Volkswagen California vs Fiat Ducato

What's the difference?

A van like this is the envy of campgrounds, and with a fully warranted set of cosy extras, it’s ready to roll from day one, too.

As a weekender the California Beach is ideal, and one of its most appealing attributes is how easily it can also be packed up and used for day-to-day duties when you’re not out adventuring on the road.

Keep in mind for longer term touring you’ll need a fair bit of extra kit to make this California as capable as some rivals, and there’s always Trakka waiting for you if you want to spend more coin.

The latest Fiat Ducato, in MWB MR configuration with optional nine-speed auto, is a competent competitor in the 3501-8000kg GVM segment. Its class-leading two-tonne-plus payload rating would have considerable appeal for those who need to carry exceptionally heavy loads and we couldn’t find any major flaws in its design and performance. However, the warranty is short and there are niggling issues in terms of driver comfort, which if addressed would increase the Ducato’s appeal.

The California Beach does offer an iconic slice of VW’s historic Kombi aesthetic, modernised to its current range. While the two-tone paint is a remarkably expensive option, it does seal the #vanlife deal.

Two-tone paint or not, though, you could do much worse in terms of aesthetics than the Transporter 6.1, which is about as graceful as commercial vehicles come with its now-giant chrome embossed grille, matching painted bodywork, appealing little alloy wheels, and with the LED light package fitted, a contemporary shine profile at night.

The California Beach also hides its status as a camper well, blending in with other people movers and commercial vehicles in traffic with the slight hint given away by its branding and the awning hanging off one side.

The pop-up tent option in our test car is invisible from the outside, and with the seats in their default position, it could be any passenger-oriented van on the road.

More on that later, but the interior, too, brings much of the comfort and aesthetic from the rest of VW’s passenger car range.

Those who want to use this as a multi-role vehicle when they’re not camping will be pleased by its up-to-date interior appointments, with the pragmatic but attractive leather-bound VW wheel shared with other current products, as well as the option of the ever-impressive ‘Digital Cockpit’ dash.

The seats are aesthetically pleasing, with the only giveaway this is a commercial vehicle being the hard plastics with a more rugged pattern across the dash and doors in place of the usual soft materials which adorn Volkswagen passenger cars.

As subtle and sensible as the California may be though, there was no doubt it was instantly recognised at the campground, with owners of other Transporters, Trakkas, and other campervans coming to have a look at a model they clearly knew of.

The MWB MR's front-wheel drive chassis rides on a 3450mm wheelbase with 12.5-metre turning circle. It’s 5413mm long, 2050mm wide and 2539mm tall, so like numerous van rivals in this GVM class it can’t access shopping centre and underground carparks which typically have a 2.2-metre height limit.

Underpinnings are simple and rugged, combining coil-spring strut front suspension with a leaf-spring rigid-tube rear axle that’s well designed for heavy load-carrying, with compressible rubber cones between body and axle that provide a second stage of support. There’s also four-wheel disc brakes, power-assisted rack and pinion steering and ample hard-wearing black plastic protecting the most vulnerable areas of the bodywork from scrapes and dents.

A sealed steel bulkhead separates the cabin from the cargo bay, insulating driver and passengers from load area noise and doubling as a robust cargo barrier. Its sliding window is ideally positioned to allow the driver or passenger to make a quick over-shoulder glance to check that their load is secure. Leg room for the centre passenger is unusually generous, even for tall adults, which would be appreciated by a crew of three.

Interestingly, the rear barn-door windows are heated but there are no wiper/washers fitted. At first this appeared to be an oversight, but having driven the Ducato in heavy rain we were surprised at how spray-free the rear screens remained and how clean they were afterwards.

Our only gripes are that the driver’s left footrest is so short you can only rest your toes on it. It’s a shame the excellent full-length one that resides in the passenger footwell (which of course is the driver’s footwell in LHD models) can’t migrate across the cabin for RHD versions. Driver comfort would be further improved with more rake adjustment in the base cushion.

The small 5.0-inch infotainment screen also makes it difficult to see much detail in the vision provided by the reversing camera. The optional 7.0-inch screen would be an improvement here, but is only available as part of the Comfort and Tech Pack.

Interior space in this camper is one of its key highlights. As a van it has a huge and versatile cargo area behind the front seats, with the fold-down rear row on rails to maximise cargo capacity if need be.

A rear shelf at the back can be used for all your storage needs, with a compact space underneath for securing everything from camping equipment to shopping bags on the day-to-day and there are even little draws underneath the sliding seat row for the storage of small items (it was handy to use these for the awning’s winder and pegs, the luggage net which we weren’t using, and other things you don’t want to lose.

VW doesn’t quote a VDA number for the total luggage space given how versatile the load area is, although it does state there is 4.3 square metres of space in the cabin.

As already mentioned, the key advantage of this camper over others is its ease of use. Setting it up and packing it down is a 10 minute affair, allowing you the flexibility to be ready to camp or explore the local area in a pinch.

The California we tested sits five and even has ISOFIX mounts on the outer rear seats, but for larger families, there’s also a seven-seat option, with the extra seats folding down to make for a larger bedding area.

The awning itself is manually operated with a winder and pop-out legs. The front two seats are ‘captain’s chairs’ which can rotate 180-degrees to face back into the cabin.

It’s a neat and sometimes necessary addition to allow for a seating area if the bed is deployed, but they are a little fiddly to operate.

To swivel them, you need to fully fold the steering column away, move the seat all the way forward, rotate it half way, then move it forward again to clear the wheel in the driver’s position.

Practicality for the driver and front passenger while on the move is excellent, with two sets of huge cutaways in the doors for the storage of objects, cupholders seated atop the dash, a big bay for books or laptops which also houses a 12V outlet, and there are adjustable-height armrests attached to the seats.

The seats and wheel are also very adjustable, and the roof is high allowing plenty of space for people of all heights.

A small issue I ran into was the awkward lack of a place to put my phone. The most obvious location seemed to be the cupholder next to the shift lever, especially since this is where the USB-C connections were located, although it was a bit awkward, and my phone and wallet would easily fall out onto the floor, from where they could simply disappear into the rear of the cabin under acceleration.

The Ducato’s 2060kg kerb weight and 4250kg GVM results in a huge 2190kg payload rating which dwarfs rivals we've tested including the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, Ford Transit and its Peugeot Boxer sibling. It's also rated to tow up to 2250kg of braked trailer but given that Fiat does not publish a GCM (Gross Combination Mass) number, we can’t confirm if it can tow that weight while carrying a full payload.

The cargo bay, with a competitive 11.5 cubic metres of load volume, has an unprotected load floor that’s 3120mm long and 1870mm wide with 1422mm between the wheel housings. Therefore, it can easily carry two 1165mm-square standard Aussie pallets or three 1200 x 800mm Euro pallets, held in place by eight sturdy load-anchorage points.

There’s also ample forklift access through either the rear barn-doors, which can swing open to 270 degrees with a combined 1562mm-wide opening, or the sliding side doors with their 1250mm-wide openings.

All doors and walls are lined to mid-height and the raised roof cavity allows even tall adults to stand inside without stooping. It also provides a large and very useful storage area over the driver’s cabin, which is ideal for stowing ropes, straps, load-padding etc.

There’s plenty of cabin storage too, with large-bottle holders and two levels of storage bins in each front door. The dashboard offers numerous open storage bins plus small-bottle/cup holders, a glovebox, large overhead map shelf and storage tray under the driver’s seat. The centre seat’s backrest also folds forward to reveal a handy work desk on the back of it, complete with a spring-loaded clip to hold documents in place, a pen holder and two more small-bottle/cup holders.

Our white test vehicle is the MWB MR, which translates to Medium Wheel Base Mid-Roof. It’s one of four Ducato van configurations featuring medium, long and extra-long wheelbases and two roof heights.

They’re all powered by a new 2.3 litre turbo-diesel engine, with a list price of $48,300 for the MWB MR with standard six-speed manual or $51,190 with the optional new nine-speed torque converter automatic like our test vehicle. It also has an extra side-sliding door that adds another $1190.

A few of the standard features include 16-inch steel wheels with heavy-duty 215/75 R16C tyres and a full-size spare (16-inch alloys optional), infotainment system with 5.0-inch touchscreen, USB/AUX connectivity and steering wheel controls, power-adjustable and heated exterior mirror, dual passenger seat with three-point central seatbelt, single cargo bay side-sliding door, twin rear barn-doors with 270-degree opening, reversing camera/rear parking sensors plus an upgraded safety suite headlined by AEB.

There’s also a wide choice of colours and other options including the Comfort and Tech Pack which for an additional $2190 brings a larger 7.0-inch infotainment touchscreen with DAB digital radio, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, plus sat-nav, LED daytime running lights, automatic climate control and tyre pressure monitoring.

For the same price you can also get a Safety Plus Pack comprising rain/dusk sensor, auto high beam, traffic sign recognition, blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert, fog lights, traction control and all-season tyres.

The version of the California Beach we tested for this review was the mid-grade TDI340 4Motion.

This means it is powered by a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, turbo-diesel engine producing 110kW/340Nm. It’s paired with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic, and in the case of this model, is capable of driving all four wheels.

It’s not much for power, but with the large amount of torque available, pulls strongly even when loaded up.

While it’s nice to have the all-wheel drive for loose surfaces and the like, clearance is limited so I wouldn’t venture into the rough stuff, even with the optional differential lock.

For those looking to fit further enhancements, or tow, the California Beach’s GVM is 3080kg leaving 623kg for payload, and it can tow 750kg unbraked or 2500kg braked.

The all-new drivetrain features Fiat’s latest 2.3 litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel with Multi-Jet 2 electronically-controlled common rail direct injection, variable-vane turbocharging, intercooler and Euro 6-emissions compliance using AdBlue. It produces 130kW at 3500rpm and (in automatic models) 450Nm of torque which peaks at 1500rpm. In case you’re wondering, the red ‘180’ body badges denote European metric horsepower.

The new ZF nine-speed torque converter automatic is a sweet-shifting transmission which Fiat claims is designed to optimise the engine’s torque delivery and fuel economy. It has a sequential manual-shift function if required, which could be useful if hauling big payloads in hilly terrain, but works most efficiently when left alone.

The California Beach TDI340 4Motion has an official combined fuel consumption figure of 7.5L/100km and a relatively large 80-litre fuel tank, allowing for a healthy cruising range for those more distant camping locations.

Our camping journey (a roughly 600km return trip) meant the California travelled mostly freeway kilometres on our week with the car, and it produced an overall figure of 7.4L/100km. It takes diesel and also has a 13-litre AdBlue tank.

Fiat does not publish a combined average consumption figure for the Ducato, but the dash display was claiming 10.2L/100km at the end of our test, which covered almost 300km of which more than a third was with a heavy payload. We also had the auto stop-start function switched off. That consumption figure was very close to our own, calculated from fuel bowser and tripmeter readings, of 10.6L. So, based on our numbers you could expect a real-world driving range of around 850km from its 90-litre tank.

One of the California's more appealing features is the way its camping features can be minimised. Unlike some fit-outs which feature built-in fittings, once you pack the rear bed away and fold everything up, it makes for an appealing five-seat van for driving around in day-to-day traffic.

The diesel engine offers a rugged soundscape but plenty of pulling power once you overcome a moment of turbo-lag for cargo, people and equipment, and visibility is great out the front and sides.

The dual clutch transmission behaved well in my time with the van, although like many cars which use this transmission it can occasionally cost you a second at an intersection as it combines with the stop-start system to make for a moment of delay.

The California is a relatively easy van to park and live with when you’re not out on the road, and features a nice organic steering tune to give you plenty of confidence in the corners, bolstered by the addition of all-wheel drive in the van we tested.

The ride when empty is quite rough, like many vans in this segment. With the diesel engine, this can make for a bit of a noisy experience on coarse-chip freeways, and especially gravel roads. Potholes can also be cringe-inducing.

 As always one of the biggest advantages of VW commercial products is how closely they can be specified to VW’s passenger vehicles.

With the right option boxes ticked, for example, our car had the very welcome digital dash, and the multimedia suite.

While not the latest fully touch unit you can experience in cars like the Golf 8, it has the welcome addition of tactile shortcut buttons and dials for ease-of-use while driving.

With the fold-away roof, the California also isn’t bigger than a regular Transporter van. At 1990mm high it should fit in most parking lots and garages.

There’s a commanding view for the driver thanks to a panoramic windscreen and clear eye-lines to the truck-sized door mirrors. There’s also reasonable but cluttered vision through the central rear-view mirror, which is partly obscured by the centre seat’s headrest.

The cabin bulkhead is effective in all but eliminating cargo bay noise and engine/wind noise volume is commendably low even on the highway. The highest audible intrusion at those speeds comes from the front tyres, which is acceptable on smooth bitumen surfaces but increases on coarser grades.

Its leather-rimmed steering wheel is nice to use and thanks to the driver’s door moulding and fold-down in-board armrest, there’s evenly balanced elbow support to relieve strain on the neck and shoulders.

The engine and nine-speed auto transmission are well matched, providing energetic performance when prodded and crisp, decisive shifting. Long-legged highway gearing allows 100km/h at 1500rpm (which is also bang on maximum torque) and less than 1700rpm at 110km/h. Ride quality when empty or lightly loaded can get bouncy on bumpy roads, which is not unexpected from suspension with a two-tonne-plus payload capacity.

Our main criticism is insufficient rake adjustment in the driver’s seat base cushion. There’s not enough angle available to stop the driver sliding forwards, requiring constant repositioning that becomes tiring after a while. More rake in the base cushion, combined with a decent-sized left footrest, would solve this issue.

Also annoying is the audible lane-departure warning, which is too loud and sounds like you’re being zapped by a ray-gun in an old sci-fi movie if you step out of line. A less confronting warning would be welcome.

There’s no ANCAP ratings for this GVM division and above, but the latest Ducato is equipped with AEB, forward collision alert, lane departure warning, rear parking sensors, reversing camera plus driver and dual-passenger airbags as standard. Buyers can also option the Safety Plus Pack mentioned earlier.

The California Beach is covered by a five year and unlimited kilometre warranty like the rest of the Volkswagen passenger car range, which includes one year of roadside assistance.

The prime advantage of buying a first-party Volkswagen camper is the entire vehicle is covered by this warranty, as opposed to needing to deal with two warranties if you were to buy from a brand like Trakka.

There is also the option of a five or three year service plan. At the time of writing, the five year service plan was running at the price of a three year plan, valued at $1850 for this 4Motion variant, or just $370 a year for the life of the warranty.

This is a claimed saving of $2302 over the cost of regular scheduled maintenance. Visits to the workshop are required once every 12 months or 15,000km, whichever comes first.

Three years/200,000km warranty looks undercooked compared to the five years/unlimited km offered by some rivals. Scheduled servicing, though, is excellent for hard-working vans at 48,000km/12 months whichever occurs first. Five years of Fiat Professional servicing, based on a total distance of 240,000km, equals $6756.99 or an average of $1351.40 per year.