Premiere Polish Transforms Fleet Into Clean Green Prius

By: KatieJones

The Premiere Polish Co Ltd., an 84-year-old sales car company, transformed its entire 45-strong fleet into a fleet of Toyota Prius units. The said company trading as Premiere Products was able to save up to 30 percent on running costs by switching to the Prius. Aside from this, the company also prides itself on its stirring commitment to environmental responsibility.

Premiere Polish manufactures and distributes chemicals and machines for commercial and industrial cleaning and maintenance. It is employing 225 staff at its seven-acre head office site in Cheltenham. Last month, Premiere Products managed a user-chooser car fleet consisting of up to 15 models from eight automakers which was benchmarked according to leasing charges. It was also in February when the first three silver Prius units, running on both gasoline and electric, have been delivered for use by the company's team of sales personnel. The company is operating both in the United States and Europe. The company intends to transform its entire fleet to hybrid vehicles.

"We took the first step when we decided to make the fleet all-diesel about three years ago," said Premiere Products Assistant Managing Director Andrew Marquand. "This time round we decided to specify an environmentally-friendly hybrid car, and because of its loadspace the Toyota Prius was the only one fit for our purpose."

The Toyota Prius, in both T3 and T4 form, are being supplied on full-maintenance contract hire over three years or 80,000 miles by Masterlease. The said transaction is made through local Business Centre Brooklyn Toyota of Cheltenham. "There's been quite a lot of excitement among the drivers, because this is an innovative car and the whole driving experience is quite different. They seem to have taken to the Prius like ducks to water," said Marquand the day after the first vehicles arrived.

"The environmental benefits are apparent but this is primarily a cost-saving exercise," shares this assistant managing director. As a hybrid vehicle, the Prius is reported to be hugely economical in terms of fuel consumption. Marquand added, "We'll also make savings on Road Fund Licences, on congestion charging in London and any other cities where it's imposed, and on taxation based on vehicle emissions for the company and for individual drivers. I also expect to see an enormous reduction in administration time by using one type of vehicle in one colour and just two models."

The assistant managing director paid tribute to the Toyota Fleet for helping his team to familiarize itself with hybrid technology. "It was brilliant in allowing us to have a demonstrator first for a week and then for two months. That meant that my fellow-directors and a number of other members of the management and some of our sales staff had the chance to provide their input. That's something we have always tried to do, to ensure that we choose appropriate vehicles."

In the US, the Toyota Prius attracted purchasers not because of or other typical auto parts that were used. The lure includes the vehicle's low particulate emissions, advanced technology, and high fuel economy. Last year, the demand for the Toyota Prius soared due to some attendant factors that cover federal government's tax credits that eventually reduced the end-price the vehicle. In addition, some states also introduced privileges for hybrid vehicle drivers. These states include California, Maryland and Virginia which have allowed single-occupant hybrid vehicles in HOV-lanes.

The Toyota Prius is scheduled to entertain a redesign for the 2009 model year. The redesign will make significant upgrades to make the vehicle more appealing to customers. It has been mentioned that the new vehicle will receive an upgrade of gasoline engine from 1.5 to 1.8 liters. The vehicle will also receive more powerful lithium ion batteries to be more spacious.

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