Seddon Atkinson

Seddon Atkinson

Seddon Atkinson Vehicles Limited, a manufacturer of large goods vehicles based in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, was formed in mid 1970 when Atkinson Vehicles Limited of Preston was acquired by Seddon Diesel Vehicles Limited of Oldham. In 1974 the firm was acquired by the American giant International Harvester, and in February 1983 it was purchased by the Spanish group ENASA which made it a subsidiary of Pegaso. In 1990 it became part of the international commercial vehicle concern IVECO who used the brand for various types of specialised vehicles in the United Kingdom. The range of models produced included EuroMover, Pacer and Strato, which are aimed at refuse collection, recycling and construction operators.

Iveco announced its decision to manufacture Seddon Atkinsons in Spain in 2005, and shortly afterwards the brand name was incorporated into the mainstream Iveco catalogue. The Oldham manufacturing facilities were shut-down in 2004, and the offices were closed at the end of 2006.

The range was sold across the UK by a network of 13 distributors, comprising a mix of dedicated Seddon Atkinson dealers together with dealers who also sell IVECO models, but by 2009 the Seddon Atkinson brand was discontinued.

Recent Seddon Atkinson vehicles were readily identifiable from other IVECO products because of the company's former Atkinson logo, a large letter 'A' within a circle, usually in chrome (or chrome-effect) on the radiator grille. The circular Atkinson logo dated from 1937, having largely replaced the 'Knight Of The Road' badge of earlier Atkinsons.