19-07-2012

A new Chinese arrival and a Fiat Punto with a difference have hit the small van market. Let’s have a look at the prospects of these two young upstarts.

The Chinese brand Great Wall has hit the van market with a bang, having launched its Steed pick-up with a £1 deposit offer in an attempt to steal customers away from more established manufacturers.

Initially Great Wall intends to establish a market by appealing to small business owners who want a reliable van without a large, up-front capital outlay.

The most affordable of the Steed pick-ups, the S-model, has been dubbed by its manufacturers as the UK’s most affordable pick-up, and at £13,998 you can certainly see why. For businesses looking to pay for a new van over the longer term, the finance deal Great Wall offer includes a £1 deposit, which is followed by 59 monthly payments of £285.06, along with a final payment of £424.06 (8.8 per cent representative APR). In today’s unsteady economic climate, industry insiders believe the time may be right for the Steed to hit the market, with small business owners particularly reluctant to pay thousands of pounds for a deposit on a commercial vehicle.

The other market newcomer is the Fiat Punto Van, which offers a similar cargo capacity as the outgoing Grande Punto, with a one metre cubic cargo space and a payload of 520kg.

As with the Grande Punto, options on the Punto Van are fairly limited. Engine sizes are small, with power outputs of 75hp, 85hp and 95hp available. However, these small engines do produce some particularly economic fuel consumption figures - 67, 80 and 67mpg respectively.

The entry level Punto Van starts at £10,990 (excluding VAT and OTR), with the price increasing in increments of £500 for the larger engine sizes.

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