LDV Group

Last updated

LDV Group
Industry Automotive
Predecessor Leyland DAF
FoundedApril 1993
DefunctOctober 2009
Successor Maxus
Headquarters
ProductsVans
Number of employees
850 (2009)
Website www.ldv.com

LDV Group Limited, formerly Leyland DAF Vans, was a British van manufacturer based in Washwood Heath, Birmingham. Historically part of Rover Group and Leyland DAF, it was later a wholly owned subsidiary of the Russian GAZ Group. Owing to the global recession and a lack of long-term investment, production was suspended at the LDV factory in December 2008.

Contents

After a series of failed rescue attempts, the intellectual property rights were sold by administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers to Eco Concept in 2009, who sold them to SAIC Motor in 2010, with its Maxus subsidiary commencing production in China in March 2011.

History

High topped LDV Convoy from 2000 London Ambulance on Hamilton Terrace.jpg
High topped LDV Convoy from 2000
Low topped LDV Convoy 2002 LDV 400 Convoy Diesel SWB 2.4 Front.jpg
Low topped LDV Convoy
LDV Cub 2001 LDV Cub Diesel 2.3 Front.jpg
LDV Cub
LDV Pilot Ldvpilot.jpg
LDV Pilot
2005 LDV Maxus 2.8 CDi 95 SWB LDV Maxus 2.8 CDi 95 SWB 2005.jpg
2005 LDV Maxus 2.8 CDi 95 SWB

LDV was formed in April 1993 as Leyland DAF Vans, following a management buyout backed by 3i of DAF NV's Leyland DAF van manufacturing division, following the Dutch company being placed in administration. [1] [2] It was rebranded as LDV in January 1994. [3] [4]

Prior to its merger with Leyland Trucks and DAF Trucks in February 1987, it was part of the British Leyland/Rover Group empire, and was latterly the Freight Rover arm of the Land Rover Group division.

In December 2005, after going into administration, LDV was bought by group Sun Capital Partners, and was subject to a financial restructuring. [2] [5] What Van? reported LDV's commitment to its existing customers, including an assurance from their marketing director that their production target of 1,000 vans per month would put them well above break even point. [6]

The Russian GAZ Group acquired LDV on 31 July 2006. [7] Former Ford of Europe executive Martin Leach and former AT Kearney executive Steve Young were appointed to run the business and expand production at LDV's Birmingham plant by adding new product lines and entering new markets in Europe and elsewhere. [5]

GAZ had plans to export LDV technology to Russia, and start producing the Maxus, at the plant of GAZ Nizhny Novgorod in Russia, with 50,000 as an initial volume. [7] [8] There were also proposals to export the GAZ Maxus to Australia, a traditional market for British Leyland.

However, GAZ's plans never really showed any increased output, and due to the severe worldwide recession and a lack of long-term investment and commitment, production was suspended at the LDV factory in Birmingham in December 2008. After the British Government tried once again to save the company by agreeing to pour in £5 million of grants to enable Malaysia's WestStar Corporation to purchase LDV. WestStar failed to secure financing. [4] [2]

The intellectual property rights were sold by administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers to Chinese firm Eco Concept on 15 October 2009, [9] [10] who sold them to SAIC Motor in August 2010, with Maxus commencing production in China in March 2011. [11] [12]

Coincidentally, PWC were the same group of administrators who dealt with the demise of the MG Rover Group in 2005, the descendant of the original company Leyland Trucks was a part of. Also, SAIC Motor currently owns the rights to most of MG Rover's assets, reuniting the two companies.

Vehicles

LDV produced a range of panel vans, pick ups and minibuses, all available with various modifications and specifications. LDV's main customers were large British corporations, such as Royal Mail, National Grid plc and many other utility companies, which were politically persuaded to buy British built vehicles.[ citation needed ]

200/400 Series The plant produced what was known as the 200 and 400 Series vans, inside the plant these were known as the K2 and 210 respectively. After the factory went into receivership in 1993, and a management backed buyout headed by Allan Amey, the 200 and 400 were given a facelift on the existing chassis, and renamed Pilot and Convoy.

Convoy/Pilot

Until 2006, LDV produced the Convoy and Pilot, derived from the British Leyland Sherpa, and developed considerably throughout the 1970s to 1990s, and which were a common sight in the United Kingdom.

Cub

Between 1998 and 2001, LDV sold the Cub, a badge engineered Nissan Vanette Cargo. In June 1998, LDV entered into an agreement with Nissan, to sell a re branded version of the Nissan Serena MPV based Vanette Cargo. [13]

Maxus

The last range of vans, the Maxus, was introduced in the end of 2004. The Maxus was originally planned as a joint venture with Daewoo Motors of South Korea. Daewoo however, went into receivership in November 2000, before the project came to fruition. [14]

LDV subsequently acquired the exclusive rights to the van from General Motors, who had taken over Daewoo, and purchased the existing tooling and shipped it all to Birmingham from the Daewoo Plant in Poland where the van was originally intended to be built. [15] The Maxus was fitted with direct injection, common rail, diesel engines supplied by VM Motori. [16]

Sponsorships

LDV sponsored:

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GAZ</span> Russian manufacturer of commercial vehicles

GAZ or Gorkovsky avtomobilny zavod is a Russian automotive manufacturer located in Nizhny Novgorod, formerly known as Gorky (Горький) (1932–1990). It is the core subsidiary of GAZ Group Holding, which is itself part of Basic Element industrial group. JSC Russian Machines is the controlling shareholder in OAO GAZ.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Leyland</span> 1968–1986 automotive manufacturing conglomerate

British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd (BLMC), following the merger of Leyland Motors and British Motor Holdings. It was partly nationalised in 1975, when the UK government created a holding company called British Leyland, later renamed BL in 1978. It incorporated much of the British-owned motor vehicle industry, which in 1968 had a 40% share of the UK car market, with its history going back to 1895. Despite containing profitable marques such as Jaguar, Rover, and Land Rover, as well as the best-selling Mini, BLMC had a troubled history, leading to its eventual collapse in 1975 and subsequent part-nationalisation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rover Group</span> Former British automotive company

The Rover Group plc was the British vehicle manufacturing conglomerate known as "BL plc" until 1986, which had been a state-owned company since 1975. It initially included the Austin Rover Group car business, Land Rover Group, Freight Rover vans and Leyland Trucks. The Rover Group also owned the dormant trademarks from the many companies that had merged into British Leyland and its predecessors such as Triumph, Morris, Wolseley, Riley and Alvis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leyland Motors</span> Lorry and bus manufacturer

Leyland Motors Limited was a British vehicle manufacturer of lorries, buses and trolleybuses. The company diversified into car manufacturing with its acquisitions of Triumph and Rover in 1960 and 1967, respectively. It gave its name to the British Leyland Motor Corporation, formed when it merged with British Motor Holdings in 1968, to become British Leyland after being nationalised. British Leyland later changed its name to simply BL, then in 1986 to Rover Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washwood Heath</span> Human settlement in England

Washwood Heath is a ward in Birmingham, within the formal district of Hodge Hill, roughly two miles north-east of Birmingham city centre, England. Washwood Heath covers the areas of Birmingham that lie between Nechells, Bordesley Green, Stechford and Hodge Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SAIC Motor</span> Chinese automotive manufacturing company

SAIC Motor Corp., Ltd. is a Chinese state-owned automobile manufacturer headquartered in Anting, Shanghai. Founded in 1955, it is currently the largest of the "Big Four" state-owned car manufacturers of China, namely: SAIC Motor, FAW Group, Dongfeng Motor Corporation, and Changan Automobile, with car sales of 5.37 million, 3.50 million, 3.28 million and 2.30 million in 2021 respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daewoo Motors</span> Defunct South Korean automotive company

Daewoo Motors was a South Korean automotive company established in 1937 as "National Motors". The company changed its name several times until 1982 when it became "Daewoo Motors" following its acquisition by the Daewoo Group. After running into financial difficulties, it sold most of its assets in 2002 to General Motors at $1.2 billion, becoming a subsidiary of the American company. In 2011, the name "Daewoo" was definitively removed with the company being renamed GM Korea and the Daewoo brand replaced by the Chevrolet marque.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VM Motori</span> Italian diesel engine manufacturer

VM Motori S.p.A. is an Italian diesel engine manufacturing company which is wholly owned by Stellantis. VM headquarters and main production facilities are located in Cento, in Emilia-Romagna, Italy.

LDV may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LDV Maxus</span> Light commercial van model

The LDV Maxus is a light commercial van model, originally produced by LDV Limited. It was launched at the end of 2004. The model was jointly developed under the LD100 programme code by LDV and Daewoo Motor, prior to Daewoo entering receivership in November 2000, in a five year, £500 million development programme. It was intended to replace LDV's Convoy model, and Daewoo Motor Polska's Lublin II model. A narrower derivative sharing the bodysides of the SWB low-roof versions was partially developed under the BD100 codename to replace LDV's Pilot model, but this never reached production.

Leyland DAF was a commercial vehicle manufacturing company based in Leyland, United Kingdom, and a subsidiary of DAF NV. In February 1993, Leyland DAF was placed into receivership.

Freight Rover was a British commercial vehicle manufacturer based in the Washwood Heath area of Birmingham, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LDV Pilot</span> Motor vehicle

The LDV Pilot is a panel van that was produced by LDV Limited from 1996 until 2005, and closely based on preceding models dating back to the 1974 Leyland Sherpa developed by the Austin-Morris division of British Leyland, which was in turn derived from earlier light commercials produced by the British Motor Corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FSC Lublin Automotive Factory</span>

The FSC Lublin Automotive Factory commonly known as FSC, is a large motor vehicle factory in Poland established while the country was part of the Soviet Bloc. It was founded in 1950. The first vehicle left its assembly line on November 7, 1951. The factory was built on an open field in Lublin from the grounds up, to first produce light trucks and later vans, as well as vehicles for the military.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FSC Lublin</span> Motor vehicle

The FSC Lublin is a light commercial van produced by the Polish automaker FSC in Lublin. Production started in 1993, and was intended to replace the aging Żuk, which was finally discontinued in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LDV Convoy</span> Motor vehicle

The LDV Convoy is a light commercial van that was manufactured by LDV Limited between 1996 and 2006.

DAF NV was a holding company formed in April 1987, when DAF Trucks and the Leyland Trucks division of the Rover Group merged. In February 1993, it was placed in receivership.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GAZ Group</span>

GAZ Group is a Russian automotive conglomerate headquartered in Nizhny Novgorod. It comprises 18 manufacturing facilities in eight regions of Russia, as well as sales and service organizations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maxus</span> Chinese automobile manufacturer

SAIC Maxus Automotive Co., Ltd. trading as Maxus and sometimes known by the pinyin transcription of its Chinese name, Datong (大通) is a Chinese vehicle brand. Currently, it is a commercial and passenger vehicle manufacturer being a wholly owned subsidiary of SAIC Motor, which owns other brands such as MG and Roewe.

References

  1. Van firm in £1.5bn bid BBC News 2 May 2002
  2. 1 2 3 LDV: Countdown to collapse The Guardian 9 June 2009
  3. Leyland DAF in £8.6m rebound: Management brings change in fortunes and name The Independent 23 April 1994
  4. 1 2 State aid NN/41/2009 - Rescue Aid for LDV Group Limited European Commission 7 August 2009
  5. 1 2 "Russian company buys UK vanmaker". BBC. 31 July 2006. Retrieved 7 September 2007.
  6. "LDV reassures customers over warranty". What Van. 15 March 2006. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007.
  7. 1 2 "GAZ International". LDV. Archived from the original on 1 May 2007.
  8. GAZ plans to start Russian Maxus production in 2009 Auto Industry 5 November 2007
  9. "LDV assets sold to Chinese firm". BBC News. 15 October 2009. Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  10. Eco Concept snaps up the assets of LDV The Scotsman 15 October 2009
  11. "SAIC to Resurrect LDV Maxus". ChinaAutoWeb.com.
  12. SAIC launched new brand Maxus for cans China Car Times 3 March 2011
  13. "LDV to launch own version of Nissan Cargo one-tonne van". fleetnews.co.uk. 24 June 1998. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  14. LDV and Daewoo in £160m link-up BBC News 19 March 1998
  15. "Van maker plans 1,000 new jobs". BBC. 19 August 2003. Retrieved 7 September 2007.
  16. "Current Vehicles". VM Motori. Archived from the original on 18 December 2010. Retrieved 7 September 2007.
  17. All of Aston Villa's home kits from the Premier League era Birmingham Mail 19 June 2015
  18. Shirt Sponsors Archived 6 June 2020 at the Wayback Machine St Mirren Football Club

Commons-logo.svg Media related to LDV vehicles at Wikimedia Commons