General van based cars

[Tiggs]

In a way its sad.
Once the new Kangoo shape come out it will be pretty much the same as the new Berlingo.
Which means the Doblo will be the only true 'van based' car out there in the UK.
And if ever the Doblo changes there will be none....an end of an era?

Long live the Doblo (in its present form)!

Tiggs

 

[deeyup]

What about the new fiat fiorino combi? It 's out very soon, and looks great!

 

[sludgeguts]

'looks great' aren't two words I'd use to describe that front end - 'kin ugly would be more appropriate.
There is simply waaaaay too much bumper stuck on the front end. A really bad design flaw & I would imagine a bit of a nightmare in tight spaces.

 

[Eklipze3k]

Yeah, it looks like a miniaturised Doblo with a gum-shield in

 

[sludgeguts]

It looks like they've realised that they forgot to put the air con under the bonnet so bought an aftermarket refrigeration unit & bolted it to the front.

 

[Eklipze3k]

In all seriousness though, I'ts gonna because of all this pedestrian safety malarkey. If they'd stop walking on the road they'd be safe as houses

 

[RichDoblo120]

'looks great' aren't two words I'd use to describe that front end - 'kin ugly would be more appropriate.
There is simply waaaaay too much bumper stuck on the front end. A really bad design flaw & I would imagine a bit of a nightmare in tight spaces.

A Doblo owner describing another car as ugly? What ever next?

 

[chrisb100]

i like it just to small for my needs or I would give it some consideration next time round.

You can bet the new Doblo out 2009/10 will be bigger fatter and longer to balance the sizing in the range better as the new scudo and ducato are alot bigger than before.

 

[sludgeguts]

A Doblo owner describing another car as ugly? What ever next?

OK, so the dobbin is a tad ugly but this new shape is fugly, it takes ugly to a new dimension.
As for the next release of doblos, last time I spoke with Fiat (they asked my opinion about my local dealer) I asked them if they'd consider coming on the fiat forums and asking present doblo owners rather than paying designers shedloads of cash to design a car they would never drive. About time the people who are driving these things had a say in how they should look.
I, for one, would keep the current look (I prefer the facelift of the 06 on to the pre 06). I would also like to see a longer wheelbase (and, so, a longer body), I would also like the gearlever removed from that awkward projection & simply moved tighter into the dash and I would also like to see the dash made into a one piece afair with a decent hole for the radio & perhaps blanks for additional accessories - I find the current layout 'awkward', the radio pod looks like an afterthought. Maybe we could have a large area which pops up to give access to the radio and storage to the side? As the ignition goes off, the pod could slowly close back into the dash.
Oh yes, and more overhead storage. Perhaps we could have lockers either side (like aircraft or coaches).

 

[Rustymini]

I'd like to see front windows that wind all the way down and not stop 2" from all in (or is that just mine). The most useful thing I ever had on a car was an opening rear window on the hatch of my old Renault Scenic. I believe it is also an option on the new Berlingo. Roof rails as standard kit would be nice.
Headlamp flashers that flash would be nice too. So would disc brake retaining studs that don't snap off when you change the disc's.
I'm in danger of going off on one here.

 

[Dobbin]

The only thing that niggles me about the Doblo is the position of the pedals. It is most noticeable after I have been driving my X250 Ducato for a week and then take the Doblo for a drive. I have to be very careful that when I depress the brake that I don't catch the accelerator. Is it me?? The Ducato is also quieter than the Doblo but does not like reversing.

 

[Ulpian]

The replacement Doblo will be bigger - a Berlingo clone in fact. The new Berlingo is fine, but LARGE. The Fiorino Cubo, coming soon, is actually cute in the flesh, and does most of what the current Doblo does, only in a smaller package. I took a look at the Citroen Nimo van, which is what the Fiorino is: typically Fiat in fact, but less storage - none over the screen - and only one power take off. There is a geat cliboard holder though, which doesn't make it to the Fiat combi version

Slightly smaller than the Doblo then, but this is fine by me: however...only offered with the 1.4 petrol and the 1.3 Diesel engines. These are both gutless and both do 0-60 in 16ish seconds: crap. Also crap fuel consumption. So, until they put the new 1.6 Diesel and the 900 twin petrol in the Fiorino Cubo it will be slow and thirsty, and outclassed. But they started the Doblo off with underachieving engines too....

The pedals in the present Doblo can be dangerous I reckon...

 

[sludgeguts]

The only thing that niggles me about the Doblo is the position of the pedals. It is most noticeable after I have been driving my X250 Ducato for a week and then take the Doblo for a drive. I have to be very careful that when I depress the brake that I don't catch the accelerator. Is it me?? The Ducato is also quieter than the Doblo but does not like reversing.

Only difference I find between the ducato & the dobbin is the clutch pedal is harder to press & reverse is found by means of lifting a collar on the lever & moving the lever to the left & forwards - oh & the windscreen is lower
My ducato certainly isn't quieter but then the 2.8 has to pull 4500kg. I agree about the reversing, there is a bit of a judder (mind you, mine isn't helped by it being a tri-axle so there's always a bit of dragging going on).
I agree about the windows winding down only partway, damned annoying when you're reaching for a ticket at car park barriers.
I added my own umbrella holders, went for the springy tool clips screwed to the plastic trim in the end - but they've reallly come in handy recentlly. Be a nice addition to the new dobbin - with a complementary Fiat brolly clipped over each door