Vauxhall has revealed its all-new Vivaro van, heralding a bright future for the company’s Luton plant where the vehicle will be built.

The new Vivaro van will be available to order from February 2019 and will be arriving in Vauxhall showrooms in the summer of 2019. The third generation of the Vivaro medium van is based on a state-of-the-art platform and available in two lengths (L1H1 4.95m and L2H1 5.30m). The body styles include panel van, a doublecab for up to six occupants and a platform chassis.

Priced from £21,240 excluding VAT, the Vivaro will be available in three trim levels: Edition, Sportive and Elite. Additionally, dual side sliding door, driver/passenger airbags and cruise control with speed-limiter are all available as standard on Vivaro for the first time.

To reflect the demands of an evolving market, the Sportive models are a higher specification than the outgoing model with standard equipment including body coloured mirrors, handles and body side moulds, alarms, auto lights and wipers, acoustic windscreen and thickened side glazing.

The top-of-the range Elite model features the latest safety technology as standard including Lane Departure Warning, Speed Limit Information, Intelligent Speed Adaptation, Driver Attention Alert Level Three and Blind Spot Detection.

Vauxhall’s all-new Vivaro, which is based on Groupe PSA’s EMP2 platform, will help secure 1,250 jobs at its manufacturing plant in Luton. Vauxhall is the UK’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer with over one million Vivaro-type vans built since production started in 2001. The continued investment in the new vehicle will help increase the plant’s production capacity to 100,000 units per year.

The new Vivaro allows Vauxhall to continue to implement its PACE! strategic plan by investing in growing market segments with high volumes. In addition to this, Vauxhall will offer a purely electric version of the vehicle in 2020, another key milestone on the journey to electrify the brand. Groupe PSA is the leader in the European light commercial vehicle (LCV) business and, in future, Vauxhall/Opel will also have responsibility for the global development of LCVs for the whole of the group.

Steve Eley, Lookers Vauxhall’s Franchise Director commented, “It is great to see Vauxhall introduce yet another Vivaro to the market. This third-generation of the Vivaro truly reflects the demands of an ever-evolving market.

“This paired with the creation of jobs at their manufacturing plant in Luton, truly portrays that Vauxhall is continuing to move in the right direction with a vehicle that sits at the heart of their commercial vehicle range.”

The Vivaro will celebrate its world premiere at the CV show in Birmingham on 30th April 2019.

Payload, Capacity and Flexibility

With a maximum cargo capacity of 6.6m3, the new Vivaro Van has a payload of up to 1400kg which is 200kg more than its predecessor. It is the same with its towing weights: the maximum trailer load is 2500kg, 500kg more than the outgoing model.

Objects up to 4.02m long can be stowed securely in the 5.30m version thanks to Flex Cargo, an optional load-through flap under the passenger seat. The FlexCargo also allows the back of the middle seat to fold down to become a table for documents, a notebook or a tablet.

For the first time on a Vivaro, automatic sliding doors are also available. Additionally, a foot movement towards the sensors on the vehicle is all that is needed to open the door. The IntelliGrip traction control system (an optional feature) allows stability and safety on a variety of slippery surfaces such as mud, sand or snow. The work-site set-up comprises of higher ground clearance and underbody protection.

Driver assistance systems and connectivity

The new Vivaro is bristling with all the latest technology, on a par with the driver assistance systems and connectivity that is usually only seen in passenger cars. The Vivaro is also available with a Head Up Display so that drivers can see all important information and keep their eyes on the road. The additional front-camera and radar-based systems include:

• Lane Keep Assist
• Traffic Sign Recognition
• Drowsiness Alert, which advises the driver to take a break after two hours of non-stop driving, or by monitoring the driving behaviour, warns of drowsiness via usual and acoustic signals.
• Adaptive cruise control, which adjusts the speed according to that of the preceding vehicle, without actively braking.
• Forward Collision Alert, which gives two-level warning of a potential front impact.
• Automatic Emergency Braking, which can avoid a crash or reduce its effects. 

The Vivaro van features ultrasonic sensors in the front and rear aprons. They warn the driver of obstacles when parking and monitor the side blind spot. Depending on the equipment level, the rear-view camera image is displayed either in the interior mirror on the seven-inch display.

The Multimedia and Multimedia Navi infotainment systems come with a large seven-inch touchscreen. They both feature phone integration via Apple CarPlay and Android Auto; the Navi system also features European navigation with 3D view.

With a multitude of seating adjustments, some of them electric, including lumbar support and armrest, mean the driver-oriented cockpit is as comfortable as that of a passenger car.