The great change to electromobility does not affect cars alone. More and more commercial vehicles are also coming onto the market with an electric drive. In an urban environment, one like the Fiat E-Ducato is a real asset for commercial users.
The Fiat Ducato has been a true bestseller for four decades. Some trust in it for tough everyday use for courier services, trade and commerce, others appreciate its strengths as a technical basis for the increasing number of mobile homes. For its 40th birthday, Fiat is giving itself the first electric Ducato. The E-Ducato is hardly the right one for camping holidays, but in the city the electric Ducato should be a sensible alternative to high-torque diesel models.
With the diesel Ducato you have the choice between 140, 160 and 180 hp – lots of torque, great everyday use and a range of 800 kilometers make the Ducato one of the most popular panel vans in all of Europe. The electric sister model can hardly be distinguished from the combustion engine; Only the missing exhaust and the lettering characterize the northern Italian as a model for the socket. Inside, things look different, because digital instruments, an electric handbrake and the large navigation screen are initially in vain in the E-Ducato. Instead, there is an additional screen on the left in the cockpit with power flows, energy supply, power output and recuperation. The electric Ducato was not planned from the outset and when FCA was absorbed by the Stellantis Group, a quick way was sought to transplant the PSA electrical engineering into the successful Italian-made small trucks.
After getting in, the starting procedure. Ignition on, apply the brake, turn the ignition key further and then use the automatic selector lever to engage gear position D. No shaking of a powerful four-cylinder common rail diesel, just nothing. The ads come to life and you’re good to go. The almost 2.5-ton Fiat E-Ducato twitches almost silently in the parking lot. If you want, you can still select the drive program with the selector lever – normal mode works best. The low center of gravity can already be felt at the second junction. Sure, the electric Ducato has more weight on the wheels than the combustion engine, but the center of gravity moves further down depending on the size of the battery. The power of the electric motor on the front axle is admittedly manageable. Here Stellantis remains true to his specifications – all for one – one for all. Currently, only one electric motor is available for all models from the electric Opel Corsa to the Peugeot e-2008 or Citroen e-Berlingo to the almost gigantic Fiat Ducato. In the e-Ducato this is still slightly reduced in output and so the loadmaster has to get by with 90 kW / 122 PS instead of the usual 100 kW / 136 PS. At least 280 Nm of maximum torque help from a standing start.
Always fast enough to get through the city and the suburbs, but a bit lean when it comes to the long haul. Whether this is the case at all depends on the purpose and of course the costs. On the long tour with the corresponding utilization of the payload, most customers, regardless of whether they are craftsmen, couriers or the construction industry, will continue to rely on the diesel versions. But in order to be mobile in the city – locally without emissions – and to paint your own vehicle fleet a bit greener on the outside, an E-Ducato is probably just the right thing for one or the other business owner. Depending on the intended use, the customer can decide which battery size in the underfloor he wants to use. The small battery pack with 47 kWh is enough for a narrow 170 kilometers and so the large battery arrangement with 79 kWh is likely to be much more popular, because Fiat is offering up to 280 kilometers without a charging stop, at least in the city center. In pure city operation, the ranges increase to 235 and 370 kilometers, respectively. The top speed: a manageable 100 km / h.
The utility of the Fiat Ducato is not significantly limited by the electric motor in the front end, because depending on the structure (ten different) and dimensions (four lengths), the small truck offers ten to 17 cubic meters of loading volume and a payload of up to 1,910 kilograms. It is less understandable why Fiat offers its electric Ducato with five chargers. At least the chargers with six, seven and eleven and 50 kWh are currently available. The version with 22 kilowatt hours should follow soon. Only the models with the large 79 kWh battery are equipped with the eleven kilowatt charger as standard. On the 22 kWh charger, it takes around an hour before the E-Ducato has refueled for 100 kilometers; this time is halved with the 50 kWh fast charger.
The base price for the Fiat E-Ducato for the L2H1 panel van (medium wheelbase, normal roof height) with a gross vehicle weight of 3.5 tonnes and ten cubic meters of loading volume is 55,400 euros net. The panel van with an extra long wheelbase and high roof L5H3 with a gross vehicle weight of 4.2 tonnes and a loading volume of 17 cubic meters starts at 61,030 euros net. Chassis with cab are available for special bodies, starting in four different lengths at 54,800 euros. After all, the first five vehicle servicing within five years as well as a corresponding guarantee are currently included. Fiat wants to lure its potential electric customers with a simple example calculation: within a mileage of 150,000 kilometers, the E-Ducato saves around 15,000 euros in fuel costs compared to a comparable diesel version, while maintenance costs are more than 40 percent lower. Then one or the other will start pondering – if they don’t have to go the long haul.