Cadzow acquire new Mercedes-Benz Actros Titan

Cadzow Heavy Haulage, an abnormal load specialist, has acquired a new vehicle; a huge Mercedes-Benz Actros Titan. The vehicle was made at the Mercedes-Benz facility in Wörth, and features a customised 6x4 tractor unit, equipped with a V8 engine that delivers 609 hp. It was subsequently converted into an 8x4 version at the Titan Spezialfahrzeugbau GmbH.

In order to prepare the vehicle for the operations that it will be required to undertake, the chassis was significantly reinforced by Titan, and the air tanks, batteries, exhaust stack and transmission coolers were moved in order to maximise space. It also features a 900-litre fuel tank.

Cadzow Heavy Haulage is a Lanarkshire based firm, and this is the fourth Mercedes-Benz Actros Titan that they will have acquired, and they were supplied by Western Commercial, a dealer which also deals with tipper trucks for sale. Managing Director Jim Macauley said, Our Mercedes-Benz Titans have done us proud since we bought our first two from Western Commercial in 2003. They’ve always been man enough for the job and very reliable, our only outlays having been on the kind of wear and tear items you would expect. There’s no doubt that Mercedes-Benz makes a good heavy truck, which explains why most of the guys in this very specialised business choose to run them.

The vehicle features a luxurious long distance sleeper cab, which features uspended seats, air-conditioning, a refrigerator and a blue-tooth compliant CD-radio player. Jim Macauley commented, Unsurprisingly, our driver Campbell Stewart is over the moon with his new truck.

Southwark council goes green in its choice of vehicles

The council for the London borough of Southwark have decided to invest in a fleet of 'green' vehicles. 47 new Mercedes-Benz Sprinters have been chosen by Southwark council, who were looking for the most environmentally friendly vehicles that they could find. The new fleet are all powered by engines which meet both Euro 5 emissions regulations, as well as the criteria for being an Enhanced Environmentally friendly Vehicle (EEV).

The vehicles were sourced through London Hire, a firm which supplies many vehicles, including from Scania UK, to the majority of London borough's, as well as to a variety of other public sector institutions.

They are also equipped with Mercedes's ECO-Start system, which automatically cuts the engine when the vehicle is still, thus reducing fuel consumption, emissions and wastage. An example of how it works would be stopping at red lights; the driver just has to go into neutral and release the clutch. After two seconds, the ECO-start system will turn off the engine. When the lights turn green, simply depress the clutch and the engine will immediately revive.

Mathew Trott, the business unit manager for Southwark council, said, Choosing vehicles that would cause the lowest possible impact on the local and global environment was right at the top of our list of priorities when we made this decision. We looked at several options - not many could offer Euro 5 engines, even fewer could provide vehicles to EEV specification, and only Mercedes-Benz could combine those two features with the ECO-Start system. Of course we also had to be satisfied that the vans would be 'fit for purpose', and would provide a reliable and efficient service to our council tax payers. The Sprinters are extremely well built and very cost-effective, as well as providing a comfortable and safe working environment for our staff.

Upsurge in sales for Daimler AG

Daimler AG, the automotive behemoth based in Germany, has seen released figures for the quarter that show an upsurge in demand for Mercedes trucks, with the current relative weakness of the Euro driving higher exports. The operating profit for the second quarter was reported to be €2.1 billion, which represents a remarkable turn around from the same time last year, which showed a $1 billion loss. The difference in sales revenues between this quarter, and the same quarter last year was €5.5 billion, with the revenues being €25.1 billion and €19.6 billion respectively. The majority of the profits were form the Mercedes cars division, with Benz trucks also performing strongly.

The auto division recorded sales of €14 billion, with many sales occurring in China and the United States. Auto analyst Juergen Pieper also highlighted, an advantageous product mix as well as better price penetration and positive exchange effects as the euro declined in value against other major currencies. Pieper, who works Metzler Bank, also said, A lot of positive things are coming together. It is almost a boom in premium cars this year, double-digit growth for these products. We had very positive comments from BMW this week and we have the same now from Daimler, he noted, with makers of high-end cars almost back at levels of profitability seen before the global economic crisis.

Daimler also implemented a variety of cost cutting measures in its truck division, which is the largest producer of heavy vehicles in the world. The full second quarter results are to be published on the 27th of July, and BHF Bankk analyst Aleksej Wunrau said, We can expect a very nice upward rrevision, before adding that his own predictions had been surpassed by 10 to 15 percent.

It has also been announced that Daimler are to embark upon a joint venture with Foton Motor in China. The growth of the market in China, now the world's largest, is huge. The trends also look good for Daimler, with Pieper noting, Especially in Asia, we are coming back to a trend towards bigger cars and bigger engines.

Sisu and Daimler AG enter joint venture

2011 will see a joint venture between Daimler AG and Sisu, with components for Mercedes benz trucks being shipped to Karjaa in Finland, where Oy Sisu Auto Ab. is based. Sisu will provide axles, frames and drive-shafts, whilst the cabs, transmissions and engines will be supplied by Daimler, form the Mercedes-Benz Actros range, and the volume is projected to be between 200 and 400 vehicles a year, contingent upon the results of a 'feasibility study'. At present the Sisu range of commercial vehicles is based upon the Premium cab by Renault, but at the moment it is speculation as to whether this range will continue, or be phased out. Similarly, the engines in Sisu vehicles are currently manufactured by Caterpillar, but whether that will be continued in tandem with the new Actros-based range is, at this juncture, mysterious. A press release stated that the trucks will marketed and sold by the Sisu brand, and that the feasibility study will be complete by the end of 2010.

Hubertus Troska, head of Mercedes-Benz trucks, has said:

We are delighted that Sisu has selected us as a supplier of high-quality components. Sisu is a traditional brand known for first class trucks. Once the feasibility study has been successfully concluded, we will be able to open up a new area of business and generate additional sales potential for our vehicle components.

The press release went further, stating:

The vehicles will be sold via the Veho Commercial Vehicles sales network in Finland. The Veho Group Oy Ab. has been importing Mercedes-Benz passenger cars and commercial vehicles since 1939 and also sells the Fuso Canter and Setra buses in Finland. The market for medium-and heavy-duty trucks in Finland encompassed about 2,600 units in the crisis year of 2009 (approx. 3,500 trucks are sold in a normal year). There were around 390 new Mercedes Benz trucks delivered, giving thee brand a market share of 15%. Following the conclusion of the feasibility study, the future delivery of all key components to the independent truck manufacturer Sisu will particularly benefit the VEHO Group Oy's workshop network, as VEHO Group Oy also maintains and repairs SISU vehicles in its role as general representative for Mercedes Benz commercial vehicles. In addition, it is expected that Mercedes-Benz's share of this Scandinavian truck market would increase.