ix panel vans passed through our hands in 1991. When
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it came to whittling them down to a shortlist, the Citroen C25 was elbowed out by the Fiat Ducato Turbo D, while the Ford Transit 110 lost out to its more productive big brother. Peugeot's noteworthy Maxum parcel van suffered from its 3.1-tonne rating — early imports were destined for bus conversion.
The new Volkswagen Transporter, however, was an obvious choice for our testers' consideration. This is a totally different proposition from its dated rear-engined namesake, and we fancied the front-wheel drive newcomer to give the lighter Transits a hard time.
Our test vehicle, the 1,000kg SWB model, came with the 2.4-litre 57kW (75hp) five-cylinder IDI diesel engine, which combined a high average speed with an excellent fuel consumption of 9.31it/100km (30.4mpg). Our drivers rated it highly for its fine handling (with standard power steering), strong road holding and car-like interior.
The load area is a practical, and one advantage of frontwheel drive is a low loading height. Payload is 935kg — comparable with the SWB Ford Transit 100 but no match for the cheaper Fiat Ducato Turbo D we tested in February.
This was our first encounter with the revised Ducato, which was launched last year. Like its Sevel brothers from Peugeot and Citroen, the Italian got some blink-and-you'llmiss-them panel changes. New door skins, front wings and front grille are the sum total.
Behind the grille, Fiat has slotted in a new engine for the UK range. Culled from its car range, the 1.9 litre IDI charge
Testers Choke Ford Transit 190 turbo diesel
cooled engine is a fiery performer: 60kW (82hp) at 4,1 0Orpm and 181Nm (1341bft) of torque at 2,500rpm are excellent figures from such a small engine, but its peaky performance lacks the low-end torque needed in a loaded van.
The 1,465kg payload is hard to fault, however, as are the roomy body and low loading height. It's competitively priced too but build quality still leaves something to be desired.
Testers' Choice 1991 goes to the new Transit 190 LWB turbo-diesel. The revised Transit went on sale in late autumn, and this test was our first experience of the new range and its turbo engine option.
he Transit's panel changes are even more subtle than the Sevel's, but under the skin Ford has made some pretty radical changes, particularly to LWB models.
A single-wheel-rear axle gives more room inside, and an independently sprung front end smooths the ride and sharpens the handling. Payload is excellent at 1,625kg, but the semi-high roof model lacks the' volume of some 3.5tonne competitors.
Our test vehicle was fitted with the turbo 2.5DI diesel, producing 74kW (99hp) at 4,000rpm and a whopping 224Nm (1651bft) of torque at 2,100rpm. Gains are optimised by using the Lucas EPIC electronic engine management system with "drive-by-wire" throttle. The results are excellent performance combined with good fuel economy. Combine that with decent load-carrying ability and the Transit's productivity left it a clear winner.