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Fiat unveils 4x4 data on Ducato
Page 14
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• Fiat has released full details of its four-wheel-drive SEVELbuilt Ducato van which is due for a UK launch in July. Of the five body styles available from SEVEL's Val di Sangro factory, only the short-wheelbase van will be available here for about £2,000 more than the 4x2 version. The first batch of 4 x4s will be powered by 2.5-litre naturally-aspirated diesel engines, but the 69kW (92hp) Sofim turbo diesel unit will become available in August, and from then on UK/spec Ducatos will all be fitted with the blown diesel engine.
The 4x4 Ducato uses a driveline similar to that in the Volkswagen Transporter Syncro. Drive to the front wheels is via the standard Ducato driveshafts; the gearbox has a take-off with a drop-gear that powers a two-piece propellor shaft. Mounted in the centre of the propellor shaft, and supported with a tubular cradle, is a Ferguson viscous coupling. The rear part of the propellor shaft takes the drive to a semielliptic, spring-mounted live axle containing a normal hypoid differential with a plate-type limited slip unit The 4x4 system adds around 150kg to the vehicle's kerbweight.
The use of the Ferguson viscous coupling means that engine torque is split between the two axles; any difference in the turning speed between the front and rear wheels results in the viscous coupling progressively locking to transfer the torque to the axle that is not spinning.
Supplies of the 4x4 will initially be limited to about 10 a month, but if demand exceeds supply then more can be imported. Fiat is aiming supplies of the van primarily at the Swiss, Austrian and German markets, where 4x4 vans account for 5-10% of the 8001,400kg-payload sector.