The company has purchased 13 new Mercedes vehicles in total from the local branch of Rygor, Britain’s biggest Mercedes-Benz Dealer.
Most are 3.5-tonne Sprinter 313 CDIs – while four are standard panels vans, the line-up also includes the two 4x4s as well as a Dualiner crew variant with a second row of seats, and a chassis cab with dropside body. Completing the order are three Citan 109 CDIs and a pair of Vito 116 CDI Dualiners.
The new vehicles have been assigned to MJ Abbott’s civil engineering, electrical, water and wastewater engineering teams.
The latest arrivals represent a combination of replacements, upgrades and additions to the company’s fleet of 60 commercial vehicles, which is dominated by Mercedes-Benz. All are speed-limited and fitted with telematics systems.
Commenting on the deal, technical director Adrian Abbott, said: ‘The 4×4 Sprinters will certainly improve our off-road capability, as they offer a much higher carrying capacity than our other four wheel-drive vehicles.
‘The dropsider has a longer body than the vehicle it replaces, so will be more versatile as an additional delivery vehicle for our direct sales operation, and the Citan is a very welcome addition to the Mercedes-Benz range. We’ll be monitoring the performance of our first Citans closely, to see how they shape up against our established small vans. First impressions are certainly very positive though – the guys who drive them tell me the Mercedes are more comfortable and much quieter.’
Launched last year, the Citan marks the entry of Mercedes-Benz into the small van market. Economy figures are a reported 65.7 mpg, with CO2 emissions as low as 112 g/km.
MJ Abbott maintains its vans in house, using the latest Mercedes-Benz diagnostic equipment supplied by Rygor, which also makes regular deliveries of parts to its customer’s workshop, as well as undertaking any warranty repairs.
Andy Dummer, van sales executive at Rygor, added: ‘MJ Abbott is a local business with a national reputation and, as such, a highly valued customer. With this latest order it has taken full advantage of the fact that we can now offer a truly comprehensive range of light commercial vehicles able to meet any requirement.’