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The Fiat Ducato is a maverick. It’s always been a little different to the other vans that it shares a chassis with and this latest version is no different. 

A shared product with Peugeot and Citroen, the Ducato hasn’t always followed the blueprint outlined by its Boxer and Relay siblings, instead using the knowledge and expertise of the Fiat Powertrain family to have different engines or gearboxes to really make it stand out – even as a joint venture van. 

Now though, as all three brands are one happy family under the united umbrella of Stellantis you would think the Ducato might struggle to stand out from the crowd. Wrong. 

Not only is it going its own way with its electric large van solution the Fiat E-Ducato, it’s also taken it upon itself to revamp the regular Ducato out of sync with its siblings – if only when it comes to new technology rather than engines and body.

Predictably, power comes from a shared 2.2l turbodiesel engine that Fiat calls Multijet III, but it promises best-in-class fuel consumption – that’s still yet to be officially pinned down. It is, though, the same engine that finds its way into the Boxer and Relay and will be used in the revamped Vauxhall Movano – now that they are stablemates – with four power outputs available with nominal outputs of 120hp, 140hp, 160hp and 180hp. There’s also a new to Ducato six-speed manual transmission joined by a nine-speed auto that won’t be available on the entry-level power option.

That’s the basics, but the Ducato is all about its new tech, and Fiat is even billing it as the first ever commercial vehicle with level two autonomous Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). What that means is that it can, in theory, control the steering as well as acceleration or braking at the same time. In essence, it is the beginnings of a self-driving van, but in reality it still requires a mindful driver able to quickly intervene. 

That’s not to say that the Ducato isn’t doing its “autonomy” artfully. Some large vans do steering controls well, like the Volkswagen Crafter, which gently steers you between the white lines to stop you drifting off course, others abruptly jolt you back into position with a dab of the brakes and a tightening of the sphincter muscles – Mercedes Sprinter we’re talking about you. 

But the Ducato not only deftly controls its steering inputs but also gently applies the brakes or increases acceleration. It will even do it into a corner, which is very disconcerting as well as being clever.

It’s down to the Adaptive Cruise Control with Stop&Go function as well as the Lane Keep Assist and Traffic Jam Assist functions but there’s also a speed limiter, braking control for unexpected obstacles such as pedestrians and cyclists, road sign recognition and driver attentiveness monitoring. On top of safety systems like Cross-Wind Assist, Trailer Stability Control and Active Park Assist – that does both parallel and perpendicular parking – it helps make the new Ducato the most advanced new large van on the market.

Then there are the “nice-to-have” systems that really elevate the Ducato above others and include a digital centre mirror that gives you a crystal clear view of the road behind you, in a screen that not only looks like a traditional rear view mirror, but can also function as one at the flip of a switch. Then there’s the 7ins digital TFT touchscreen fitted as standard, but it’s the 10ins system with Fiat’s Uconnect system that allows wireless Apply CarPlay and Android Auto that’s the pinnacle of infotainment systems at the moment. 

That’s not to say it isn’t without its issues, it was slow to connect upon entry and dropped out occasionally. However, as an early test vehicle ahead of the UK arrivals at the end of the year we’ll forgive it its gremlins.

Our test vehicle, with 160hp engine and in the second largest body size still giving 15m³ of capacity and more than 1.3t of payload, also proved to be a willing accomplice to this brief foray into nearly autonomous driving. The nine-speed auto transmission is fast and smooth with barely noticeable changes, but it was the constant availability of torque paired with nimble steering and comfortable ride that makes the new Ducato tick so many more boxes beyond just its equipment. 

The Ducato has always been an under-estimated and under-appreciated van, but this new version – which gets the much more modern FIAT logo badge, along with new LED headlights and grille, not to mention the rather fetching Lanzarote Grey launch colour paintwork – is a breath of fresh air and still the perfect antidote to badge-swapping repetition.