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fter years of deliberation, Fiat Professional has
finally launched its Doblo van in Australia, pitched
at established compact cargo carriers such as the
market-leading Volkswagen Caddy, Renault’s Kangoo and the
Citroen Berlingo.
Priced from $22,000, the front-drive Doblo has arrived with
petrol and diesel powertrain options, two wheelbase lengths
(4,390mm and 4,740mm), plenty of standard equipment for the
money and claims from the Australian subsidiary of the Italian
manufacturer that it sets “a new benchmark in the commercial
vehicle sector”.
At the $22K entry level is a 70kW/127Nm 1.4L four-cylinder
petrol engine, paired exclusively with a five-speed manual
gearbox, while an extra $5,000 will bring diesel power into
play with a stronger and more economical 77kW/290Nm 1.6L
Multijet engine combining with a six-speed manual.
A five-speed Comfort-matic automatic (more accurately
defined as a clutch-less manual) is available $2,000 further
upstream from $29,000, although the gearbox convenience
comes at the expense of engine output, which is pegged back to
66kW/200Nm.
On the flipside, this variant has a fuel-saving engine idle-
stop system and the lowest consumption at 4.9L/100km on the
combined cycle, down from 5.4L with the manual and 7.3L with
the petrol engine.
At the top of the range is the longer-wheelbase Maxi, priced
from $31,000 and offering more muscle with a 99kW/320Nm
2.0L Multijet diesel that returns 5.9L/100km. It is only available
as a six-speed manual.
Fiat claims class-leading payload capacity for the Doblo,
which manages 750kg in SWB guise or 1,000kg for the Maxi.
The load compartment length is 1,820mm in the SWB, with the
Maxi stretching a further 350mm (to 2,170mm), while on all
models width is 1,518mm (1,230mm between the wheel arches)
and height 1,305mm.
Overall cargo volume is 3.4m³ for the SWB and 4.2m³ for the
Maxi. Access to the cargo area is made via a sliding door on
each side of the van and rear doors (side-hinged or tailgate).
All models have air conditioning, remote central locking, a
trip computer, Bluetooth connection, height/reach-adjustable
steering wheel and a large lockage glovebox capable of holding
a 14" laptop, while cruise control and rear parking sensors are
found across the diesel range.
Standard safety equipment includes four airbags, electronic
stability control, a hill-holder and ABS brakes with EBD.
Fiat
www.fiat.com.auFIAT DOBLO
CITROEN BERLINGO ETG LONG BODY
Citroen has upgraded the long-bodied version of its Berlingo
van with a new ETG automated manual transmission for its
66kW/215Nm 1.6L turbo-diesel engine, offering a clutch-less
alternative to its five-speed manual.
It is priced from $28,990 plus on-road costs and returns
fuel economy of 4.7L/100km on the official combined cycle
– 1L down on the conventional manual, thanks in part to the
inclusion of an automatic engine idle-stop system. Traction
control and hill-start assist are also fitted standard.