When entertaining and minding a brace of boisterous US grandsons of four and six years respectively, a pickup truck might not seem to be the ideal vehicle, writes Brian Byrne. But it fact, the Fiat Fullback that I had on review for that period turned out to be just the ticket.
It was tough. It was high-riding so they could see over the hedges as we travelled hither and yon. The double cab back accommodated the child- and booster-seats respectively used by the youngsters, with enough space between to stop them messing, most of the time. And the load bed, in this instance with hard top incorporating pop-out windows, was really useful for transporting the double buggy occasionally needed when little legs got tired.
There are optionally available full box rear lid, or a hard tonneau cover with what they call a sport bar, or a soft tonneau.
The Fullback attracted a fair bit of head-turning. Puzzled expressions too, because it looked familiar, but not with the Fiat badge. Which was fair enough, because the latest addition to the Fiat Professional range of commercial vehicles is based on the well-respected Mitsubishi L200.
It does look handsome, and the Fiat-modded front end fits it nicely into the sibling vehicles. In the higher LX of the two grades available it was very well kitted out, including 17" alloys, leather trim with heated front seats, dual zone climate control, rear camera, and a full-time 4WD system. It also had lane departure warning, easily switched off on narrow roads where the beeping could get annoying.
The commercial figures are similar to those in the L200. A nominal payload of 1045kg, capable of pulling 3100kg of trailer and load, and cargo bed length 1510mm. All good numbers for a workhorse car that can still double for family transport duty.
The engine is the proven 2.4 diesel from the underpinning vehicle, Euro 6 compliant, and in the case of the review model with a 6-speed manual shift. An automatic is available. The powertrain worked well, though with an emphasis on luggability for its working use more than the smoothness of a family sedan. That's not a criticism.
The ride and handling were also tilted towards the work side of things, and the car didn't tempt any sporty use at all. Indeed, it feels and is big, and on many country roads that kept me quite slow because I was aware that meeting something around a corner could lead to uncomfortable evasive action.
ENGINE: 2.4 170hp diesel.
EQUIPMENT: Heated rear screen, 8-way power leather seats, power windows all around.
PRICES: From €35,560 inc VAT plus dealer charges.
STAR RATING: 3.8/5
