Fiat Doblo 1.3 JTD rental car

[Johann]

I spent the last week in a villa in Spain. One needs a rental car and as we were 7 people going in two cars I opted for a small van. It was only £117/week from www.Holidayautos.co.uk My choices were Renault Kangoo, Citroën Berlingo or a Fiat Doblo. The only had the latter to hand and within minutes my car was dubbed the (postman) Pat-mobile due to its red colour!!!

But I was pleasantly surprised. It may be no oil-painting inside or out, but that 1,3 JTD diesel engine (89bhp) is not called the best small diesel engine for nothing. Did it go! The other car in the group was a new shape Ford Focus 1,6 petrol Estate. Up hills the Doblo showed it a clean pair of heals even with a full load of passengers and bags. It was very comfortable on motorways and though no A2 around the numerous mountain passes to our villa it never felt anything but stable.

Acres of space inside too with a massive boot. Not so sure about the hard blue plastic accents on the dash though… The rear sliding doors were perfect in narrow car parks as none of the people (or children normally) could open their doors and scrape/damage the car next to you. This made me appreciate the new Mazda5’s rear sliding doors much more. All in all a perfect and very frugal rental car (even with the AC on all the time) I can highly recommend (if you can get past the weird looks).

(and yes they bloody bought me a black and white cat as well!!!)

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[img=left]http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-2/11882/a2andme2.gif[/img=left]
2001 A2 TDI SE Crystal Blue with Open Sky, 6CD Symphony II, BOSE upgrade, DIS and HALF a winterpack

iPAQ 4150 with TomTom+CoPilot bluetooth, rear cupholders, luggage net, fire extinguisher and floppy wiper

http://www.a2oc.net/pic_show.asp?picid=1572&type=1 On www.A2OC.net pictures UK160 to UK183

 

[swiv]

Since when is the 1.3JTD a 89 BHP engine?
From the info I have here (from a Dutch car-info website), the 1.3 JTD resembles the A2's 1.4Tdi with 70 Bhp and 180Nm torque.
However, an empty Doblo weighs around 1300kg, so it still is (as Jeremy Clarkson once called it) the world's slowest car: over 16 seconds to reach 60mph.

And I cannot imagine that it goes anywhere with several passengers and luggage. I even find my own chiptuned A2 sluggish when I driving with anything more than just my girlfriend in the car!

However, I respect your opinion about cars, so you must be right somewhere

Cheers,

Edo

--
(2003 Silver 1.4 Tdi Exclusive(SE), 95bhp/235Nm chiptuned by ABT, black interior, sport seats, heated mirrors, TomTom3 PDA Satnav, JVC KD-SH909RB cd-receiver, Infinity Kappa 63.1 + Vifa on-dash tweeters, 12" Subwoofer on 300w Amp)

 

[Johann]

The 16 seconds you refer to is the 1,2 petrol Doblo which is all Clarkson bothered to refer to… As he always does. Reporting things to suit his story and conveniently ignoring the rest…

As to the engine in the Spanish Doblo. It had 6000km on the clock, was brand new, went like the stink even in 5th gear with luggage and people as I said. Remember I drove in my A2 to the Airport before and after the Doblo. It had felt way more powerful than my 75bhp A2 and pulled much harder even though as you say it weighs a good 250Kg more…

OK I checked the Fiat website. I did not know you got a 105bhp 1,9 JTD as well. The car only said JTD on the back. LOL No wonder it pulled to well! Hehehe… It was not a 1,3! Apologies.

Max power: 105 bhp @ 4000; Max Torque: 200Nm @ 1750 rpm; Top Speed: 105 mph. LOL But nowhere do they mention the 0-60 time of ANY of the engine sizes!

This is the spec for the 1,2 litre:

Combined fuel consumption 37.7 mpg; Max power: 65 bhp @ 5500 rpm; Max torque 102 Nm @ 3500 rpm; Top speed: 88 mph.

No wonder it is so slow! 65 bhp for 1300kg!!!

This is the 1,3 JTD:

Max power: 70bhp @ 4000; Max torque 180 Nm @ 1750 rpm; Top speed: 90 mph.


____________________________________________________________________________________
[img=left]http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-2/11882/a2andme2.gif[/img=left]
2001 A2 TDI SE Crystal Blue with Open Sky, 6CD Symphony II, BOSE upgrade, DIS and HALF a winterpack

iPAQ 4150 with TomTom+CoPilot bluetooth, rear cupholders, luggage net, fire extinguisher and floppy wiper

http://www.a2oc.net/pic_show.asp?picid=1572&type=1 On www.A2OC.net pictures UK160 to UK183

 

[swiv]

According to my Dutch website, the 0-60 times are as follows:
1.2 petrol: 18.9 seconds
1.6 petrol: 12.6 s
1.3 JTD: 16.0 s
1.9 JTD: 12.4 s

So the 1.9 is definately the quickest of the bunch.
But with hardly any more torque than the 1.4 Tdi in the A2, and with a similar 0-60 time, I still can't imagine that it felt quicker than your A2.

Ok, I'll stop nagging now. I really like your reviews and updates

Edo

--
(2003 Silver 1.4 Tdi Exclusive(SE), 95bhp/235Nm chiptuned by ABT, black interior, sport seats, heated mirrors, TomTom3 PDA Satnav, JVC KD-SH909RB cd-receiver, Infinity Kappa 63.1 + Vifa on-dash tweeters, 12" Subwoofer on 300w Amp)