Articles
In this series of articleds we will look at the car groups as mapped by our booking engine and match them with vehicles you can expect in that class. Vehicles in the fleet vary not only by supplier but also by geographical location. An example being that the suppliers and fleets in France will understandably favour French manufacturers but this isn't always the case. Supplier fleet managers will not only look for great deals locally but also at country level. When Europcar was owned by Volkswagen you could understandably see a lot of the VW group in fleets. But now with Europcar owned by a hedge fund and National Alamo owned by Europcar with other large suppliers also owned ultimately by hedge funds and profit orientated groups, the manufacturers used will most probably come down to bottom line costs.
To start with we are going to look at the most popular class especially in Europe. The Economy car hire class is above the lower calss of budget or mini and below the compact class or small family. These great hatchbacks are roomy enough for four adults and are economical on fuel. For a couple or group looking for something to make them mobile but not for long journeys then the economy class is a great choice.
Examples in the fleet which we are going to look at are the Vauxhall Corsa, Peugeot 207, Renault Clio, Toyota Yaris and Ford Fiesta. In our opinion these vehicles represent the most popular choices for supplier fleets in Europe.
Engine Types and Economy:
Engine sizes are very similar in this class with smallest being the 1.3 litre found in the Yaris with all the other models having 1.4 litre engines. Economy for the vehicles (petrol engines - please nore diesels are also in the fleets) 33.6 mpg for the Corsa up to an impressive 38.1 mpg for the smaller engined Yaris.
Boot Size
When all seats are up ready for passengers then the capacity of the boots ranges from 270 litres for the Peugeot 207 up to 288 for the Renault Clio. If there is only a couple driving then you can easily use the back seats for additional capacity or simply fold down the back seats. This dramatically increases boot space with up to 1,100 litres available (Vauxhall Corsa).
CO2 Emissions
This class is definately one of the greener in the fleet with fuel economy and CO2 emissions a key selling point for the manufacturers. Emmission range from 141g per km (Yaris) to 152 g per km (Peugeot).
