We have traveled to Turin, capital of Italian Piemonte, to discover the new Fiat Scudo and drive its electric version E-Scudo for the first time. The famous Lingotto, the majestic building where the brand has its headquarters, has served as the setting and starting point for the “commissioning” of its renewed mid-size van.
The new Fiat Scudo, initially announced in the fall of 2021 and about which Joan Dalmau spoke to us in this article, recovers the name abandoned five years ago in favor of the name Talento. This identity change is accompanied by a generational change that turns the Italian compact van into a much more modern car, technically closer to a car and that has a 100% electric variant from the beginning.
More “tourism” than ever
As is to be expected, the catalyst for all these advances has a lot to do with the integration of the FCA group (owner of Fiat) into the automobile giant Stellantis, which has allowed the incorporation of the different mechanical and electronic technologies of the PSA group (“the other half” of Stellantis, so that we understand each other). Consequently, the new Fiat Scudo is, more than a cousin, a brother of the current Peugeot Expert, Citroën Jumpy, Opel Vivaro and Toyota Proace (the Japanese firm is not part of Stellantis but has collaborated in the financing of this common project) , with respect to which it hardly presents slight aesthetic differences.
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to the mess What is there to know about the new Fiat Scudo? To begin with, it is available in four body versions: panel van (2-3 seats), double cab (6 seats), platform cab (2-3 seats) and M1 combi (up to 9 seats). To continue, it gives us a choice between three lengths: 4.61 meters, 4.96 m and 5.31 m (variation that corresponds in all cases to the wheelbase; the rear overhang does not change); depending on the variant chosen, the total height of the vehicle will be between 1.89 m and 1.94 m.
With all this, the new Scudo offers a cargo volume of 4.6 m3, 5.3 m3 or 6.1 m3 and a maximum capacity of 1.4 tons. In addition, the ‘Magic Cargo’ modularity solution allows the load compartment to be extended to transport especially long objects (up to 4 meters in length in the long body version) and increase the total available volume by 0.5 m3. The base of the load space is 1.64 meters wide (1.26 m between wheel arches) by 1.40 m high in the short wheelbase version; the load threshold is located 60 cm from the ground.
The generous total width of the vehicle (1.92 m) allows two companions to be placed next to the driver, who, in addition to sitting in a position similar to that of a car, will be able to get very comfortable thanks to the adjustments of the seat itself and the adjustment of the steering wheel both in height and depth. Interestingly, the logo on the steering wheel is the only difference that the driver will appreciate if he had just gotten out of a Peugeot Expert, with which it shares the entire dashboard to the point that the fonts on the buttons and the graphics of both the instrumentation and of the infotainment system -which offers a practical if somewhat old-fashioned 7” touch screen- are the same.
Diesel as always, or electric as never before
The range of combustion mechanics gives you a choice between three options with a four-cylinder Multijet turbodiesel engine: 1.5 liters with 102 hp and 2.0 liters with 120 hp and 145 hp. All of them are accompanied by a 6-speed manual gearbox and only the most powerful one allows you to choose an 8-speed automatic transmission.
The adoption of the Stellantis EMP2 platform has allowed Fiat to incorporate for the first time in this category of van a fully electric version, called E-Scudo and which, as you may have imagined, adopts the same technology already seen in the Peugeot e-Expert , Citroën ë-Jumpy, Opel Vivaro-e and Toyota Proace Electric. It mounts a propellant of 100 kW of power (136 CV) destined to move the front axle and that is accompanied by a battery of 50 kWh or 75 kWh of capacity, to be chosen by the client; the latter allows a theoretical autonomy of 330 km according to the WLTP mixed cycle. Either of the two batteries admits recharging in alternating current with up to 11 kW of power, which reaches 100 kW in direct current -in the latter case, we can charge 80% in 45 minutes-.
This E-Ducato version is the one that we had the opportunity to drive through the streets and surroundings of Turin, on a route that allowed us to enjoy the well-known advantages of electric propulsion, including quick throttle response and fast torque delivery. engine -which is particularly interesting in a vehicle that will normally circulate with a full load of people or goods-, a pleasant running silence and the absence of exhaust fumes.
Obviously, driving less than an hour around the Lingotto in Turin did not give us the opportunity to consider how far we could go with the remaining battery and where to recharge it, so we could focus on checking the remarkable resemblance when driving a new generation commercial vehicle. and another for tourism. Saving the distances that mark the simple quality of finishes and the logical lack of comfort equipment, we can say that the vehicles in this category are authentic multipurpose. Even more so when, today, they give access to active safety elements such as traffic sign recognition, lane departure warning, blind spot detection, frontal collision warning, active emergency brake control and rear view camera. .
Prices of the new Fiat Scudo
The new Fiat Scudo, manufactured like all its relatives by Stellantis and Toyota at the French factory in Valenciennes, is now on sale in Spain. These are the starting prices for the van model (without taxes) with each engine option -and battery for the electric model-:
- Fiat Scudo 102 hp €25,850
- Fiat Scudo 120 hp €27,250
- Fiat Scudo 145 hp €29,150
- Fiat E-Scudo 100 kW – 50 kWh €38,200
- Fiat E-Scudo 100 kW – 75 kWh €44,600
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