Vans

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This article or paragraph presents the situation in Germany . Help us to describe the situation in other countries.

Mercedes-Benz Vito, first generation

As vans referred to small trucks , which due to their gross vehicle weight up to 3.5 tonnes of driving license may be driven class B. The payload of a van is between about 0.5 and 1.5 tons. A tachograph and a class C1 (up to 7.5 tons) or C driving license are compulsory from 3.5 tons.

Demarcation

A legal definition, e.g. B. in the Road Traffic Licensing Regulations does not exist. The high-roof station wagons are to be found in the lower limit area, but they are mostly approved as passenger cars . The small vans also include delivery vans / panel vans , which differ from a corresponding car model only in details such as the missing rear side windows.

In the meantime, vans with a permissible total weight of more than 3.5 t are often referred to as small vans. These are actually light trucks - a group of trucks that have a gross vehicle weight of 7.5 tonnes and that are no longer allowed to be driven with a car driver's license. In terms of design and appearance, they have in some cases come very much closer to the small vans. Numerous models such as the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter are available in versions for both payload classes.

Similar to trucks, many small vans are also offered with a driver's cab and various bodies connected to it. As with the high-roof station wagons, most manufacturers also have a minibus based on the van for passenger transport, sometimes also a hybrid form as a "double cab".

Special protection vehicles also fall into the category of light trucks because of their armor. Up to a permissible total weight of 4,100 kilograms, they can also be driven with a class B driving license with a special permit.

history

In the period before the Second World War , various manufacturers produced so-called express delivery vans , which usually had a payload of 200–300 kg and only had three wheels. Examples are Tempo and Framo . Four-wheeled vans were also manufactured in pre-war times, for example the Framo V 500 from 1938 . After the war the previously customary horse-drawn carts were increasingly of vans, then also Schnelltransporter called, displaced. From today's perspective, the vehicles initially had a weak motorization of 10-25 kW and were spartan. Typical early representatives in Germany were the DKW Schnellaster , the Tempo Matador and the VW Transporter, and in the GDR the Framo V 501/2 . The Citroën Type H was presented in France as early as 1947.

In addition to the lighter vans, there were larger cars with a gross vehicle weight of over 3.5 to 7.5 tons or with a usable weight of 2–3 tons, such as Opel Blitz or Phenomenon Granit 30K . Currently classified as light trucks , according to today's view they can also be assigned to small vans.

Over the years, light vans have also been equipped with increasingly powerful engines and have become more comfortable. They are now hardly inferior to a car in terms of both performance and equipment. The range of products on offer was increasingly specialized and differentiated in order to have a suitable vehicle in the range for every demand and price segment. Even more often than in car production, there is group-wide cooperation between different manufacturers in the case of small vans. For example, in the Sevel plant , the largest European plant for small vans, identical commercial vehicles from Fiat, Citroën and Peugeot are manufactured.

Models

Size classes of current models

There is no definition of a division into small, medium and large vans. The transitions to delivery vans on the one hand and light trucks on the other are often not clearly delimited. Since most manufacturers have expanded the range of vans to include several models over time, different size classes are created more or less automatically.

Group brands Small (partly "high roof combination" ) medium Large (over 3.5 t as "truck" )
Small van box van: Max. Loading volume from / to (in m³ for a single cabin)
2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8 8-9 9-10 10-11 11-12 12-13 13-14 14-15 15-16 16-17 17-18 18-19 19-20
Toyota Dyna / ToyoAce
Proace I [3]
Proace II [12]
Peugeot, Citroën Expert I / Jumpy I [13]
Bipper / Nemo [2] Partner / Berlingo [8] Expert II / Jumpy II [3] Boxer II / Jumper II [4]
Expert III / Jumpy III [12]
Fiat, Ram, Iveco Scudo I [13]
Fiorino [2] Doblò II [9] Scudo II [3] Ducato III / Promaster I [4]
Talento [11]
Daily VI
Opel, Vauxhall, Chevrolet, GMC Combo D [9] Vivaro A [5]
Vivaro B [11]
Movano B [6]
Express / Savana [7]
Renault, Nissan Kangoo II [10] Trafic II / Primastar I [5]
Trafic III / NV300 [11]
NV200 Master III / NV400 [6]
Mercedes-Benz, Freightliner Citan [10] Vito (BR 447) Sprinter II [1]
Volkswagen Caddy III / IV Transporter T5 / T6
Crafter [1]
ford Transit Courier Transit Connect transit
Transit Custom E series
Hyundai H-1 / H200 H350
StreetScooter Work / Work L
Cooperations & joint developments:

[1] Mercedes-Benz Sprinter is largely identical to the Freightliner Sprinter and VW Crafter; now also as Dodge Sprinter
[2] Fiat Fiorino is largely identical to Peugeot Bipper and Citroën Nemo
[3] Peugeot Expert II is largely identical to Citroën Jumpy II, Fiat Scudo II and Toyota Proace I
[4] Fiat Ducato is largely identical to Ram Promaster, Peugeot Boxer, Citroën Jumper
[5] Opel Vivaro A is largely identical to Vauxhall Vivaro A, Renault Trafic II and Nissan Primastar
[6] Opel Movano is largely identical to Vauxhall Movano, Renault Master and Nissan NV400
[7] Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana are largely identical
[8] Peugeot Partner and Citroën Berlingo are largely identical
[9] Fiat Doblò is largely identical to Opel Combo D
[10] Renault Kangoo is built with a few modifications as a Mercedes-Benz Citan
[11] Renault Trafic III is largely identical to Nissan NV300 and Fiat Talento
[12] Peugeot Expert III is largely identical to Citroën Jumpy III and Toyota Proace II
[13] Peugeot Expert I is largely identical ch with Citroën Jumpy I and Fiat Scudo I

Others, e.g. T. historical models

The following list shows selected, mostly historically important vans:

photos

  • DKW express truck

  • VW Transporter, second generation

  • Citroën type H

  • Chevrolet Express

  • Ford Transit Connect

  • Mercedes-Benz Sprinter

  • Peugeot Boxer

  • VW Crafter

  • Nissan NV200

Designs

In addition to the typical body shape of the panel van, there are a large number of other body shapes for small vans. Minibuses are often treated as a separate vehicle class.

  • Iveco Daily as a panel van

  • Iveco Daily with box body

  • Iveco Daily with flatbed

  • Iveco Daily as a chassis

  • Iveco Daily as a vehicle transporter

  • Iveco Daily as a minibus

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ FCA and Groupe PSA extend partnership until 2023 FCA press release dated February 14, 2019, accessed April 7, 2019.