Kevin Swallow
Page 31
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Considering the dearth of late-year trucks on the open market, making the case for this truck is like shooting fish in a barrel. It is clean, well within its prime, its specification is first-class and fuel returns are fantastic.
However, buying a late-year, clean truck is starting to cost because of rising demand and ever-dwindling supply. You need to work out the costing of a three-year-old truck priced at £49,750 and the financial outlay of a new one.
One thing is certain – following poor sales performances through 2009 and 2010, the supply of late-year trucks is going to get worse. With manufacturers such as MAN keen to generate more short-term deals on new Euro-5 chassis to try to fill the projected vacuum in the used market over the next 18 months, operators are faced with a stark choice.
If the sums add up, go second-hand and reassess your options before the advent of Euro-6 on 1 January 2014. Or, buy new and create a source of late-year used vehicles.
Either way, whoever buys this vehicle can be safe in the knowledge that it is a sound mechanical investment; just make sure you pay the going rate.