Fiat Scudo: Medium LCV Comparison 2014

There's no A-pillar grab handle to aid entry but that's no issue – the seating isn't particularly high and there's plenty of room to manoeuvre, along with generous head room.

The seating is comfortable, supportive and fully adjustable; together with the tilt-adjustable steering wheel it's easy to achieve a sweet spot where the gearstick for the six-speed manual falls within easy reach.

Cabin storage is reasonable; decent sidepockets and an overhead shelf complement the deep dash-top dish over the glovebox, although our test vehicle offered no storage facility between the driver's and passenger's seats.

The optional and sturdy moulded cargo barrier has a large Perspex window to aid vision to the rear. It also adds safety and comfort in the cabin but does impinge on access through the side doors.

The load bay itself has one of the narrower measurements between its wheel arches but it's tall, while the load bay floor is the second highest behind the HiAce (see break-out box).

Eight sturdy tie-down hooks are provided and access to the load bay is via two sliding all-steel side doors and a 50/50 rear barn door.

Both rear doors have wipers and demisters, and other niceties include electric mirrors/windows, split straight/convex side mirrors, and centrally located USB/12V outlets.

The Scudo generates a fair bit of engine noise and even with the bulkhead and a grippy load-bay liner in place our sound meter registered 74dBA at 80km/h, putting the Italian mid-pack for noise suppression.

The reverse parking sensors are appreciated, but it doubles as a reverse warning – whether it's viewed as effective or irritatingly loud is open to debate.

Fit, finish and finesse
The front-drive Scudo might undercut every other LCV in this comparison on price, but that hardly shows up when you start delving into the nitty gritty of its capabilities, presentation and quality.

For starters the cargo bay, in terms of finish and presentation, is up there among the leaders with a nice glossy paint finish throughout, a clean inner roof free of many of the gaps and holes common in the category and, most importantly, a full height double skin on the side walls that protects the outer panels against damage inflicted from inside. The test Scudo also came with an optional protective composite floor that’s hardy and, if necessary, replaceable.

The Fiat’s build quality is evident in the smooth, clean inner-door finish and minimal signs of spot welds or roughly detailed nooks and crannies. The Scudo has only single door seals to minimise noise, wind and water entry.

The stylised but no-nonsense instrument panel is of solid-touch but seemingly durable plastic, while the controls feel decisive and hardy enough. Fit and finish is good but it suffers from a few rough edges in places like the door bins.

The cloth seat material suggests a few potential durability issues; the test vehicle already showed some fraying in places. That said, the one-piece moulded floor covering looks durable and easy to clean.

There’s only one (fixed) grab handle on the passenger’s side, with nothing to grasp on cab entry or departure.

Under the tiny bonnet lies access to the main service points – the dipstick and oil filler are a bit tricky to reach. The presentation is generally okay but the wiring looms appear hastily finished with ribbed plastic covers and messy junctions prevalent.

Like all of these vans it requires a few revs from a standing start, but it dishes out healthy acceleration from 2000 to 4000rpm, and it revs out to 5000rpm – 1000rpm further than most on test here.

The Scudo falls into the middle ground in terms of acceleration – ahead of the Trafic and Transit but behind the iLoad, HiAce and Vito – but it outperforms the lot in braking, pulling up from 60km/h in a winning distance of 15.8 metres (see break-out box).

The six-speed manual transmission offers a flexible spread of ratios and the shifting action is light, if lacking some of the precision of the Transit's transmission.

Steering is light and responsive but the handling feels secure with a load or without. With 600kg in the back additional enthusiasm is required with the gearbox and accelerator to maintain progress, but the Scudo takes the extra weight in its stride. It conquers hills with dogged determination but it does display a little more body roll through the bends.

The Scudo's turning circle isn't great: at 12.6 metres it only outdoes the longer-wheelbase Trafic (13.2).

Our test vehicle had no hill-start assist and the right-hand hand brake took a little getting used to, but generally speaking the Scudo did everything we asked of it without complaint and returned the third-best fuel economy while doing so.

For the outlay the Scudo is well equipped as standard with manual air-conditioning, cruise control, tinted windows, stability control and driver’s airbag. Although extras such as metallic paint ($950) are reasonably expensive, the options list includes a reversing camera and passenger airbag. A timber floor can be installed for an additional $600.

Fiat doesn’t offer a capped price servicing arrangement for the Scudo, although at present there’s a 60-month/200,000km warranty included in the purchase cost.

Roadside assistance is supplied for a 36-month/200,000km period, whichever comes first. Service intervals are 12 months/15,000km.

redbook.com.au indicates that a 2011 Fiat Scudo Comfort (new price: $32,990) has a median private sale price of $19,550 today (for a vehicle with between 60,000-90,000km, as per each vehicle reviewed). This is a retained value of 59 per cent.

Suitable integration of technology
In this category, the Scudo struggled to stand out among the competition at hand, scoring an aggregate score that saw it placed equal fourth with the Traffic.

While the Scudo features many of the technology inclusions of its rivals on test, the execution and ease of use is poorest of all. It was noted that the Fiat’s Bluetooth telephony is the most tricky to navigate, and audio streaming is accessed via USB/auxiliary connections.

Unlike the iLoad, the Scudo does have cruise control and a speed limiter. While there’s no multifunction wheel as such, dedicated stalks to the side of the steering wheel perform the job in a similar manner.

Suitable integration of technology is not a high point for the Scudo and a small infotainment screen and fiddly buttons add to a below-average show, but it gets the basics right.