'Cool' commercial vehicles / vans???
 

My accountant has just kindly informed me that if I purchase a ' commercial vehicle' (ie a van) as my company car we only pay 2% tax and also get a higher rate of tax relief back.

I believe there are a number of rather sporty vehicles classed as commercial now such as the Warrior.

http://www.mitsubishi-cars.co.uk/spe...ior/colour.asp

Any comments or other suggestions???

Ed

http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/art...126326,00.html

hmmm, 28mpg and grp 17. nope, forget that :rolleyes: ;)

Dont laugh, but don't MG do a van version of the ZR? Looks tasty IIRC.

Failing that, Ford SVE have put together a Connect van with Focus RS running gear. Shame it's not available commercially

Gotta be a Ute! :)

http://www2.mg-rover.com/mg_GB_en/static/node384.html

my worry here is only having 2 seats. The warrior is a double cab.

Be careful of the double cab pickup sort of vehicles the taxman/vatman has got wise and the massive benefits will all stop shortly. OK with vans though!!!

IMHO an L200 of any type is a bad move, that is where I have had a slight taste of the dark side, well the dealers at least, but my 4-life is a pig awful vehicle, it does all the jobs that get thrown at it ie. carries a ton of steel very regularly, tows a big tri-axle trailer, moves children, tows horsebox and children, moves rubble and lots of other tasks , but the driving position is very bad, the lock is very embarrassing when in car parks (you can get trapped in supermarket car parks) the power is bad, and the fuel economy if you have a heavy right foot is mid to high teens.
Added to the above is the news from our very own government that the £500 tax will be abolished late 2006 rendering all king-cabs worthless.
The Nissan sport with upto 200 hp (chipped) looks a better buy at the mo.
Sumo.

I was led to believe 2007??? Which suits my plans.

Yes, but it will hit depreciation if you intend to sell in 2006 or 2007 as a lot of people will dump them onto the market. Coupled with no tax breaks, crap drive, poor economy etc. it may well be a false economy unless you get a good lease deal and soon. If you need to go down the commercial route just for tax breaks, then go for the most car like vehicle like the MG or fiesta type van etc. which should shift on easy enough.

yeah i think I'll hit this idea on the head and just get a normal tdi, cant live with 2 seats.

I have got the warrior & have to relay the comments of sumo, basically its a great workhouse but for any domestic duties its p!sh, test drove a Nissan Navara last week & its night & day to the misti
Just trying to persuade the boss into letting me swap (its better for business;))

Oh & mines is leased

Stephen

in 2006 you will be able to get a double cab for under a tenner on ebay.....with no tax breaks NO ONE will want one outside of Utah.

hmmm, the nissan looks very interesting. Any more comments on that one Stephen?

How about a Nissan S-Cargo? - pretty funky : D

Probably not what your after though ;)

S-Cargo???

I'll be eating them tomorrow in Paris :D

Alright ed,

This is exact ly what the boys down the road are looking at, we took out the Nissan version of the same twin cab thing you’ve posted a link too. Bloody noisey, but you get quite a lot for you money.

You have to spend a bit extra to get the alloys, and the tape player, apart from that they’re pretty basic, I’d test drive them both first they look ‘cooler’ than they drive, not sure if they’d be amazingly comfortable for the amount of motorway miles you do. Plus if there are extras; you need for a road going one really, such as lining the pick up bit with metal, puttig on a lockable lid so you can use it as a large boot, all extras’ still we worked it all out and with the tax relief it was sweet fa.

Toyota does one too, but it’s a bit of a minger if you ask me! We read the commercial what car guide thing ;) to my mind, there didn’t seem to be a whole lot between the three manufacturers mentioned – go give em a testy.

What about Landrovers – are they classed as commercial or do they fall into consumer?

F1 williams espace? :)

Ford Ranger (double cab)

http://www.ford.co.uk/ie/ranger/rgr_...hunder/-/-/-/-

Toyota Hilux (280 double cab)

http://www.toyota.co.uk/cgi-bin/toyo...sp?id=homepage

Nissan Navara (twin cab) is the one we took out, generally a nice motor, but tis a fairly noisey diesel engine compared to the refinement your use to. I’d imagine this will be the same with all the commercials though, they’re just tough work vehicals, good thing is you can’t really break them. Think they do all in one body kits for the vain out there ;) have a feeling it was called 'outlaw' check out the homepage, and see if you can build one online, but you're looking at 20k odd, the best deal for a business is lease..

http://www.nissan.co.uk/servlet/niss..._cb_splash.jsp

Or you could go proper bling: ;)

http://www.americancarimports.co.uk/...216-frontA.jpg

http://www.americancarimports.co.uk/...225-frontA.jpg

http://www.americancarimports.co.uk/...179-frontA.jpg

http://www.americancarimports.co.uk/...192-frontA.jpg

http://www.americancarimports.co.uk/...220-frontA.jpg

http://www.americancarimports.co.uk/...224-frontA.jpg

I think the idea is to [b] save [b] money some of those yank things are silly money

Also have a look at the Isuzu Rodeo Denver, by far the best pickup I've seen recently.

http://www.isuzu.co.uk/index.htm

If you want a proper commercial, have a look at the VW Transporter/Shuttle range. Various cab options are available, and it has the option of a 174bhp 2.5 tdi engine, with 6-speed manual or automatic gearbox. It you want space and practicality, look at a crew cab option, two rows of seats, with the load space behind in van body. Metallic paint and some alloys and it will look pretty trick.

http://www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/new...ortershowroom/

My dad has a new Mitsi Shogun 4Work, basically a stripped out (Club Sport?) SWB Shogun with no rear windows.

Without a word of a lie, it goes like a GTi. It has stump pulling torque that makes Land Rovers look piddly.

Its not permanent 4WD either, staying in RWD for normal use. Bags of torque, an LSD, and short wheelbase make it a complete sideways machine in greasy weather.

There always seems to be a deal going on as well, we paid £14k + VAT for a brand new pre-registered and pre facelifted model. Bargain.

Once tried a Mitsi 4Life. Didn't like it, too cramped and an awful choppy ride.

Also, we have just leased a new Citroen Berlingo van for £120 PM (+ VAT)over 3 years. I'm really impressed with it, it drives superbly and is currently doing 46 to the gallon.

merc sprinter... 3 seats?

Yah, thanks for that, the ;) was suppose to suggest it was a joke...

we have just bought the 130 brake VW transporter - for a big LWB van it goes like the clappers - 6 speed dash gear change very slick.

I got a price on a SWB 175 for me to use - just shy of 15K, hmmmmm.....

Better enjoy for the next few years I am told, the commute from home to work will be classed as private use and your £350 Tax bill for a van over 3 years or £500 for under 3 years will increase for a sub 3 year old van to £3,000 + £500 fuel something or other.

I guarantee everyone will be driving to work in 'sheds' then picking up the van from work to avoid any benefits in kind tax.

Clarkey

Vans that are used for the commute to and from home only, and not for other private use are to be exempt from private use taxation. Currently you will charged for this use, but when the changes of taxation was announced, this exemption was also included.

What is shown below is copied directly from the Treasury's 2004 budget report.

Budget 2003 announced that the Government would consult on possible reform of
the tax treatment of the private use of vans provided by employers. The consultation invited responses on simplification of shared van calculations and the use of environmentallyfriendly vehicles, while taking into account fairness and modern working practices.

***Budget 2004 announces a major deregulation of the employer-provided van tax rules – taking 85 per cent of those who currently pay a charge out of the system. From 6 April 2005, a nil charge will apply to employees who have to take their van home and are not allowed other private use, and as a transitional measure, the benefit in kind charge of £500 (and £350 for older vans) will be continued for all vans where private use is unrestricted.***

***From 6 April 2007, the scale charge for unrestricted use will be set at £3,000 with a £500 charge for employer-provided fuel. Under these new rules, basic rate tax-payers who choose to have unlimited private use of their vehicles will pay 22 per cent of £3,000, equal to £660 benefit in kind taxation from 2007. These changes do not apply to self-employed van drivers.***

Can't help thinking these will be better on the motorway than a 4-be-4 pick up!

Did see the Isuzi one today though, did look good...

I used to have a Mitsubishi L200 and a bloke at work has a Nissan Nevara (200bhp model) and a Ford F150 Harley Davidson, both of which I've used. In my opinion the L200 won over the Nevara everyday, hence why I got the Mitsi rather than the Nissan. Yes the Nissan is more powerful, but it's also noisier and less comfy. The L200 can also be chipped to bring the power up a bit and as for the lack of turning circle, that is a very simple job, involving 2 bolts. I have to agree the fuel consumption isn't good. As for the choppy ride, I had a truckman top on mine and the little bit of extra weight over the back sorted the ride out a treat. The Ford F150 is just rediculous, 5.4ltr supercharged V8. Great fun to drive and different, but I wouldn't want to live with it everyday in the UK.

I've had a go in an F150 lightning -- ridiculus just about sums it up :D

The F150 harley davidson has the same engine as the lightning, but in a four door cab, and it's limited edition.

Had a sit in one of these at the festival of speed on friday:

http://www.carpages.co.uk/nissan/nis...echo=845223936

Very tempting...

The Danes have been doing this for years - new car tax is exhorbitant on normal cars and negligable on commercial vehs. The qualification for a car to conform to the latter is basically "no rear side windows or rear seats". As such, many normal new cars are modified to that state before registration.

Hey presto! Merc S55 AMG van, Porsche Cayenne Turbo van, Bently Mulsanne Turbo van - these have all been done apparently!