Why the love of the Fiat Ducato?

[jessthedog]

As a newbie to the site, I'm interested in why the majority of motorhome manufacturers go for the Fiat Ducato.
If I was going to buy a car, no disrespect to fiat car owners, a Fiat would be would be way down on my list. ( I do like the look of the little 500 though!)
The fiat Ducato dosen't even come in the top 10 of vans sales in the UK.
In Europe, its sister company IVECO, gets to No4 for truck sales in Europe.
The companies who make comparable chassis, The Transit van is the most popular van in the uk, followed by Mercedes, Volkswagen, Renault then Peugeot.
What is it, that makes the Fiat Ducato an ideal motorhome van, but according the vast majority of businesses in Europe who buy vans, no good for them?

 

[jessthedog]

And we also like to have a kip safe in the knowledge that some little old lady isn't going to wake us up first thing in the morning and demand we renew her loan copy of 50 Shades of Grey, whip out her jubblies

Nice dream last night?

 

[pyro]

I wished!

 

[jessthedog]

(Just what is it with those piggy eye headlights?)

I think its called technological advancement. You don't need a great big lense, like a lighthouse to get the required effect with the new LED.

 

[pyro]

Is that why they have to put at least two headlights on each side because they can't focus the beams properly?

Got LED replacements in my 6 month old Ducato, bloody useless

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[Gorse Hill]

Got LED replacements in my 6 month old Ducato, bloody useless

Probably, but i bet they look nice thou

 

[pyro]

From the outside looking at the front, sure. From the inside looking out, bloody useless

LED daytime lights look good, and are functional. Headlight adaptors are not very good yet. Friend of mine's son put in light blue ones on his PVC for a bit of bling and just got a formal caution by traffic plod. He was quoted MOT regulation 5b: "[the tester may reject the vehicle if] an obligatory headlamp shows light that is not substantially white or yellow”.

 

[Chipster]

As you say, designed for practicality, more a caravan on wheels than a delivery truck with curtains . If I were planning to be static for more than a few days at a time, then I would love an A class, albeit they all appear much the same to me if I am honest. (Just what is it with those piggy eye headlights?)

But we mostly tour, generally between London and Lisbon, and we like to explore tiny villages (width restrictions, narrow, winding, hilly roads, etc) on our travels. We want to enjoy the country and get to know the people that live in it, not spend our time surrounded by stoned Dutch campers mooching around on a bland campsite or other tourists of any nationality just because our size and lack of manoeuvrability left us few other options

And we also like to have a kip safe in the knowledge that some little old lady isn't going to wake us up first thing in the morning and demand we renew her loan copy of 50 Shades of Grey, whip out her jubblies and demand a mammogram or complain that we're not wheelchair accessible and when's the next bus coming.

Well having gone from a coach-built to an a class, library van for us!!

 

[jessthedog]

Is that why they have to put at least two headlights on each side because they can't focus the beams properly?

Got LED replacements in my 6 month old Ducato, bloody useless

T
That's progress! at least they don't take an age to warm up like some of my energy efficient bulbs at home.

 

[busby]

Thanks Mercianman,
Just read that. It seems that a lot of them don't use this special chassis and a lot use the AL-Ko chassis.
So why not use say the Volkswagen crafter with the AL-KO chassis, or Transit etc etc.

COST,,BUSBY.

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[busby]

Also there are Peugeot and Citroen base vehicles but Fiat make a big thing about making their chassis cabs SPECIFICALLY for the motorhome market and spec them quite well as a standard cab but offer the upgrade as well.
Also they advertise the fact that their Fiat Professional workshops are very plentiful all over Europe and are very used to dealing with motorhome customers. They even do a motorhome specific warranty that's better than the standard van warranty.
Although Ford make a good base vehicle ( but easily stolen), their dealers are poor when compared with other brands.
Mercedes are expensive to start with (and look after) and unlike their cars or the Fiat are not easy to get them looking plush. To me they always look exactly like the van they started as. The Transit is not so bad as they do some very high spec vans anyway.

Peugeot and Citroen virtually the same van manufactured in the same factory in Italy,,,BUSBY.

 

[busby]

Fiat have always built fantastic engines. Look as far back as the twin cam they put in the old 124 and mirafiori cars. Even the Ritmo had great engines, (body was terrible for rust though).
Iveco build some of the best diesel engines. Equal in quality and long service to anything built by Cummins or the German manufacturers.

Thought Ford had produced the engines for Fiat Citroen and Peugeot since 2007,,BUSBY.

 

[pyro]

They are made in the Sevel Sud factory, a 50-50 joint venture between FCA (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) and PSA-Peugeot Citroën, in Val di Sangro, Italy.

Citroën do use some Ford engines in some of their very light commercial vans. The Ducato cab/chassis arrangement is virtually exclusive to motorhome builds

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sevel#Sevel_Sud
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiat_Ducato

 

[jessthedog]

It seems that Fiat are ditching the 3.0l engine for Euro 6 and not using ad-blue like the majority of other manufacturers including Ford, Mercedes, Peugeot, Volkswagen and Citroen.

 

[stcyr]

<------- 1991.
Bought in 2009.
Passed mot every year, no advisories.
Two replacement parts due to wear/breakage: recon alternator (£40), and one driveshaft gaitor (£2.90) - neither made by Fiat.
At last mot, in September, the unsolicited comment from the tester was 'What a beautiful little motor- absolutely perfect'

That's why

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[Bart]

<------- 1991.
Bought in 2009.
Passed mot every year, no advisories.
Two replacement parts due to wear/breakage: recon alternator (£40), and one driveshaft gaitor (£2.90) - neither made by Fiat.
At last mot, in September, the unsolicited comment from the tester was 'What a beautiful little motor- absolutely perfect'

That's why

Quite true with many things in life , they sure don't make things like they used to , we got a microwave as a wedding present that lasted 20 years with daily use.

 

[Wortho]

Thought Ford had produced the engines for Fiat Citroen and Peugeot since 2007,,BUSBY.

My inlaws 2012 Citroen Jumper campervan (Relay in UK) has a 2.2 litre Ford engine but our 2016 Jumper has a 2.0 PSA bluehdi engine.
http://www.practicalmotorhome.com/n...-fix-for-peugeot-boxer-and-citroen-relay-vans