We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the Business Car website. However, if you would like to, you can change your cookies at any time
The start point for the best source of fleet information
Fiat's new Talento is the latest van to be based on Renault's Trafic, joining the Opel/Vauxhall Vivaro. It is effectively identical to its donor model under the skin, although Fiat has made cosmetic changes by introducing a more horizontal design to the nose and including LED headlamps on the bumper.
The Talento has inherited many of the Trafic's clever innovations, including the load-through hatch in the bulkhead at the base of the passenger seat, which allows a load length of up to 3.75m in standard and 4.15m in LWB versions.
The 'mobile office' requirement is fulfilled by a fold-down central passenger seat. Standard on SX trim, this costs £170 on base models. SX, which has a £1000 premium over the entry model, also gets aircon (otherwise a £720 option), rear parking sensors and full wheel covers.
The maximum load volume of 6.0m3 offered by the Talento's predecessor, the Scudo goes up to 8.6m3, with a maximum payload of 1249kg, up slightly on the Scudo's 1212kg upper limit.
Four Euro6 diesel engines - two single-turbo and a pair of twin-turbo powertrains - are available, with outputs ranging from 95hp to 145hp. All require topping up with AdBlue. We drove the most powerful 1.6-litre twin-turbo Ecojet with an output of 145hp.
It provides impressive responsiveness across its full range and works smoothly with the slick, six-speed manual gearbox that is standard across the line-up. It is particularly happy on long motorway slogs, so operators more usually engaged in urban work may prefer the 125hp twin-turbo or either the 95hp or 120hp single-turbo.
These smaller engines are not, however, the most economical, with best official consumption of 46.3mpg and CO2 of 160g/km being matched by the 145hp unit. The most frugal honour goes to the 125hp twin-turbo with figures of 47.9mpg and 155g/km.
The trouble with basing a new van on a product that's been on sale for a couple of years is that in the meantime the competition ups its game. Peugeot and Citroen now claim economy of 55.3mpg and CO2 of just 133g/km for their new Expert and Dispatch medium vans, while Ford cites best official consumption of 49.6mpg for the Transit Custom.