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Photos courtesy of Fiat
Fiat Fullback
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Photos courtesy of Fiat
Fiat Fullback
The Fullback is really a Mitsubishi L200, a well-proven mid-size truck that would likely do well against Toyota and GM.
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Photos courtesy of Fiat
Fiat Fullback
The Fullback “Show Car” comes with modified headlights, front skid plate, larger wheels and rear bed trim.
By Budd Stanley, photos courtesy of Fiat
Fiat teases the Fullback concept in Geneva; Marchionne hints we might get it
Are you ready for a lesson in foreign corporate economics and worldwide logistics, because this one is going to get messy. The simple side of the story is that Fiat has unveiled a rather enticing mid-sized pickup concept at the Geneva International Motor Show. Dubbed the Fiat Fullback, this mid-sized pickup is Fiats first foray into the larger pickup market and will go on sale in several parts of the world in a slightly more sedate design in a few months time.
The challenge comes when you look under the skin of the Fullback. What you have is a Japanese Mitsubishi L200 pickup that was built in Thailand and has been badge engineered to the Italian Fiat brand. Yeah, there is a lot going on there, but in this modern world of global platform sharing to drive down the cost of building vehicles, this is becoming the norm. But what if we threw in a North American connection?
From one confusing conundrum, lets jump headlong into another. Sergio Marchionne, head of FCA (Fiat Chrysler Auto) and notorious poop disturber when talking to the press, made some very interesting comments in Geneva regarding the possibility of a mid-size pickup making its way to North America rebadged once again as an American Ram. When prodded on the subject by pickuptrucks.com, Marchionne commented, " I like that space a lot… It's a good space to be in… Ram needs to be in that space."
Even FCA’s press release describing the name is suspect, “…the ‘fullback’ is a fundamental position in rugby or American football, the last man in the line of defence…” Perhaps we are reading too far into these chosen words, but they sure sound North American friendly.
All well and good – and quite exciting for us – however this might be news to Machionne’s top man over at Ram. Ram President and CEO Robert Hegbloom was asked during the previously scheduled Chicago Auto Show whether Ram would be entering the mid-size truck market any time soon. He expressed concerns regarding Ram’s ability to compete in terms of capability and pricing, which would likely keep Ram from entering the mid-size pickup segment here in North America for the foreseeable future.
This Fullback “Show Vehicle” is a slightly modified out version of the production Fullback that will go on sale in a few months time in Fiat’s Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region. Europeans, Asians and Africans who will be able to buy the Fullback will have the choice of single cab, double cab and extended cab versions with payload capacity of up to 1,100 kg. Power will be delivered via a 2.4L turbo diesel engine rated at 180 hp combined with a five-speed automatic transmission and an all-wheel drive system with a rear electronic differential.
While the mid-sized truck segment is heating up in North America, it’s on fire everywhere else in the world. The Fiat Fullback will join the Renault Alaskan and a soon to be named Mercedes-Benz pickup (both an exercise of badge engineering themselves as they will both be based off the Nissan Navara NP300 platform) as new entries into the popular mid-size truck market.
Previous rumours that touted the possible addition of a compact pickup to the Ram line have surrounded the Fiat Strata, a front-wheel-drive-only unibody pickup that would not likely survive long in North America’s “bigger is better” landscape, however with the unveiling of the Fullback, Fiat have a proper mid-size pickup that could possibly back up Marchionne’s hype. Will it ever happen, we’ll just have to wait and see.