SIXT says commercial vehicles make up a considerable portion of its Australian fleet and includes utes, light trucks, tippers, and mining-specification vehicles.
It has acquired 45 Iveco Daily 35S vans to meet the growing needs of its long-term rental customers working in pick-up and delivery applications.
The 12m³ vans feature a 2.3l turbodiesel engine, 8-speed automatic, along with, a raft of standard active and passive safety features including four SRS airbags, Advanced Emergency Braking System, and a suite of nine electronic driving aids.
SIXT national commercial fleet manager Ian Moore has been with the company since its inception in Australia but 25 years’ experience in the rental industry – he says that the Daily vans were a great fit for SIXT and the requirements of its clients.
“From a specification standpoint, the Daily offered an extremely close match to what we seek in a van,” Moore says.
“The vehicles we select need to be practical and flexible to suit varying final mile delivery duties and must also align with SIXT’s broader requirements around safety and emission performance.
“The Daily meets Euro6 emission levels and is also well equipped from a safety standpoint – it’s important we can provide these benefits to our customers as well as other road users,” he says
Another major consideration for SIXT is the comfort and user friendliness of its fleet
“Users of the Daily will typically spend long hours at the wheel each day and often in city areas where there’s traffic congestion, so it’s vital that we chose a model that was comfortable and easy to use,” Moore says.
“With the automatic transmission, driver appointments and car-like seating position, the Daily is simple to drive; access to the cabin and load space is also good, which makes it less tiring for drivers who are regularly getting in and out of the vehicle to make deliveries,” he says.
Moore says a major reason for SIXT’s rapid acceptance in Australia was due to its customer-centric focus.
“SIXT might be a newer entrant in Australia, but the company has been a major player in Europe for more than 100 years,” Moore says.
“We’ve drawn on this vast experience along with a thorough understanding of the local market to hit the ground running. We’ve worked hard to remove friction points that customers may have contended with at other providers, and our goal is to deliver them a premium overall experience every time,” he says.
Another area of emphasis for SIXT is what it terms ‘the green mobility transformation’ – it’s a transformation that’s already begun with the company boasting one of the country’s largest passenger EV rental fleets. Commercial fleet electrification is also on SIXT’s agenda with interest being shown in Iveco’s new eDaily.
“We’re aware of the eDaily model and its availability in Europe and know that the range is also slated for launch in Australia later in the year. On paper these models would meet a lot of our requirements in the commercial EV space. We look forward to them landing,” Moore says.
