Iveco News

Your next off-road adventure machine should be a truck.

Iveco has updated its Daily van and cab chassis range with new Euro 6-compliant engines, as well as boosting safety technologies and standard equipment for the 2021 model year.Starting with the van range, three trims are available - 35S, 50C and 70C - acr

Iveco introduced its facelifted Daily van this week, with the commercial model featuring revised styling and boosted equipment levels across its vast line-up.

Iveco has released images of its latest load hauler, which it will launch later this year in Europe and early next year in Australia. The company says the third generation Daily is all new and it certainly looks it thanks to a fresh face featuring angled headlights and a double grille, split by a strip of body colour. But the changes run deeper, with Iveco changing wheelbases and body sizes across the range as well as introducing new suspension.Iveco is not releasing all the details of its latest Daily just yet, so it is hard to tell whether it will run a new engine or an improved version of the existing poweplant. Either way, Iveco is prepared to say the next generation Daily will be 5 per cent more fuel efficient than the existing model. It has also confirmed the new van will be built at two recently upgraded factories in Spain and Italy.The new Iveco will be offered as a regular van as well as a cab-chassis version that can be fitted with a tray or body or be converted into a motor home. The company is discussing three van sizes, one with 18 square metres of cargo area, another with 20 square metres and one with 11 square metres that Iveco says is the most space efficient in its class, which means it has the longest load area for a vehicle of its size.There is a new front suspension for models up to 3.5 tonnes and a new rear suspension system for all two-wheel drive Daily models. Iveco says the suspension changes have been made for better control and carrying capacity.It claims to have greatly improved the driving experience, cutting the road and tyre noise while improving the ergonomics and upgrading the airconditionsing system.

Iveco Australia is in the final stages of Australian certification of the off-road Daily, which is already on sale in Europe. The Daily is Iveco's heavy hauling van, which is also available in a single cab-chassis and crew cab-chassis format.A high-riding 4x4 version has been on sale in Europe for years and Iveco Australia will start taking orders for it here next month. Iveco Australia presented two evaluation 4x4 Dailys at Melbourne's recent International Truck and Trailer Show.These models are rated to tow 3500kg and have a total weight limit (the combined weight of the vehicle, load and trailer) of 5500kg although the specification of the Australian vehicle has not been finalized.Iveco Australia application engineer, Christian Andel, says there is one reason the company decided to introduce the vehicle locally. "Customer demand," he says."I have been hearing about it for the last three years. They have been seeing it for years in Europe and they wanted it." Iveco Australia decided not to take the 4x4 Daily straight away because it wanted to make sure it was tough enough."We wanted to see some real world testing and they put it in Dakar, they have put them to work in Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and they hammer them more than we do," Andel says. "If they can do that, they can do anything in Australia."The 4x4 Daily runs a full-time 4x4 system and comes standard with a centre and rear locking differential, while a front locking differential is optional. It runs a six-speed manual gearbox and has low-range function for crawling that means the driver can choose between 24 forward gear ratios and a four reverse gear ratios.The drive comes from a twin-turbo 3.0-litre four-cylinder Iveco turbo diesel that generates 127kW and 400Nm and runs a diesel particulate filter.

Mercedes-Benz is turning blue to be green by employing the European favoured Selective Catalyst Reduction (SCR) technology, or Bluetec as Mercedes-Benz calls it, to meet the new 2008 exhaust emission rules.SCR, along with Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) is one of the two most common technologies being used by truck makers globally to meet the tough new exhaust emission rules.It is generally seen as the simpler way of achieving the end goal of reduced emissions than EGR because it's a relatively simple technology that doesn't require any changes to the base engine as EGR requires.Instead, SCR injects Adblue, a water-based additive, into the exhaust stream. In the process ammonia is released, which converts the harmful NOx into harmless nitrogen and water.It's an out-of-cylinder approach whereas EGR is an in-cylinder approach to cleaning up the exhaust that needs major changes to the engine itself.The benefits of SCR are that the engine can be run in a dirtier state because any extra emissions produced can be cleaned up in the exhaust stream after they leave the engine.That allows the engine designers to tune the engine to develop more power and better fuel economy, without being hamstrung by the need to make the engine itself clean. As a result, the retuned Mercedes-Benz engines run a higher compression ratio and are putting out as much as 20 horsepower more than the current engines.An SCR engine will also run cooler so there's no need to bulk up the truck's cooling system as there is with EGR, which causes the engine to run hotter.For the operator that means better performance and lower running costs.Most operators who have had the chance to sample one of the many test trucks being evaluated in Australia by those manufacturers using the SCR strategy — Iveco, MAN, DAF, Scania, Volvo and UD — report better performance and driveability from the new trucks compared to their own trucks, and most claim improved fuel economy.The downside for operators is that they have to cover the extra cost of the Adblue, which is generally added at a rate of 3-5 per cent. Adblue is carried in a separate tank on the chassis. It's generally around 80 litres in capacity, which was enough to get a B-double from Brisbane and Adelaide and back in recent testing done by Volvo.Mercedes-Benz has six SCR-equipped trucks under evaluation locally, including two Atego rigids, one Axor prime mover, and three Actros prime movers. All are being put to the blowtorch in some of the toughest applications in the country to ensure they're fully prepared for the introduction of the new rules in January. 

The Daily is built on truck lines with a separate chassis that puts it in a class with small trucks such as the Isuzu N Series, Hino Dutro and Mitsubishi Fuso Canter.Until recently, anyone wanting a small truck they could drive on a car licence had to choose between a lighter Daily model with a GVM of 4.2 tonnes, 300kg below the maximum GVM allowed on a regular licence, or a more expensive downrated five-tonner.Iveco uprated its 4.2-tonne model to the full 4.5 tonnes GVM, which made it more competitive against the car-licence trucks offered by the leading truck-makers.To achieve the extra GVM Iveco revised the rear suspension by fitting uprated rear springs and more durable bushes.Being a European-built, semi-bonneted truck, the Daily offers a number of advantages over its Japan-built cabover engine rivals in terms of driver health and safety.Driver comfort is an important aspect of health and safety. A comfortable driver is a less stressed driver, one who is less tired, one who makes better choices when driving and is less likely to have a crash.Getting in a truck can be taxing when you've got to scramble over the wheel arch, as you do in a cabover model. It's unsurprising that drivers develop back troubles.Throw in the pogo-stick ride that comes with a cabover truck and there's more impact, which can lead to health problems.There's lots to like about the Daily before you turn the key. It's easy to get in and out, and because you're sitting behind the front wheels the ride is smoother and more comfortable than that of a cabover truck.Inside the seats are comfortable and have plenty of adjustment for height, reach and rake to find a comfortable driving position. There's a bench seat that accommodates two passengers to carry a crew of three.The dash is has a comprehensive cluster of gauges and controls for the standard airconditioning and radio/CD sound system are located well within reach. Power windows and mirrors, and remote central locking, all add to the vehicle's convenience factor.The mirrors give a good view to the side and rear, with small spotters to give view of the black spots that can be difficult to see.As delivered, the Daily doesn't have airbags but they can be selected from the option list and come in combination with ABS brakes.The test truck was a 45C14 tray top with a 3.0-litre direct-injection, intercooled four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine, which delivers 100kW at 3500rpm and 340Nm between 1400 and 2800rpm. It came with optional AGile six-speed automated manual shift transmission.On the road the combination worked well, the turbo diesel engine was smooth with good power delivery and the automated shift gearbox shifted smoothly and in a timely manner. When necessary the driver can also select gears manually.The Daily's ride was smooth and comfortable while still truck firm. The handling was precise and the power steering well weighted, but at 13.4m the turning circle was large.Disc brakes at both ends ensure the Daily stops with assurance. ABS added to the safety package on our truck.The Daily is available in three wheelbases, 3450mm, 3750mm and 4100mm, with payloads of 2558kg, 2545kg and 2536kg respectively, including the weight of the bodies fitted.To drive away in the test Daily you'd need to spend $38,072 for the base truck, and add $3500 for the AGile box, which gets you ABS.