Big bakkie look, for this compact Fiat double cab.

The big news this month might be Hyundai’s new double-cab bakkie, but Fiat is not being outdone.

Some new styling and cabin architecture trends have been applied to the FCA Toro. This compact unibody bakkie has been on sale since 2015 and now benefits from a significant exterior resign. The Fiat Toro has made a big dent in the Brazilian market where it sold 100 000 units in its first 2 years. The Toro runs the same platform as the Jeep Renegade, Compass and Fiat 500X.

The influence of FCA’s Ram division is clear in the Toro’s front styling, with a more imposing new grille and bumper. Fiat is also offering an array of bullbars and wheel options on the new Toro, ranging from 16- to 18-inches in size.

It might not have Land Cruiser off-road or load-carrying ability, but the Toro does offer a very clever vertically split tailgate option, with a lockable loadbay cover.

The cabin is now comfier than before, with 26-litres greater storage space, and Toro’s instrument binnacle has been comprehensively digitized. This compact double-cab bakkie also features a huge 10.1-inch vertical touchscreen infotainment system, in the manner of Volvo’s Sensus system.

Fiat’s interior designers and ergonomists have retained some tactile buttons for HVAC functions.

The most notable mechanical engineering upgrade with this new Toro, is the availability of Fiat’s 1.3-litre turbopetrol engine, boosting 134 kW and 270 Nm. It drives through a six-speed automat transmission and should give the small Fiat double-cab a reasonable turn of speed.

The Toro is only produced for the South American market, but like the Volkswagen Saveiro, there is still hunger in the local market for small bakkies in the mould of the Nissan NP200, which has the market all to itself.

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