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| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry |
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| Predecessor | Bedford Vehicles |
| Founded | 1986; 39 years ago (1986) |
| Defunct | April 2025; 7 months ago (April 2025) |
| Headquarters | Luton,Bedfordshire, |
Key people |
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| Products |
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| Revenue | £493,263,000 (2013)[1] |
| £20,331,000 (2013) | |
| £17,450,000 (2013) | |
| Total assets | £93,282,000 (2013) |
Number of employees | 923 (2013)[2] |
| Parent | Stellantis |
IBC Vehicles Limited was a Britishautomotive manufacturing company based inLuton,Bedfordshire, and since 2021, a wholly owned subsidiary of the multinational corporationStellantis. Its principal operation was theVauxhall Luton assembly plant, which producedlight commercial vehicles under theCitroën,Opel,Peugeot,Vauxhall,Fiat Professional, andToyota brands. Production ceased in April 2025.
IBC Vehicles has its roots inBedford Vehicles, the truck and bus manufacturing subsidiary of Vauxhall.
In 1986, the Bedford van factory in Luton was reorganised as a joint venture withIsuzu, resulting in the formation ofIBC Vehicles (Isuzu Bedford Company Limited). Its first product was theBedford Midi, abadge engineered clone of the Isuzu Fargo midsizepanel van, replacing the ageingBedford CF. The Suzuki-basedBedford Rascal microvan followed in 1987.
In 1992, IBC produced European versions of theIsuzu MU (Opel/Vauxhall Frontera Sport) and theIsuzu MU Wizard (Opel/Vauxhall Frontera), alongside a range ofRenault-designed vans sold under the Opel, Vauxhall, and Renault brands. The Bedford name was dropped, and the Frontera A was produced from 1992 to 1998, followed by the Frontera B from 1998 to 2004.
In 1998,General Motors bought out Isuzu's stake in IBC[3] and renamed the plantGM Manufacturing Luton (GMM Luton).
In 2017, GM sold Opel, including Vauxhall and theLuton plant, toGroupe PSA. Groupe PSA later merged withFiat Chrysler Automobiles to form Stellantis in January 2021.
GMM Luton produced theOpel/Vauxhall Vivaro A,Renault Trafic II, andNissan Primastar.[4] High-roof versions were built by Renault inBarcelona due to height constraints at theLuton plant. By 2011, the plant had produced 1.25 million vehicles since 2001, with a production capacity of 100,000 but output of 68,000 annually.
In 2011, Opel/Vauxhall confirmed that production of the 2013 Vivaro would continue at Luton, while high-roof versions and the Renault Trafic moved toSandouville, France.[5]
In August 2014, the factory began producing theRenault Trafic III and the Vauxhall Vivaro. In July 2016, it added theFiat Talento, followed by theNissan NV300 in November 2016.
Between 2015 and 2019, Renault, Opel, Vauxhall, Nissan, andFiat Professional announced that high-roof and left-hand-drive variants of the Trafic, Vivaro, NV300, and Talento would be built in Sandouville. Right-hand-drive, low-roof versions continued production inLuton.
Several of these vehicles, including the Renault Trafic III, Opel/Vauxhall Vivaro B, Nissan Primastar II and Nissan NV300, were transformed post-production (e.g., interior conversions, wheelchair accessibility, stickers) at Renault Pro+'s Heudebouville Qstomize site in Normandy, in France, while the Fiat Talento II was processed in Italy.
In late 2018, production of the Renault Trafic, Fiat Talento, Nissan NV300, and the Vivaro moved to Sandouville.
In early 2020, the plant began producing theVauxhall Vivaro C,Citroën Dispatch and SpaceTourer,Peugeot Expert and Traveller, and Toyota ProAce and ProAce Verso.[6] In May 2022, the factory also began producing theFiat Scudo and Fiat Ulysse.
Production ceased in April 2025.
Irish poet and TV presenterPat Ingoldsby worked in the factory in the 1960s.[7]
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