Camden Takes Care Of Drivers With Toyota Avensis
Camden Group, founded in 1983, one of Europe’s largest suppliers of PVC windows, doors and conservatories, has gone all out to cater for the needs of its long-distance business car drivers. It recently specified top-of-the-range Toyota Avensis T-Spirit five-door hatchbacks for its entire sales fleet.
Account managers for the Antrim-based company, which supplies trade customers, cover the whole of the UK and southern Ireland in the course of their work. Now they are travelling in comfort in their silver 2.2 litre, 148PS Avensis D-4D diesels with six-speed manual transmission.
The ten cars were bought outright through Toyota Business Centre Donnelly and Taggart of Eglinton, replacing Volkswagen Passats in Camden’s 16-vehicle fleet.
Camden has a three-year replacement policy for its vehicles. “The change came about as the result of a regular fleet review, and our priorities in selecting the new cars were style and loadspace,” says Camden Group’s Logistics Manager Seamus Lavery.
The Avensis hatchback’s 510-litre boot capacity can be boosted to 1320 litres by folding the seats, providing generous space even for bulky sales samples.
“The Toyota Avensis met all the criteria we were looking for in a car,” said Mr Lavery. Since delivery the cars had been living up to expectations, he reported, adding that feedback from drivers had been “all positive”.
The Toyota Avensis 2.2 D-4D has a top speed of 130mph, 0-62mph acceleration in 9.3sec and combined-circuit fuel economy of 47.9mpg.
“After trying a demonstrator Seamus told me that one of his sales staff wanted leather trim, another had asked for cruise control, another for a CD-player, climate control and so on,” said Nicholas Thompson, Business Centre Manager at Donnelly & Taggart.
“I told him that the best thing to do would be to specify T-Spirits and get everything then everybody would be happy!” Standard features on Avensis T Spirit models include satellite navigation, dual climate-control air-conditioning, electric multi-adjustable seats with driver lumbar support, MP3-compatible six-CD players with eight speakers, cruise control, leather seats and alloy wheels. The Camden Group vehicles are also fitted with hands-free phone kits.
“Seamus agreed about the T-Spirits – and later told me he had decided to order the cars from Donnelly & Taggart because of the excellent level of service he had received,” said Mr Thompson.
ENDS