Fiat Doblo long-term test report 6
Can the Fiat Doblo provide the right amount of space and enough range for a videographer spending life on the road?...
The Car Fiat Doblo L1 Multijet3 1.5 100ps manual Primo Run by Tom Goodban, Videographer
Why it’s here To prove there are compact van alternatives to the Ford Transit, and ones which you should consider alongside it
Needs to Act as a mobile office on video shoots and cover long distances to shoot locations around the country
Mileage 4927 List price £24,040 (exc. VAT) Price as tested £24,573 (exc. VAT) Official economy 54mpg Test economy 46.8mpg
15 July 2025 – Moving day
Since moving out of my parents’ house almost a year ago, I have been sneakily keeping some of my things in their loft to avoid cluttering my own house. However, this week, my time getting away with that came to an end. Piles of bits, bobs and boxes greeted me as I returned to my parents’ house for a weekend visit.
When I originally moved out, I had to squash everything I could into a Vauxhall Corsa and make multiple trips back and forth. Thankfully, this time around, my Fiat Doblo was fueled and ready to take on the challenge in one run.
With a load volume of 3.3m3 and a payload of 982kg, there was plenty of space for the boxes I was bringing back with me and even extra room if I needed to get more in. The side sliding door and the split opening rear doors made it very easy to load and rejig everything around, like a 3D game of Tetris. A piece of rubber from the bulkhead did come loose after a box brushed past it – which was a touch disappointing in terms of build quality – but other than that the Doblo took on the task of packing very well.
One frustration on my Doblo being an L1 version is that there’s only one sliding door into the load bay, which is located on the passenger side. This initially caused me an issue because I was parking against a wall. Access was difficult and, in the end, I had to move some cars around on the driveway so I could turn my van around and use the side door. Upgrading to the L2 Doblo would add a right-sided sliding door, and something I might consider if I was to have my time with this van again.
As to be expected (considering I was carrying all those heavy items in the boot), acceleration was a bit sluggish getting out of junctions when leaving town. However, I found the Doblo still coped well at motorway speeds on the M40. In my previous report, I mentioned the visibility in the Doblo and having those features (like the digital rearview mirror) made me feel much safer than driving a car full of boxes blocking the view out of the rear.
Overall, my Fiat Doblo is great as a mobile office and as a removal van, much to the delight of my parents who have now reclaimed their loft space.
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