Post Election Environmental Legislation Expected to Boost Electric Van Sales

The predicted rise in environmentally focused legislation following the general election is being seen as good news by electric vehicle manufacturers and suppliers. They are hoping it will lead to an increase in the take-up of electric vehicles. It is expected that the move towards lower emission vehicles will be encouraged by whomever wins the election.



Labour has previously proposed tax breaks for electric vehicle fleets in order to encourage the transition to electric vehicles where possible. There are of course many obstacles to going electric for a lot of van users such as the reduced mileage and lack of topping up points. Those who cannot update to an electric fleet until these issues are worked out will be looking towards vehicles with lower emissions and low running costs.

Boris Johnson has warned of his plans to charge vehicles with excessive emissions which wish to enter the congestion zone in central London. This plan was designed to encourage those still running older commercial vehicles to upgrade to new vans or even new fleets. This move is also being welcomed by van manufacturers as it is expected to speed up people's plans to upgrade to newer vehicles.

Bizzare Volkswagen Beetle/Camper combo

Check out this weird Beetle/Camper combo from 1974. The trailer section attaches to a latch on the roof of the car in a slightly dubious manner. It's nicely colour matched to the Beetle though!



The great thing about this set up as opposed to using a traditional tow bar is that the range of movement is expanded. The driver is able drive freely without worrying about jackknifing the trailer. It hard to explain but it all makes sense if you see a video of the trailer in action.

Volkswagen extend hire and leasing finance offers on Vans

Volkswagen have extended their van hire and leasing finance offers until the end of September. The finance offers are available on both the passenger carrying and van ranges. Customers are now able to get new Caddy Van from £189 a month, a new Transporter from £239 a month or a new Crafter from £349 a month.

We still offer traditional hire purchase and lease purchase finance, but more and more customers prefer the convenience and affordability of contract van hire and finance lease as it helps to improve their cash flow, manage their budgets and instead of having to sell the vehicle at the end of the term they can simply hand it back and start a new agreement for a new vehicle. -Simon Elliott of VWC

All vehicles purchased are eligible for free insurance for seven days and nights from Volkswagen Commercial Vehicle Insurance. Volkswagen Van Centres also offer fixed-cost maintenance packages to suit individual requirements. More information available at the Volkswagen Vans site.

Drag Racing Plumbers Van

This guy might be the only Plumber to ever arrive on time:

Van Sales Increase for 3rd Successive Month

Today I am glad to be the bearer of glad tidings. Not only is it actually sunny outside for the first time in months, I also have good news about Van sales: They are up for the third month in a row. It seems that the van industry is slowly but surely recovering from the Recession and regaining growth.



New van registrations have been growing month on month since the beginning of the year with 34,691 registered in March. Whilst this is clearly a good sign the commercial vehicles industry is still not back where it once was. The first quarter of 2010 has seen 192,917 registrations which is a decrease of 22.4% on last years figure.

Those trading new or used vans, or operating van hire services will no doubt be feeling positive about the statistics. Whilst there is a long way still to go it is heartening to see things moving in the right direction. As the economy begins to recover the demand for vans is set to rise. Increased production will also be a positive step for the commercial vehicles industry.

What the industry needs now is continued, constant growth. The best way to return to previous levels is slowly, this will reduce the risk of supply outgrowing demand. Hopefully in three months time I will be able to report on six months of continued growth!

Video: Extreme Motorhome Racing

From the crazed minds that bought you the 'Man with Van Challenge' comes a new video: Extreme Motorhome Racing:

Duck Survives Journey from Belgium to England in Van Grille

This story might seem like an April Fools joke but I think that it is genuine, the Telegraph have done their ridiculous joke article elsewhere. Apparently a couple of guys were driving through Belgium in their white van when the struck a duck. The driver Paul Murphy, from Leeds took a look at the damage and discovered a hole in his radiator grille. He assumed that the duck had flown off (although perhaps not in the direction he was hoping) and thought no more about it.



500 miles later Paul stopped at a service station on the M1 to further inspect the damage and was surprised to see the body of the duck inside the grille. Assuming the duck was as dead as a dead duck he used a screwdriver to open up the grille and get the body out. Just when he was about to go and buy some plum sauce he noticed that the duck was actually breathing.

"All of a sudden I saw this green head behind the radiator. I couldn't believe it. My first thought was 'Oh dear, it's dead, what am I going to do here?' because it wasn't moving. When its feathers moved I put it down to the wind, but then I saw it was breathing. I couldn't believe it."

Plucky, as he was later named, only suffered from a broken wing and a bleeding beak. He is now recovering at the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals hospital in Leeds. Let this be a lesson to you - next time you hire a van in London make sure it doesn't have a Belgian duck wedged in it anywhere.