[New] Take Me adds Premier Cars of Oldbury as West Midlands fleet reaches 900 cars

Mark Bursa

Take Me Group has made a further acquisition in the West Midlands, pushing its combined fleet in the region to 900 cars.

The deal sees Premier Cars of Oldbury join the Take Me group, adding a further 80 cars to the combined fleet of existing Birminghambased Take Me subsidiaries T C Cars and Heritage Cars.

As part of Take Me’s national rebranding policy, the three companies will gradually adopt Take Me branding. Premier Cars was founded 13 years ago by husband-andwife team John and Clare Davis, and they will be remaining with the business. Meanwhile Take Me directors David Hunter and John Gardner have been appointed as directors of Premier Cars, along with Heritage Cars directors Suky and Hardip Sangha.

“Joining Take Me will take Premier to the next level – it’s going to have a big impact on the business,” said John Davis.

The Premier deal is Take Me’s second West Midlands deal in the past two months. Nuneaton-based Direct Taxis merged with the company’s existing TC Cars operation in October, adding a further 70 cars.

Take Me group now has a substantial presence across the midlands, including Bounds Group, Intercity, Lee Cabs and the former ADT business in Leicester, now rebranded Take Me.

Ford reveals all-electric E-Tourneo Custom alongside new PHEV and diesel models

Mark Bursa

Operators looking for an electric sevenseater will receive a boost in the second half of 2023 with the launch of the new Ford Pro E-Tourneo Custom, offering a practical people-mover with a pure electric range of 230 miles.

E-Tourneo Custom is one of four new allelectric Ford Pro models being launched in Europe by 2024. It is aimed at both private and business customers, offering spacious accommodation for up to eight occupants.

Tourneo Custom customers can also choose a plug-in hybrid version, along with an EcoBlue diesel in three power outputs with new high-efficiency eight-speed automatic gearbox, and, for the first time, an intelligent all-wheel drive system.

The EV version uses the same high-density battery cell technology as the Ford F-150 Lightning pick-up, combining a 74kWh battery with a 160kW electric motor. An onboard 11kW AC three-phase charger is capable of fully recharging the battery in less than 8 hours, and a 15-80% recharge will take around 41 minutes using a 125kW DC fast charger.

The PHEV uses a parallel hybrid system to combine a 2.5-litre Atkinson cycle petrol engine with an electric motor and 11.8kWh battery pack, giving pure-electric driving range of 31 miles. Tourneo Custom is available in standard and long wheelbases, each offering three rows of seating, with up to eight seats in E-Tourneo Custom and a maximum of nine seats in Tourneo Custom PHEV and diesel models. The rear can also be configured in six-person conference layout.