Score with Fullback

Fiat brings us its first class-competitive pick-up, the Fullback. You’ve seen the engineering before, but the value proposition makes a lot of sense. Plus it’s great off road and, if you tow, this vehicle is up with the very best in the amount it’ll be able to lug about.

Under the bonnet, the 2.4-litre Mitsubishi engine gives this Fiat decent pulling power. With 178bhp and 430Nm of torque on-tap, the 0-62mph time takes a very un-pick-up-like 10.4s. As you’d expect, the Fullback can be driven in either 2WD or 4WD on tarmac or off road. The entry-level 150hp Fullback SX features an on-demand four-wheel drive system with three electrically-selected settings: 2H, 4H and 4L, while the LX has four electrically-controlled settings: 2H, 4H plus 4HLc and 4LLC with a locking central differential. The vehicle can also tow up to 4.1 tonnes and there’s a segment-leadingly tight turning circle.

Thanks to the stiff chassis, handling is better than you might expect it would be from this class of vehicle and body roll, usually something of a problem in vehicles with higher centres of gravity, is usually kept in check, unless you’re really pushing on. The suspension set-up includes a larger stabiliser bar, stiff front springs and carefully-chosen damping settings, which allow the Fullback to handle and ride with reasonable comfort and agility.

Fiat is bravely pitching this Fullback at a starting price slightly higher than its Mitsubishi L200 equivalent. You’re looking at an entry fee of about £21,000 for the base ‘SX’ version, which is about £1,000 more than an equivalent L200 Challenger-spec Doublecab model. However, bring the Mitsubishi up to this Fiat’s level of spec and you’d probably have to pay as much, if not a bit more.

At the business end, you’re faced with a cargo bed 475mm deep and 1,470mm in both length and width. In this area, you’d be able to take a payload of up to 1,045kg.

OK, so the Fullback isn’t very Italian. It isn’t even very Fiat. But who cares? It’s a strong contender in the growing pickup segment. How could it not be, based on the impressively complete Mitsubishi L200 Series 5?

The Fiat Fullback is based on the Mitsubishi L200.