UK ‘to take only 28,000 new trucks this year’

The hangover from the Euro 5 sales spike will last all year, according to Scania (Great Britain)’s managing director Claes Jacobsson.

“Year-on-year we are well behind where we were last year,” he told Transport Operator.

“There was a slow start to 2014, but we expect a total market of 28,000 this year. Once things settle down again a ‘normal’ UK truck market will be between 30,000 – 31,000 vehicles, and by 2015 we will be in a normal steady state.”

Recalling that in 1964 when Scania entered the UK truck market there were 25 different truck brands on sale, Jacobsson raised the question of whether the UK market would be able to support the current number of players on these volumes.

“But in Spain, the market fell from 35,000 new trucks a year to 5,000,” he pointed out.

He expected Scania to increase its share of the UK truck market from 18 to 20 per cent, and said this would be helped by continuous development of the Scania service network, which currently numbered 92 outlets. About 30 per cent of the work undertaken in them was on non-Scania products.

“This may mean moving some outlets to be sure we are located where our customers are.”

Demand for Scania as a premium product remained healthy, he maintained, pointing out that over half the 50 limited edition Golden Griffin trucks created to celebrate Scania’s UK golden jubilee had already been sold.

The flourishing construction sector was also providing opportunities, and Scania was the leading supplier of 8×4 chassis in the UK market in the year so far.

Scania also sold 2,300 used trucks through its dealer network last year.