 6-speed gear box has the ability to get the best out of its engine. The internal lit load space and dedicated bed provides a robust environment to allow for plant and material storage and the ergonomic cabin allows for 3 passengers to sit comfortably, coupled with a new logo design these vans will be easy to see around sites throughout the UK.