2
NEWS
London cab trial begins in Melbourne
Chinese-built, London-style cabs with free Wi-Fi and seating for six to be considered as a replacement for Falcon, CommodoreA London-style taxi took to Melbourne streets this week as part of a trial aimed at investigating whether the vehicle is a suitable replacement for the locally-built Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore, both of which will cease production within the next three years.
The London Taxi Company, which has already trialled a small fleet of cabs in Perth, says it hopes to start a 100-strong trial fleet in Melbourne before the end of the year. Its Chinese-built grey cabs – with a look resembling the famous Austin-built FX3 Black Cab of the 1950s that was once a staple of London streets – will be bolstered with stronger cooling systems and better air-conditioning to cope with Australia's harsher weather conditions.
However, some drivers in the Perth trial have already reported braking issues. The manufacturer recalled the vehicles involved, and says it has now improved braking performance by as much as 30 per cent.
The London-style taxi, which costs the same to buy as a regular sedan-based cab, offers seating for six, five of whom are separated by a Perspex wall from the driver, and free Wi-Fi access. Built by Chinese manufacturer Geely since 2008, the TX4 cab is powered by a VM Motori 2.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine rated at 75kW and 240Nm and mated to an Eaton five-speed automatic transmission.
Speaking to Melbourne radio station 3AW this week, London Taxi Company CEO, Evan Simeon, said the trial is very exciting.
"We've got a vehicle we need to evaluate and it is very exciting," said Simeon.
"We'd like to trial at least 100 here in Victoria as a sample patch and then work from that. We have just landed a London taxi in Melbourne for evaluation for use... the Taxi Services Commission has just approved the London taxi for use as a conventional taxi in Victoria."
"We've already done, quite interestingly, three and a half million kilometres in the trial in Perth and carried over 60,000 passengers," he concluded.
Tags
Share this article
Written byCarsales Staff
See all articlesOur team of independent expert car reviewers and journalistsMeet the team
Stay up to dateBecome a carsales member and get the latest news, reviews and advice straight to your inbox.
Subscribe todaySell your car with Instant Offer™
Like trade-in but price is regularly higher
1. Get a free Instant Offer™ online in minutes2. An official local dealer will inspect your car3. Finalise the details and get paid the next business day
Get a free Instant Offer
Disclaimer
Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
Love every move.
Buy it. Sell it.Love it.
®Contact
Advertise with us
Local marketplaces
International marketplaces
Scan to download the carsales app
Want more info? Here’s our app landing page
App Store and the Apple logo are trademarks of Apple Inc. Google Play and the Google Play logo
are trademarks of Google LLC.