Mayor’s chauffeur swaps the car for a sleigh as he embarks on an arctic fundraiser
Mayor of Dudley's chauffeur will be "driving" a sledge pulled by huskies as part of his latest fundraising trip
Mayor’s chauffeur, Mike Crannage, will be getting to grips with a very different vehicle when he undertakes his latest fundraising expedition.
The 51-year-old chauffeur usually spends his days driving the mayor of Dudley to his formal engagements. However the Jag will now be swapped for a pack of huskies and a sleigh when the energetic chauffeur embarks on his gruelling arctic challenge in Northern Norway this March.
Mr Crannage will put his chauffeur duties on hold for seven days as he tackles his new challenge. The course will see the 51-year-old travel across a 250 kilometre course through freezing conditions where temperatures often plummet to -30c. The chauffeur from Dudley will be expected to put in 8-10 hour days mostly running alongside the huskies, and steering the sleigh through the rough terrain.
The gruelling trip requires plenty of physical stamina and fitness, something Mr Crannage has in bucket loads. Coming from an army background, the mayor’s attendant is accustomed to hard work, and enjoys keeping fit by running marathons regularly.
All of the money raised from the expedition will be donated to the Mayor of Dudley’s favoured causes. Mr Crannage has previously raised money for the Mayor’s charities, namely Dudley Stroke Association, and Dudley Mind and The Open Stage Learning Group.
Give your limo fleet a fresh new face
Hummer Limos
We discover a cheap, effective way of making re-inventing your vehicles to keep up with growing trends.
Trends are funny things – they come, and then they have gone before we know it. When it comes to buying vehicles for your fleet, you simply cannot keep up with trends, as this would see you replacing cars on a constant basis.
Vinyl wrapping is growing in popularity, and allows you to breathe new life into your vehicles without long-term effects – only to your pocket!
The full story can be seen at thechauffeur.com
Hyundai reveals stunning chauffeurs limo
Hyundai Equus
Hyundai has began receiving orders for the long wheelbase edition of its most luxurious car, the EQUUS.
The stretch edition offers several upgraded features from the normal sedan version, including differentiated exterior designs and longer overall length. The engine and other functions have been reinforced to attain first-class performance, safety, comfort and convenience.
With the comfort of passengers at the forefront of its design principle, the EQUUS Limousine, as it is named in Korea, offers passengers unparalleled levels of interior volume. The vehicle’s length is longer than major competitors by as much as 310 mm, with backseat legroom as much as 376 mm longer, as well.
See the full review at thechauffeur.com
New London Audi Centre hopes to attract chauffeurs
The brand new Audi centre in London
The brand new Audi Centre opened in West London earlier this month with a dazzling star-studded event to mark the occasion. Costing £45 million to create, the exclusive Audi store is now the biggest in the world. The car manufacturer recently suggested that Audi plans to extend its chauffeur programme to create more vehicles aimed specifically at the chauffeur market.
Hoards of celebrities turned out for the prestigious opening of West London Audi including Gordon Ramsey, Davina McCall, Beverley Knight, Bryan Ferry and Jamie and Louise Rednapp.
The magnificent 190,000 sq foot building took 6 years to design and build. The new centre also enjoys very convenient road links as it is perched just next to the M4 motorway. With 7 storeys and 3 extensive showrooms, the new Audi Centre can display up to 116 cars at any one time. So if there are any chauffeurs looking to add to their fleet out there, head down to West London Audi to view the huge range of exclusive vehicles on offer.
With 100 employees and 30,000 customers expected to walk through the doors within the next year, the new store is braced for big things. The director of Audi UK explained how the new centre will benefit the manufacturer: “By creating retail premises of this magnitude with this level of sophistication, we are ensuring that our extensive and contemporary line-up of cars gets the showcase it deserves.”
One woman chauffeur hire service is launched
Carol Jones launches new chauffer service
An ambitious former saleswoman from Lincolnshire has taken the plunge and launched her own chauffeur hire business. After years of aspiring to become her own boss, Carol Jones’s love of driving spurred her on to set up her own chauffeur hire company. Although the business is still in its infancy, Carol has big plans for Jones Private Hire.
Initially 45-year-old Carol will run the company on her own. Once she’s established the company her husband Iddy will join her next year. The entrepreneur offers a high quality service and has invested in a Chrysler 300C, nicknamed the Baby Bentley, in order to offer clients an extremely comfortable and luxurious ride.
Jones Private Hire plans to target customers looking for chauffeur driven transport to special events including weddings, birthday and anniversary parties, and school proms. Another market Carol is hoping to break into is corporate travel and business clients. Carol has every faith in her fledgling company explaining “We are a luxury and very affordable in terms of the service we provide. The car is extremely high class and it’s a lovely vehicle.”
In order to further her expertise, Mrs Jones is about to undertake a driving instructor course. As the business expands and develops this extra skill will be very useful in training new drivers and ensuring a high level of safety is maintained.
With almost 20 years experience in the travel and hospitality industry Mrs Jones is extremely adept at providing a superior standard of customer care which will stand her in good stead for this new venture. Early signs for the up and coming company are encouraging with many bookings already being taken for 2010.
D-Day For Limo Hire Industry Sparks London Demo Convoy
VOSA
More than forty stretched limousines have travelled to Parliament Square, London today in protest of new powers which many say will kill the limousine industry.
From yesterday, (1st October 2009) the Vehicle Operators and Services Agency (VOSA) has the power to impound vehicles which are designed to carry more than eight passengers if they do not comply with strict legislation.
A letter was also sent to thousands of UK operators three weeks ago demanding that their vehicles must hold a Certificate Of Initial Fitness (COIF) and the owner must have an operators licence to be legal.
Following this, hundreds of limousine operators from throughout the UK attended Drive ’09, the trade show for the chauffeur and limousine trades last weekend, to find out from VOSA officials what will happen to them if legislation is enforced from today.
See full story at thechauffeur.com
Chauffeur and limo car hire industry survey set to discover its future
Limo Chauffeur
Is the economic downturn affecting the chauffeur and limousine industry? Well, that is the question a brand-new industry survey is asking, exclusive to thechauffeur.com
It is common knowledge that the car market has slowed to an all time low – so have car manufacturers been successful in targeting fleet buyers who need to replace vehicles on a regular basis?
A similar survey was carried out a few years ago, and focused on what brands chauffeurs and limousine owners were driving. Now, during the recession, thechauffeur.com is concentrating on finding out if operators are planning to increase their fleets and if they have experience a decline or increase in bookings.
Many say their hire bookings have never been so high, but then the industry has seen a record amount of business collapse in the past twelve months.
Nick Clarke from Star Limousine based in East Sussex commented; “We have just reported a record high in limousine bookings in recent months. It seems as if clients still have extra cash in their pockets to spend on special occasions”
He added; “We also represent the largest coachbuilders in the world, Krystal Enterprizes, so we see both sides of the limousine industry. Although sales have slowed down, we have not had a decline in the operators wanting to buy – it is just the issue of getting finance which sometimes causes problems.”
The survey is open to every operator within the trade and it can be found here: https://app.icontact.com/icp/sub/survey/start?sid=2253&cid=518900
Chauffeurs get new Lexus LS600h limo for 2010
Lexus LS600h
Extra comfort and economy is at the top of list for the next generation of the chauffeurs favourite Lexus LS600h.
Revealed at the Frankfurt motor show, Lexus has revealed the new model with reach the vital Euro V emissions standards and a more compact battery packaging allowing chauffeurs more boot space than the previous model.
A new ECO mode which modifies the throttle action and performance of the air conditioning system to support fuel-efficient driving has also been announced.
The movement of the accelerator pedal and system output is automatically controlled, reducing response to aggressive inputs to improve fuel economy and promote smoother driving. The load on the engine is also reduced under acceleration, which also helps improve fuel efficiency.
On the outside, the revised model is distinguished visually by a new four-bar grille and front bumper with redesigned air intakes and fog lamps. The headlamps have a new running light design and are finished in Lexus hybrid blue.
In profile, the car has a new one-piece rocker moulding and new door mirrors that incorporate twin LED turn signals and puddle lamps, with chrome highlights.
More information at thechauffeur.com
VOSA Invites Limo Hire Industry to Ask
Following the announcement of new legislation for over eight passenger limousines, VOSA is inviting members of the limousine industry to find answers to vital questions.
VOSA
The Government agency will be hosting an exclusive seminar at Drive ‘09 – The Professional Drivers Event to find out the concerns of the industry and explain new laws.
Organisers are compiling questions from the industry which will be put to officials at the seminar on both days of the event.
Want to know what you need to do to keep within the law? Don’t understand the new legislation? Want to know what is happening about illegal operators? Now is the chance to ask.
See Drive 09 for more details.
Limousine hire industry could be killed warns operator
VOSA
Thousands of stretched limousines across the country could be made redundant from next month if new legislation’s are not taken seriously.
Letters were sent to limousine operators this week by the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) giving them twenty days to get vehicles certified to Certificate of Initial Fitness (COIF) standards if their vehicles carry more than eight passengers.
They were also told to make sure they hold a valid Operators Licence, or risk having their vehicles impounded under the new legislation which come into effect in October.
Nick Clarke, owner of Star Limousines based in East Sussex told thechauffeur.com; “Most of the industry received letters this week notifying them of the changes. It basically means that operators like us who run vehicles such as Hummer H2 limousine will have to obtain a COIF certificate if we want to continue trading.”
He added; “Unfortunately this cannot happen overnight and can take weeks to complete and costs around £15,000. Also it takes a minimum of six weeks to get an operators licence. I do fear that many operators will simply disappear when this legislation is enforced.”
Operators throughout the country are being encouraged to attend the UK’s biggest trade event for the limousine and chauffeur industry to hear VOSA talk about the new legislation. The event takes place on 26th and 27th September 2009 at the Transport Research Laboratory, near Bracknell, Berkshire.
To attend, visit www.drive09.co.uk and register free-of-charge.
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