Page 35 - Commercial Vehicle Engineer - June 2021

COMMERCIAL VEHICLE REGISTRATIONS
While Mercedes-Benz was overtaken by MAN, the manufacturer too had a promising first quarter of 2021, with sales increasing by more than 35% year-on-year.
Of the other ‘big seven’ manufacturers, Volvo registrations remained stable year-on-year and the company retained its place as third biggest seller just behind Swedish rival Scania. Meanwhile Iveco’s sales were
up by 16% to 972 units. Like Scania
and MAN, Iveco has also launched
new models in the past 12 months that have been well received by operators. Finally, Renault Trucks sales were up
by 15.2% to 494 – a good performance considering this came just before the manufacturer launched a refresh of
its truck range, see CVE May. At the smaller end of the market, sales of Isuzu and Fuso trucks declined, by 26.4%
and 5.9% respectively. This reflects
the decline in registrations of rigids between 6 and 16 tonnes year-on-year, where most of their sales are.
Meanwhile, sales of Dennis Eagle trucks, which focuses on refuse collection vehicles and specialist trucks, remained stable, again reflecting the stability in demand in that market.
WELCOME NEWS
“The rise in truck registrations is welcome news but it does not yet
signify full recovery, especially as it’s
in comparison with a quarter when the first lockdown was introduced,” says Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive. “Likewise, the nature of the fleet buying cycle for the HGV market can mean that a large fleet order can have a significant impact on any quarterly figures.”
Hawes adds that fleet renewal remains the quickest way to get more of the newest, cleanest vehicles on UK roads, particularly in regard to reaching environmental goals. “A plan for a charging and refuelling network suitable for HGVs is pivotal for the transition to these new technologies,” he says.
Mercedes-Benz sales were up 35% year- on-year in the first three months of 2021
LCVS BEHIND EXPECTATIONS
The light commercial vehicle market
is performing similarly to its heavier counterpart. While registrations are up in 2021, they are still behind the pre-COVID five-year average and industry expectations.
First, the good news; there were 56,122 vans registered in March, up 85.5% according to SMMT figures, albeit this is in comparison to first month of the COVID
Ford's Transit Custom has retained its ranking as biggest selling van in the UK
outbreak, which represented a 20-year low for the market. Demand up across the board as all segments see boost, with growth driven by doubled registrations of larger vans.
However, performance over the year
to date is slightly below pre-pandemic levels, down 1% on five-year average as 98,354 vans registered in the first quarter of the year. However, it was 43.4% up on 2020’s figures.
COMMERCIAL VEHICLE ENGINEER > JUNE 2021 35