Fiat Doblo Cargo Small Van

L2 1.5 Multijet 130 H1 Van Plus Auto [2025]

The third generation version of Fiat's Doblo van gets a useful update. Jonathan Crouch drives it.

Ten Second Review

The third generation version of Fiat's Doblo van has evolved - particularly in all-electric form. Much about this now-smarter design is now shared with competing brands in the sector for compact LCVs, but this one still deserves a look if you're seeking a modern value-based package.

Background

For the first time in a long time, the Fiat Professional van range is looking properly modern and cutting-edge. All three of the LCVs the Italian brand offers have been significantly refreshed in recent times - including the smallest member of the line-up, the little Doblo van we look at here. Like the larger Scudo and Ducato models, it has shared Stellantis Group underpinnings, specifically here the EMP2 chassis already used by the Peugeot Partner, Citroen Berlingo, Vauxhall Combo Cargo and Toyota Proace City. Which means there can be a (now-improved) all-electric E-Doblo model too. There's inevitably good and bad in this. Good in that it brings us a much more sophisticated Doblo than businesses have ever had access to before. And bad in that it also brings us the priciest Doblo we've ever seen here. Value was always this Fiat van's calling card. Can this one still deliver in that regard?. Let's take a look.

Driving Experience

One day in the not-too-distant future, you won't be able to acquire a new van of this size with a combustion engine, but for the time being, fossil-fuelled powerplants are very much alive and well in the Doblo range. There's no longer a petrol option, but Fiat still offers two 1.5-litre units, one with 100PS and manual transmission, the other with 130PS and an 8-speed automatic. A neat touch is Fiat's 'Grip Control System', designed to aid traction on slippery surfaces. And for those awkward deliveries on building sites, there's a Hill descent control set-up for gradients of over 3%. Your Fiat Professional dealer is also going to want you to consider the option of the alternative all-electric E-Doblo, which uses exactly the same now-improved powertrain as its Peugeot E-Partner, Citroen e-Berlingo, Vauxhall Combo Electric and Toyota Proace City Electric segment cousins. This sees a 100kW motor drive the front wheels powered by a 50kWh battery, which when fully charged can now take the E-Doblo up to 213 miles. As usual with this powertrain, there are three driving modes, 'Normal', 'Eco' and 'Power'. Whichever Doblo powertrain you choose - and whichever body shape (standard L1 or long L2) - you'll find that the driving position pretty good, with the steeply raked windscreen and low bonnet combining to give great visibility. Couple that with big panoramic door mirrors and the result is a vehicle you can be confident about driving even the most congested city streets where the light steering facilitates a tight turning circle, 11.2m in the short wheelbase version and 12.5m for the long wheelbase model. On all models, the ride quality's quite firm - but, as usual on a van, noticeably improves with a heavy load out back.

Design and Build

This Doblo might be a re-badged version of an existing Stellantis Group small LCV design but at least from the front end, it doesn't look it. The nose (smartened up for this revised model) gives this van its own sense of urban style, with Fiat's latest retro brand badge where you'd normally expect the grille to be: cooling is taken care of by a large intake lower down. As you'd expect, there are long and short wheelbase van and 5-seater Crew Cab versions. Sadly though, there's no option for the kind of high roof variant that was so useful to operators with the previous generation Doblo Cargo. Inside, the dash and instrument layout is of course as you'll find it with this model's other Stellantis cousins. Which means that above base trim, this LCV will come with two 10-inch screens - for the instruments and infotainment. And a cargo hatch that'll allow long items to be poked through into the cab. There is no lack of storage space in the cab: 16 storage points according to Fiat, these including a 15-litre area in the centre console with USB-A and USB-C ports nearby. This is a place to do business. And scout for business, which you'll be able to do more easily with your laptop if you fold out the centre part of this middle seat backrest, which creates a swivelling work surface - this feature another thing that's standard above base trim.

Market and Model

As we tested this Doblo in Spring 2025, ex-VAT prices were starting from just over £22,000 for the Multijet3 diesel variants. An auto gearbox is offered with the combustion version, but it costs a hefty £2,400 more. At the time of this Review, Fiat wanted from around £26,500 for the E-Doblo model (that figure including subtraction of the government's £2,500 Plug-in Van Grant). There's a choice of standard, 'Plus' or plusher 'Primo' levels of trim. The base price is for the short wheelbase L1 version. It's probably worth stretching to the long wheelbase L2 variant, which only costs £950 more. With base trim and the L2 body shape, there's also a Crew Van variant with a second fold-out seating row. That Crew Van is available from around £25,000 in combustion form. The E-Doblo Crew Van is available from around £29,000 in EV form after grant deduction. With all E-Doblos, a 7.4kW on-board charger is standard, with an optional 11kW one as an alternative. As for rivals, well obviously the other Stellantis Group-designed versions of this design are priced similarly - so you'll want to check out comparable deals on the Peugeot Partner, Citroen Berlingo, Vauxhall Combo and Toyota Proace City models in question. Other key segment rivals in the same pricing ballpark include Renault's Kangoo and its re-badged cousins the Nissan Townstar and the Mercedes Citan. And the Volkswagen Caddy and its re-badged cousin the Ford Transit Connect - though they can't be had in EV form - only as PHEVs. If it's this Doblo you want, if you buy in at the base trim level, you'll get the basics included as standard - and a bit more. You might not expect bottom spec to include features like Eco LED headlights, air conditioning, cruise control with a speed limiter, driver's seat lumbar adjustment, High Beam Assist, rear parking sensors and an overhead storage shelf. Plus there's a nearside sliding side door, with an additional offside side door added on this L2 long wheelbase model. Try though, to stretch at least as far as mid-range 'Plus' trim, because you have to do that to get the key practicality feature that Fiat fits here - the load-through bulkhead hatch that allows you to push long items through from the cargo bay into the cab. 'Plus' trim is also the starting point for the key interior improvements Fiat's made with this updated model - namely, the addition of a 10-inch digital instrument cluster and a 10-inch central touchscreen (the latter replacing the Smartphone Station you get with base spec). 'Plus' trim also gets you a centre multi-purpose seat in the front bench and a black-painted finish for the side protection panels. We tried top 'Primo' trim, which adds navigation and a new Dynamic Surround View camera system to the centre screen. In addition, at this level in the range, you get rain-sensitive wipers, front fog lights, a body-coloured rear bumper, power-folding mirrors, full-size hubcaps for the 16-inch wheels and a Thatcham Security alarm.

Practicalities and Costs

This little LCV's load volume is up to 3.3m3 in short wheelbase form. The useful load-through hatch increases capacity to 3.8m3. For the L2 long wheelbase version, the capacity figure is 3.9m3, extendable to up to 4.4m3 with the load-though hatch in use. In the L1, there's up to 1,200mm of load area height - it's up to 1,270mm in the L2; and up to 1,229mm between the wheel arches. Load length with the short wheelbase L1 version is up to 1,817mm - or 3,090mm with the load-through hatch in use. For the long wheelbase L2 variant, the respective load length figures are 2,167mm and 3,440mm. The load width is 1,630mm - or 1,527mm with twin side sliding doors fitted. The Crew Van version can take up to 4.0m3 with the second row bench folded. Payload figures for the standard diesel panel van vary between 669 and 984kg for the diesel version. Payloads for the E-Doblo standard panel van are rated at between 691 and 781kg, the latter figure close to best-in-class. Braked towing capacity is 900kg-1,030kg for the diesel. Braked towing capacity is 750kg for this E-Doblo. As for practicalities, well there's a light in the top right corner at the back and six silver floor tie-downs, with the option of LED cargo area illumination and a 12-volt socket. The wheel arches aren't as intrusive to the load area as with some other small vans, but you'll still want to get them covered to prevent scratches and scrapes. With this electric version, as usual with an EV van, there's nowhere for the charging leads bag to go. With the EV, we'd want to specify Fiat's optional ePTO (Electric Power Take-Off) system, which will allow you to power external devices (like power tools or lights) from your E-Doblo's drive battery. And running costs? Well here, there's little for operators to worry about. Returns from the Multijet3 diesel engine are competitive. Combined cycle fuel economy is rated at between 51.9mpg and 54.4mpg, with CO2 emissions between 136 and 143g/km. As you'd want, the Electric model (which is now rated at between 179.6 and 220 miles on a charge) supports up to 100kW rapid (DC) charging, with an 80% re-charge taking 30 minutes, while a full charge from a 7.4 kW single-phase wallbox takes 7.5 hours thanks to the 7.4kW on-board charger. Customers with access to three-phase power can specify an optional 11kW on-board charger that will charge the E-Doblo in 5 hours, when using a wallbox that also supports this faster AC home-charging solution. You'll also need to know that Fiat Professional includes a three-year, 100,000 mile warranty as standard - better than the packages offered with the equivalent Vauxhall, Peugeot and Citroen versions of this design but way off the up-to-10 year package you could have on the Toyota Proace City version of it. A year's free breakdown cover is also provided, along with a six-year anti-corrosion guarantee. With this E-Doblo, the battery's guaranteed to 70% of capacity for up to eight years or 100,000 miles. Service intervals are every two years or 25,000 miles, depending on which comes round sooner and you can opt for a service plan that lets you pay monthly to spread the cost of regular work to your van. Fiat's warranty package can be extended up to five years at extra cost under Fiat's '555 Peace of Mind' deal, which also gets you five years of servicing and roadside assistance. Quite a few Fiat Professional dealers also look after IVECO trucks, so they're better versed in the needs of commercial operators.

Summary

We'd be disappointed if Fiat stopped fundamentally designing its own cars, but it does seem logical in the current climate for the brand to be sharing the design of its vans. As it's done for decades with its medium and large-sized models. Even the city-shaped tiny Fiorano van was a shared design. But the Dobo LCV has always been a stand-alone Fiat - until this third generation model arrived. At least in this revised form it still has its own unique front-end look. And the E-Doblo's improved driving range and its clever 'Magic Plug' might be selling points that make you think once more about a switch to a full-EV fleet. Either way, combustion or EV, the Doblo's worth a place on your shortlist.