Some of Glasgow City Council’s Fiat Doblò Work Up vans have been fitted with tail lifts.
Glasgow City Council has taken delivery of 31 new Fiat Doblò Work Up vehicles which will join its existing fleet of over 200 Fiat Professional vehicles.
The new Doblò Work Up deal is part of an on-going four year Framework Agreement between specialist Fiat Professional dealer, Imperial Commercials Glasgow, and Glasgow City Council for the supply of commercial vehicles.
Fiat Professional models already supplied under the agreement are the Fiorino Combi, Fiorino Cargo, Doblò Cargo, and Ducato. The models are used in a variety of applications across several departments and will be used in all council services including Roads & Winter maintenance, Cleansing, Parks and Homecare.
The Fiat Doblò Work Up is a dropside vehicle with much more compact external dimensions than most other dropside models, allowing easy use in urban areas such as Glasgow. The external dimensions are not, however, a limit to its performance. The load box is 2.30 m long and 1.82 m wide, with 4 m2 of loading area which can accommodate a payload of up to 1,000kg. Additionally, the bi-link rear suspension permits a rear axle load of up to 1,450kg.
The new vehicles are all powered by Fiat’s 1.3 MultiJet II 16v Diesel engine which employs Fiat’s latest MultiJet II technology, helping to lower running costs and reduce emissions. The 90 bhp 1.3-litre MultiJet II diesel has an official Combined Cycle fuel consumption figure of 55.4 mpg and an emissions figure of 133g/km.
Options fitted to the vehicles include Remote Central Locking, Blue&Me, Steering Wheel Controls, Start&Stop and ESP. All vehicles will be supplied in white and feature Glasgow City Council’s unique livery. Some will be equipped with tail lifts which have been fitted by George Newberry Coach Builders Ltd, Coatbridge, Lanarkshire.
“During the selection process we were looking for vehicles that provided high quality and the best possible value, and Fiat Professional’s models met our requirements perfectly. Reliability, competitive whole-life costs and reducing our environmental footprint were also big considerations in our final choice,” says Emil Laiolo, Transport manager, Glasgow City Council.
“We are delighted with how the vehicles are performing and are looking forward to the addition of the new Doblò Work Up vehicles to the fleet. It has also been reassuring to know that we have the full back-up and resource of Imperial Commercials Glasgow who have understood our requirements and who have provided tremendous support throughout.”
The Fiat Doblò has already won a number of awards, thanks to its versatility and the wide range of choice included in the range. The Work Up is an unusual model — as far as I know, there aren’t any comparable small pick-up or dropside models available from mainstream manufacturers in the UK.