Vauxhall's got some great news for British carmaking

Which is your favourite Vauxhall? Not a question we regularly ask, but we suspect you’re shouting “VXR8!” or “Lotus Carlton!” at the screen nonetheless. But if you live in or around Luton, it probably ought to be this one.

This is the Vauxhall Vivaro, and it’s currently made in Luton. And it will be for some time yet. Vauxhall has announced that the next Vivaro – as well as the Citroen and Peugeot vans spun from the same box of bits – will be made in Luton when they start production in 2019.

It’s wonderful news for UK carmaking, given the question mark that appeared over Vauxhall’s British factories when the company was taken over by the PSA Group, aka Peugeot Citroen.

Adding French versions of the Vivaro to Luton’s line should up its annual production from around 60,000 vans to 100,000, too, meaning there’ll be more investment in Luton. And more jobs on offer, too.

There’s no word on the future of Vauxhall’s other plant, in Ellesmere Port, which produces the Astra. But a vote of confidence in Luton is a promising sign that Brexit uncertainty hasn’t completely scared off PSA. Time for a (cautiously) celebratory cup of tea, eh?