Introduction
Winter Wonderland doesn’t quite give an accurate picture of Kent when we had the Ducato Maxi in the run up to Christmas. The weather was the most miserable and inhospitable of the whole year, covering the entire spectrum of dreary conditions. One day it was freezing with high winds, the next brought driving rain and ominously overcast skies.
The Ducato was going to have to work hard to keep us happy, but if it could take the best punch Blighty’s weather could throw, surely it could take anything.
Product Profile
The Maxi tops out the Ducato line-up with three models ranging in payload volume from 10m3 to the 12m3 version tested here. This top-of-the-range model comes in long-wheel-base (3.7m) high-roof format; dubbed Hi Cube by the boys at Fiat.
All the Maxi Ducatos can carry around 1,500kg with the beefiest taking a claimed 1,615kg (including driver) and our tester carrying 1,450kg around the Kent route. Other versions on sale start with the Ducato 10 (CM 09-15 December 1999) taking around a tonne in the back and the 14 variant with some 200kg less than the Maxi.
A medium (3.20m) and short (2.85m) wheelbase are on offer as well as the long version which Fiat also sells as a flatbed. A variety of chassis and cowl-cabs are up for grabs to give bodybuilders their kicks.
While the 10 comes with a choice of four engines; 14 and Maxi buyers need only choose between a naturally aspirated or a turbo-diesel 2.8-litre engine. We were given the turbo-diesel variant which puts out 121hp (90kW) at 3,600rpm and 285Nm (210lbft) at 1,800rpm.
All new Ducatos come with a three year dealer, eight-year anti-perforation and three-year paintwork warranty.
Productivity
Laden fuel return from the Kent route is on par at 26.6mpg, while unladen performance outstrips other contenders at 40.6mpg. Given the appalling conditions during testing, these figures are all the more impressive.
The Maxi swallows loads in big chunks, taking almost a tonne-and-a-half in a cavernous 12m3 hold. Rear doors are full height but you’ll have to pay an extra £200 for the benefit of wide opening to 250/270deg.
The 1.2m-wide sliding side door was stiff in its operation and needed a tug and then some to release it from its open moorings. It also developed a screech which got worse the more we used it, which would no doubt be easy to solve if we had got to work with some grease. A second sliding door on the driver’s side is £260 extra.
Loading height is pretty good at 555mm, while axle tolerance is a handy 470kg. Wheelarches are 1.4m apart and also have their own tie-down points among those sited liberally around the loadbay.
Central locking isn’t standard – not unusual, but it would save a lot of time for drivers and eliminate accidentally unsecured doors. The fuel-filler flap is lockable and Fiat fits a passive immobiliser to the Ducatos.
Although the glow plugs took a few seconds to work their wonder on a very cold start, the Maxi fired first time and never missed a beat from that moment on. Oil changes are needed every 12,000 miles.
