Vincentric's Best Fleet Value Awards Announced

*Fleet production of the Ford Freestar ends April 2007.

BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MI – Vincentric’s Best Fleet Value in America awards have been announced, with General Motors, Toyota, and Ford Motor Co. brands each taking top honors in 7 of the 30 vehicle segments. The Chrysler Group also had a strong showing, winning four different categories. Due to increased availability, hybrid vehicles were eligible for the fleet awards this year, with the Toyota Prius hybrid and the Mercury Mariner hybrid winning awards. To determine Vincentric’s Best Fleet Value in America awards, Vincentric used its ongoing, comprehensive analysis of fleet lifecycle costs to identify the best fleet values in the industry. The company measured eight cost factors for more than 2,000 vehicle configurations in the 2007-model year, with 12 different mileage/lifecycle timeframe scenarios used in each of the 50 states, plus D.C. The resulting 9 million lifecycle cost measurements were then reviewed to determine the winning vehicles. The eight cost factors that determined overall lifecycle costs were depreciation, fuel, insurance, opportunity cost, financing, maintenance, taxes and state fees, and repairs. These costs were integrated with the Vincentric Fleet Price, which estimates the acquisition cost for each vehicle in the study. “The variety of winning brands shows that fleet buyers are justified in looking at multiple manufacturers when reviewing their fleet needs. Our winning vehicles provide great value in a wide range of lifecycle scenarios,” stated David Wurster, president of Vincentric. “Annual mileage was measured ranging from a low of 20,000 miles to a high of 30,000 miles, along with timeframes from 24 to 60 months of ownership.” The vehicle segments and the winners of Vincentric’s Best Fleet Value in America awards for the 2007 model year are listed below. In addition, a review of each winner and further information about the study is available at www.vincentric.com.