Chevrolet Captiva towing

If you have a caravan you will be interested to know that Chevrolet has developed a new guide to safe caravanning in conjunction with the NCC (National Caravanning Council), the Camping and Caravanning Club and Elddis Caravans.

There are around half a million caravanning enthusiasts in the UK and with the forthcoming June Bank Holiday weekend, many caravans will be taking to UK roads for a break or even for overseas holidays in France, Spain, etc.

The Chevrolet car range includes the Captiva SUV as a suitable vehicle for towing caravans with its increased towing capacity and hence their interest in ensuring caravanners have a safe journey.

Copies of the Chevrolet Safe Caravanning Guide are available at all local Chevrolet dealers or you can get one off the Chevrolet website @ www.chevrolet.co.uk

Free Company Car Tax guide app

Toyota and Lexus has just launched a new Company Car Tax guide which is available free of charge as an app for iPhone, iPad or Android smart phones, tablets and PCs. The guide should be invaluable to any fleet manager, or a company car user, interested in finding out more about UK company car taxation.

It details how business cars and vans are treated as a P11D taxable benefit and allows you to calculate your own BIK (benefit-in-kind) and your NIC (National Insurance Contributions), based over a three year period and is the first app of this kind developed by a UK car manufacturer.

For further information visit the link below or visit Google Play for Android or the App Store for iPhone/iPad;

www.toyotalexusfleetservices.co.uk

The 16th edition of the international road transport guide is an essential tool for any fleet operator. The Freight Transport Association guide includes information to help UK hauliers understand the complex and sometimes confusing regulations across the EU and beyond.

The new 2011 edition has all the latest information on public holidays, weekend lorry bans, toll prices and other essential facts for fleet operators of heavy or light goods vehicles. If you are in the international membership of the FTA you will receive a free copy and the cost for non-members is £75 each from www.shop.fta.co.uk.

The Freight Transport Association (FTA) has just launched the 48th edition of their Yearbook of Road Tranport Law 2010. If you are a commercial fleet operator and run HGVs or other commercial vehicles and vans, then this book should keep you fully informed on all aspects of road transport legislation, health and safety and duty of care.

The 2010 yearbox has been written by a team of FTA experts and includes details of the new fixed penalty system introduced in May 2009 and used by the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) and the police in roadside enforcement. The 2010 Yeabook costs £37.00 for FTA members or £79 for non-members with discounts for multiple copies. The FTA also publishes Van Drivers’ Handbook and the Dangerous Goods Drivers’ Handbook.

Visit www.shop.fta.co.uk to order.

Adrian Rushmore

Glass’s guide is predicting that the price for used cars, which have been peaking since Spring 2009, have now stabilised and as we approach the final quarter of the year, they are forecasting a possible fall.

Adrian Rushmore, Managing Editor at Glass’s said,”The improvement in prices this year was largely due to the much lower level of used car supply. It is apparent that the correction is complete-in other words the trade price of a car, plus a dealer margin, now equals the retail price that customers are willing to pay. However, there are already signs that some dealers are displaying vehicles with smaller margins, in order to ensure that would-be-buyers are not discouraged by price”.

The increased in used car supply generated by sales of the “59 plate” will be relatively small to recent years, however in a typical year, Glass’s would expect to see a fall of seven to eight per cent during the final quarter. They are now forecasting a fall in used car prices for the final quarter of two to four per cent.

Buying a car always exposes you to the falls in used car values and that is why vehicle leasing is becoming more popular, as the risk on resale is always with the leasing company.

New 2009 MICHELIN guide goes on sale

The new MICHELIN guide “Main Cities of Europe 2009″ goes on sale on Wednesday the 18th March priced £14.99. This is the 28th edition of this iconic publication and covers 43 cities in 20 countries, including Florence and Turin for the first time.

From its early beginnings as a small 400 page red guide, it used to be distributed free of charge to motorists and contained a wealth of useful information, on topics such as changing a tyre and vehicle maintenance. It is now a guide of more than 2000 pages and offers a selection of over 45,000 establishments (hotels and restaurants) to help travellers.

It has always aimed to be the benchmark in gourmet dining and also provides a selection of restaurants serving three-course meals, offering excellent value for money. The guide also contains a wealth of other information, including city maps with locations of hotels and restaurants, key words defining the style of the restaurant, tips for getting around town, sites to visit and plenty of other information.

So if you are taking your car to the Continent this summer, the new MICHELIN guide “Main Cities of Europe 2009 ” might help you on your travels.