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NEWS RELEASE
/FIAT DUCATO SET TO GROW AUSTRALIAN
SALES IN 2005
Following the launch of the full range of Fiat Ducato low roof vans, maxi high roof vans and three cab chassis variants in 2004, Fiat is looking to substantially expand its business in 2005 with considerable growth expected in the key motorhome conversion and full size van sectors.
“The Fiat Ducato is now firmly established in Australia has an advanced commercial vehicle offering significant advantages over its rivals across a wide range of areas,” says Chris Swann, General Manager of Fiat in Australia.
“Now that we have two vans, two standard cab chassis vehicles and the Alko chassis available to special order, all with the benchmark 2.8 litre JTD engine and a high level of equipment as standard, Fiat is ideally positioned to expand its business. A perfect example of the impact that we have is that not only have motorhome converters warmly embraced the Fiat Ducato, a number of them have made the Ducato the only vehicle on which to base their conversations. Recommendations don’t come much higher than that!” says Mr Swann.
To support the growing demand for Fiat vehicles, there are now Fiat dealers in every state capital, supported by 27 Fiat service centres that cover the whole country, ensuring security of back-up throughout Australia. This is particularly important for the motorhome converters, with customers demanding support for their vehicles, regardless of where they roam in the country. The dealers and service centres are, in turn, supported by a fully computerized parts centre in Sydney which uses the latest storage and distribution technology to ensure rapid parts service. Dealer service training is carried out in the new training centre at Fiat’s new Sydney headquarters, which offers all the latest training technology.
Fiat launched the Ducato in Australia with the full size Maxi Van and then expanded its range with the introduction low roof and long wheel base cab chassis versions of Ducato plus a window version of the Ducato Maxi Van. Prices starting at $39,975 for the low roof van and rise to $45,250 for the glazed maxi van. All are fitted with Fiat’s acclaimed 2.8 litre JTD direct injection, common rail turbo diesel engine.
Fiat has also made ABS brakes with electronic brake force distribution, driver’s and passenger side air bag, remote central locking and a CD player standard on all models, further enhancing the Fiat Ducato’s reputation as a class leader for high equipment levels and value for money pricing.
“We believe that the major growth in 2005 will be the ongoing expansion of our motorhome business and with the full size Maxi van scoring the majority of non-conversion sales,” explains Mr Swann. “With a dedicated fleet manager now on board, we also plan to take the advantages of the Ducato to Australia’s major fleets. This will be supported by a significant step up in our marketing and advertising programmes during 2005.”
THE FIAT DUCATO RANGEThe Fiat Ducato is one of the most successful vehicles of any sort produced by Fiat, and it is the latest in a long line of commercial vehicles produced by Fiat for nearly 100 years, providing efficient transport for thousands of successful businesses around the world and, since its arrival in Australia in 2003, it has proven very popular with local businesses and motorhome owners.
The Fiat Ducato range for Australia consists of six versions. There are two Maxi vans, blind and glazed, both with a 12 cubic metre internal volume and with a 1500 kg payload. These two vehicles cost $44,000 and $45,250 respectively, or $44,750 for blind van with a triple front seat. For customers operating in height restricted areas, the Fiat Ducato is now available with the lower roof height of 2150 mm at $39,975 (or $40,735 with a triple front seat) and a 1490 kg payload. The Fiat Ducato Cab Chassis is now available with two wheelbases, 3.7 metres and 4.05 metres. These versions are available at $40,000 and $40,940 recommended retail prices respectively, while the Alko low height, low weight chassis is also available to special order.
The revised Ducato launched in 2004 is instantly recognizable thanks to its nose treatment that boasts the style of a new grille and a prominent new Fiat badge and the practicality of larger, more powerful headlights behind a durable plastic single lens that are up to 70 per cent brighter, as well as new, larger bumpers. Impact protection is no longer restricted to the front and rear, the same material that provides protection from minor impacts now runs the full length of the sides, while at the rear, new larger, brighter rear lights complete the external styling changes.
Inside the Ducato the styling is startling to anyone who thinks commercial vehicles are basic vehicles that treat their users little better than the cargo being carried in the back.
Climbing into the front seat the driver finds himself in a comfortable armrest-equipped chair that can be adjusted in all the required directions to ensure thousands of kilometers of comfort behind the steering wheel, which is now rake adjustable, further improving comfort.
But the most striking feature is the dashboard. While it is designed with the specific needs of a commercial vehicle driver, as evidenced by the clipboard on the middle of the dashboard above the centre console and a multitude of storage spaces, it has also been designed with the intelligent style expected of Fiat.
For example, the standard digital stereo CD player is mounted high in the dashboard for ease of use. Ventilation vents abound with four fitted for each side of the cab, controlled by easy to use ventilation controls in the centre console. The dashboard also includes such use features as a 12 volt power socket in addition to the cigarette lighter and control gear for the standard heated rear windows and the height adjustable headlights.
Completing the interior are door trims that include a huge storage pockets and a large bottle holder, as well as controls for the standard electric door mirrors and the electric windows. Another example of the Ducato’s attention to detail are the padded door linings – something not normally expected in a commercial vehicle.
On the road, the Fiat Ducato has always excelled with power units that are benchmarks in their class for performance and economy, lead by the outstanding direct injection common rail turbo intercooled 2.8 litre 94 kW engine. This engine is, in the Ducato, refined, smoother and responsive. The JTD engine has taken Fiat’s pioneering direct injection common rail diesel technology and tailored it to the specific requirements of commercial vehicles.
The load compartment is as it has always been in the Ducato, a benchmark for a ratio of interior space to road space taken up. But more than that, the Ducato is unlike many of its long, narrow rivals in that its excellent interior volume is thanks to width, not added length and overhang. This has a range of advantages. Even the Maxi van will fit in a standard parking space; short over hangs mean little risk of it dragging its tail on inclines and an interior that is wide and spacious makes converting the Ducato to a variety of purposes easy and quick.
THE FIAT DUCATO RANGE: The Story of Success so farThe Fiat Ducato story is the story of a vehicle that has enjoyed uninterrupted success since its launch in 1981. The Ducato's impressive range offers hundreds of versions and specifications, a dedication to meeting business needs in design and durability and value for money pricing allied to low running costs has allowed it to carve out and hold onto a position at the top of its segment in markets around the world. Suffice it to say that more than 1.2 million units have been sold overall. And this is success that continues to grow. The Sevel factory in Italy that produces the Ducato is working at full capacity to satisfy a growing need for the model, whose sale volumes increased by nearly 50 per cent in the period between 1995 and 2003.
THE FIAT DUCATO RANGE: STYLE AND PRACTICALITY
A workhorse must be first and foremost an excellent container for stowing and transferring goods or carrying people. But this does not mean that it must only be a box on wheels. Efficient transport is more than just space and payload. Drivers must be made comfortable to reduce the stress of modern driving conditions, they must be made safe, as they are a valuable investment in human resources and appearance is also important. The Ducato is also a moving advertisement for the company whose products or people it is moving and, therefore, provides a positive image of a company to the outside world.
For this reason, the Ducato features a carefully balanced interplay of appearance and function. The revised exterior line creates an image of a stronger, more solid vehicle. The interior has been fully redesigned to offer room for everything and everyone and ensure maximum passenger room, user-friendliness and comfort.
The extremely practical and harmonious driver's cabin is equipped with a facia that makes the cabin feel bigger. A host of storage compartments are scattered everywhere: on the facia and also in the cabin door panels, under the seats and in the load compartment. A convenient desk with clipboard is built into the facia. When the middle part of the optional two-seater bench is folded down, a practical table appears that is designed to house a portable computer and is complemented by two can holders and a document clip.
The load compartment still leads its category due to its great capacity and volume and incorporates significant changes, particularly to improve the manoeuvrability of the generous 270 degree doors during opening and closure, not to mention some important details such as an access footboard built into the bumpers with a broader, non-slip surface; practical load retaining hooks cleverly arranged over the floor; supplementary 12 V power point; generous air vents in the tail-lights to reduce air resistance during door closure and also prevent condensation forming in the load compartment.
The Fiat Ducato offers all-round comfort without compromises. From a dynamic viewpoint, the model's already excellent handling has been further improved through the addition of features to strengthen and refine the MacPherson independent front suspension and live axle rear suspension with leaf springs.
The solution adopted for goods transport versions ensures outstanding efficiency whether the vehicle is fully laden or empty.
Tyres also contribute to driving comfort, handling and safety. A lot of work has also been done on acoustic comfort with the aim of minimising noise transmitted by the engine and road and limiting vibration, wind noise and aerodynamic whistling.
The climate control system has now been made even more efficient by the excellent cabin air distribution. The seats are comfortable and offer more adjustment options. They can also accommodate drivers of any size in comfort. The height-adjustable steering wheel also enables all drivers to find their ideal driving position.
THE FIAT DUCATO RANGE: THE JTD FIAT DUCATO ENGINEFiat’s 2.8 litre 94 kW direct injection common rail turbo intercooled diesel injection, is a power unit so loaded with technology and design features that to find similar technology you’d have to look under the bonnet of an Alfa Romeo!
But this is not to say that this is an engine designed for screaming performance. Just as the Alfa Romeo JTD engines have been designed and developed for their performance environment, so the 2.8 litre JTD unit in the Ducato has been developed to provide the ideal performance for commercial vehicle use: 300 Nm of torque, down where it is needed, at just 1800 rpm. This level of thermal efficiency from the JTD engine means the ideal combination of powerful performance, excellent economy and low emissions.
THE FIAT DUCATO RANGE: SAFETYAll versions of the Ducato boast ABS-equipped disc brakes on all four wheels combined with a drum parking brake inside the disc brakes (Drum in Hat configuration). All seats are fitted as standard with generous head-restraints and two or three-point, height-adjustable seat-belts with pyrotechnic inertia reels according to the version and twin front air bags are standard.
The Ducato has more than just ABS brakes to stop skids. These latest generation ABS brakes are fitted with EBD, or electronic brake-force distribution. This sophisticated system automatically and instantaneously spreads braking ability to the wheels most able to stop the Ducato in an emergency, taking brake-force away from wheels that are about to lock and cause a skid and giving to the wheels with the most grip, thus maintaining control, stability and safety.
The Fiat Ducato is a byword for quality and reliability. The outstanding results achieved through the on-going process of improvements to the previous series have served only as a starting point for achieving even higher standards. Many of these changes are now obvious, but go towards producing a for more effective transport solution, for example Fiat has completely redesigned the electrical system, added new suspension units and made structural changes to the chassis to improve acoustic impedance and brake fade resistance. We have also achieved even more by calling in truck-derived systems suppliers who now complement our tried and tested working arrangement with the major heavy diesel manufacturer Sofim.
The Ducato has achieved record-breaking goals in terms of reliability. Suffice to say that engine durability standards now equal those of a truck. Fiat’s design specifications are some of the strictest in existence. The world-wide experience gained by the model during previous years has allowed Fiat to make the Ducato into a vehicle that is truly ready for any mission, however demanding, in any climate. Ducato customers also naturally benefit from the Fiat warranty that is three years/180,000 km coupled to 24 hour road side assistance.