VOC – detailed description

  1. Category: Car&4x4

Make: Opel Vectra

Even if this make seem to be the most “popular” car on the M3 corridor, there are basically no new Opel Vectra cars sold in Moldova, so this data should be taken into account carefully.

  1. Category: Minibus

Make: Mercedes Benz 210

Data expected from the Moldavian Auto Center SRL (Mercedes Benz official dealer in Moldova): fax sent on 08/10/2008 – to call back 022499 999

  1. Category: Medium and Large Bus

Make: Mercedes O 303

Data needed from the Bus stations: Central and South-Eastern. Need to make a visit. Difficulties in getting a contact in these institutions, various phone calls made and nobody picked up the phone. Thus, a field visit is needed as well as an observation of the main makes of medium and large buses at these stations. If the buses and minibuses from the South-Eastern station drive basically only via R34 (and use the M3 from Valea Perjei and further to Cimislia, Comrat, Vulcanesti), there are some buses from the Central station driving M3 from the beginning (like for the destinations Chisinau-Bacioi, Chisinau-Razeni, Chisinau-Porumbrei etc.). – visit made to the Northern Bus station on the 18/10/2008. There are many medium buses (basically more than large buses) on the chassis of Mercedes Benz 807, 809 etc. but the question is whether is better to take larger buses as our typical vehicle for this category. For the large buses, the predominant model is the Mercedes Benz O303.

  1. Category: 4 wheels LGV

Make: Ford Transit

Following the data of the field survey, the representative make for this category is the van Ford Transit. This is a logical output, as these are generally “mixt” vehicles: 4+1 or 5+1 seats, a good multipurpose alternative ranging between a small car and a goods vehicle. Most of these vehicles are bought at the auto market in Moldova or imported by the owners themselves from the Western European countries. The prices of a 7-10 years old Ford Transit range between 6000 and 8000 euros at the auto market. At the same time, there is an official Ford dealer in Moldova – the DAAC Hermes holding - The dealer proposes to its clients a wide choice of Ford Transit vans: low, medium or high roof, with engines going from 85 to 145 HP and the price varying from 19360 Eur for a 300 SWB Low Roof, 85 HP Ford Transit to 20710 Eur for the 300 SWB Medium Roof 110 HP Ford Transit and to 24030 Eur for the 350 LWB High Roof 140 HP modification (see for a complete information about the available models and modifications).

A visit to the Ford dealer in Moldova (address: Chisinau, 17 Petricani str.) has been made in order to collect some additional information on this type of vehicle.

Date of the visit: 14/10/2008. Respondent: Vadim Potorac, Director of Ford Moldova.

Ford Moldova was funded in 2003 and is a company of the Daac Hermesholding. The sales of vehicles made by Ford Moldova increase by 30%/year; in 2008, Ford Moldova sold about 300 vehicles, including 40 Ford Transit vans. The most sold modification in the category of Ford Transit vans is the 350 LWB 2.4 TDCi, at a price of 24.000 Eur. These are exclusively goods vehicles (there are generally 1+1 or 2+1 seats configurations and not 4+1 or 5+1 like for most of the imported Ford vans. From the 40 new vans sold in Moldova, only 4 were windowed on the sides and had more than 3 seats). This could be explained by the fact that the new vehicles are bought exclusively by companies and not by individuals, thus used 100% for work trips. For more detailed VOC data for this vehicle, see the VOC translated file.

  1. Category: 6 wheels LGV

Make: Mercedes Benz 412

Data expected from the Moldavian Auto Center SRL (Mercedes Benz official dealer in Moldova): fax sent on 08/10/2008 – to call back 022499 999

6. Category: medium truck (2 axles)

Make: MAN 8.163

Identified from the survey and after a discussion with a sales manager of the MAN dealer in Moldova (Autoforta SA). For more detailed VOC data for this vehicle, see the VOC translated file.

7. Category: 3 axle truck

Make: KAMAZ – data to request from the Road State Administration (Following Mr Severin, they have some data for the VOC).

8. Category: Articulated truck (4+ axles)

Make: MAN 18-140

Identified from the survey and after a discussion with a sales manager of the MAN dealer in Moldova (Autoforta SA). For more detailed VOC data for this vehicle, see the VOC translated file.

Note: A fax with the VOC form has also been sent to Mr Cuculescu. He has some experience in collecting the VOC data and could provide some useful information in this way. Also, it would be useful to request some VOC data from the Road State administration and ask them about their methods of collecting/calculating this data.