Fiat to bring Doblo to North America to compete with Ford Transit Connect 09/20/2011
Fiat recently purchased enough U.S. and Canadian government shares of Chrysler to become the majority stockholder, according to The Associated Press. With its new control of the company, Fiat's first move is to introduce a new van to the Ram family to compete with the Ford Transit Connect and other comparable vans. The automaker, upon reaching an agreement with its Turkish partner, Tofas, plans to import about 190,000 of the new car, the Fiat Doblos, into the U.S. and Canada over the next seven years, USA Today reports.
Fiat has been selling the Doblos in Europe for a few years now, as the vehicle class is relatively popular there. Tofas has already committed to investing up to $160 million to alter the new car for North American production. The Doblo features two sliding doors, fantastic visibility and more space than any comparable vehicle, according to Top Gear. The news source also reports that the new car gets nearly 50 miles per gallon, which is more than double the fuel economy of Ford's model (22 mpg in the city and 27 mpg highway).
The Ford Transit Connect has been primarily available in the U.S. for businesses to use at delivery and labor trucks, and recently started converting the vehicles into passenger cars for New York City cab drivers. However, when Fiat brings the Doblo to North American dealerships, the Transit Connect could be completely forgotten in lieu of a new car with more than twice the fuel efficiency.