Verdict: Smoother, quieter, more car-like to drive and cheaper to run
All new Daily models were noticeably quieter and smoother than the models they replace.
What’s hot?
> Gosh where do we start? The new Daily was designed from a blank sheet of paper and 80% of parts are different. They’ve kept that big ladder frame chassis (and why not?) while the looks are all new – and pretty damned smart the Daily is too in our book.
> Just look at all that plastic round the bottom of the van! That should keep costs to a minimum when all those annoying knocks and scrapes start appearing.
> The cab is all new and features a more car-like dashboard. The seats have been lowered by 15mm and the steering wheel is 20mm smaller and set at a more vertical angle to give the van a more car-like feel. Meanwhile the windscreen is bigger by 4cms to give a more commanding view of the road.
> There are three storage areas on top of the dash, an overhead parcel shelf and coffee cup holders on both sides. Meanwhile there’s a big storage area under the passenger seat and the back of the middle seat pulls down to reveal a handy little desk. It’s a right little office on wheels in fact.
> As with the old Daily the seats are hard and supportive – just right for comfort over long distances. And the passengers seats are as good as the driver’s seat too – something you don’t always find in vans.
> What a difference from the old model on the roads. We tried the dropside 126bhp short wheelbase, the long wheelbase high roof 205bhp and medium wheelbase 146bhp versions on a test track at Balocco near Milan and all models were noticeably quieter, smoother and better handling than the models they replace. The 205 is a right scorcher but we couldn’t really recommend it for business purposes. We did like the sweet 146 though and we reckon that’s the one to choose unless you want this van for light work, which is unlikely to be honest. The Daily is a heavyweight performer for heavyweight uses.
> The rear end is pretty much unchanged from the old model although there are load-lashing eyes in the side of the cargo area now as well as in the floor, which is a handy addition when you want to strap smaller items in.
The Iveco Daily’s seats are both comfortable and supportive.
What’s not?
> As you can imagine with 500 million euros being spent on this van there isn’t a lot to find fault with. We did, however, pick up on a couple of trifling nitpicks (as usual – Ed!)
> Although there are three storage areas on top of the dash, none of them contained a 12v take-off (as in the rival Ford Transit) so if you have a sat-nav unit the wire trails all over the dashboard as the plug-in point (or cigar lighter as they bused to be called) is down at the bottom of the dash.
> When you close the passenger door, the outer seat sits over the door pocket so you can’t reach it. It does mean extra width for the third seat but your cola bottle is trapped once you are under way. Bah!
> We would like to have seen reversing sensors as standard on such a big vehicle. We reckon they should be a legal requirement but sadly for most manufacturers they remain on the options list.
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