There has long been room for a challenger in the minicoach sector, and with the Iveco Daily, Colne-based David Fishwick thinks that it has found one. The conversion is good, and there is a variety of options. Tim Deakin drives one.
The market for minicoaches in the 16-22 seat segment is strong, with consistent orders from operators engaged in school, private hire and corporate work. Mercedes-Benz satisfies the lion’s share of demand with the Sprinter, but there’s a challenger on hand in the form of the Iveco Daily.
Colne, Lancashire-based dealer David Fishwick offers conversions of both the Sprinter and, now, the Daily. Both are available at various dimensions to suit the buyer.
Internally there is little difference between the two, and what can be fitted to one can be fitted to the other, says Sales and Marketing Executive Matt Eames.
That extends to some opulent touches, including real or artificial leather seats, charging points and tables, although the power door kit installed in the Sprinter is not yet available on the Daily. It will be in time, and in the longer term, a plug door is likely to follow; Fishwick realises that it is desirable in high-end applications.
Two variants of the Daily minicoach are being offered to begin with: the 7.23m Extra Long, and the 7.63m Super Long. The latter has a short extension added at the rear by Iveco during build of the base vehicle that can be utilised as either a boot area or for an additional row of seating. Width and height are 2.01m and 2.70m respectively for both variants.
Two of the stock Super Long vehicles that Fishwick has were viewed by routeone. One is configured with seats right up to the rear doors, and as a result it carries 22 passengers in 2+1 layout; another has the rearmost space occupied by a boot, and so seats 19.
“We realise that it will take some time for the market to adapt to the Iveco product, but we believe that it is a credible addition to our minicoach line-up,” says Dealer Principal Mark Barlow. “It is also a good value offering, and a vehicle that offers much more refinement than customers may expect.”
The basics
As offered by Fishwick, the Daily is a 5,200kg GVW chassis powered by a three-litre Euro 6 engine. Power ratings of 146bhp or 170bhp are offered. A six-speed manual is complemented by the acclaimed Hi-Matic eight-speed automatic gearbox, available only with the higher output engine.
The Hi-Matic attracts a premium of around 1,500, but Iveco claims that it offers the potential to recoup that in savings on clutch replacement costs and greater fuel efficiency. The Hi-Matic is sourced from ZF and used in a number of luxury car applications, so its durability and refinement are established.
As a minicoach, the Daily is a compact vehicle, with dimensions that will make it suited to work in congested, awkward-to-access areas.
Stock vehicles have the 146bhp engine coupled to the manual gearbox. It is likely that all base vehicles ordered for stock will have this driveline combination, although a demonstrator may be ordered with the 170bhp rating and a Hi-Matic.
Those that are not for stock at Colne or demonstration will be partially converted, and then held awaiting a firm order. The reason for this is that a large number of internal options are available, and it makes most sense to complete the vehicle only when the configuration is confirmed. It also allows a quick turnaround of a minicoach built to the customer’s requirements.
More to come
A manual passenger door is currently the only type available, but the addition of an electrically-operated ‘ram’ opening and closing device is under development. Body layout around the Daily’s glovebox area has precluded its fitment so far.
As tested, the 22-seat demonstrator has a step at around the halfway point of the saloon to lift the floor over the rear axle.
While a small number of wheelchairs can be carried like this in combination with tracking at the rear, another option is for the whole saloon floor to be raised, which with Unwin tracking throughout and a PLS tail lift, gives the potential to carry five or six wheelchair users.
Accessible configuration is available at both lengths; a sunken gangway in the rear section is being investigated for applications that do not require wheelchair access.
With a wide variety of options available inside, and trim levels extending from basic accessible and/or school bus to a luxury 1+1 layout with all the toys, certification is undertaken via the Individual Vehicle Approval (IVA) scheme, and not Small Series.
There is a benefit to this, says Mark. “We have the vehicles approved under the IVA scheme at the DVSA’s Chadderton test centre. While it represents a cost for us, it gives assurance to the customer as every Daily is examined and receives individual approval.”
Multi-tasking mini
Rear barn doors are retained. On those Dailys that have seating all the way to the rear, they are glazed; in those that have a rear boot, they are not. Where a boot is fitted, it can be completed with a shelf at the midpoint to maximise storage, and a retaining net can be specified.
The Daily is supplied by Iveco ready to take a tow bar. The maximum braked towing weight is a substantial 3,500kg, and 750kg unbraked; while 146bhp is sufficient power for most applications, where a trailer is specified the 170bhp rating may be worthwhile.
Inside, the demonstrator is finished to a reasonably opulent specification, with seats covered in blue fabric and with three-point belts. Overhead luggage racks are fitted, as is an Eberspcher auxiliary diesel-fired heater that vents beneath the seats on the offside amidships. Matching blue curtains are also present.
In the front part of the coach, headroom is good, and it is possible for someone over 6ft tall to stand without making contact with the roof. At the rear it is naturally compromised by the raised floor, although a 2.90m high variant will very soon be added. It will be the preferred base vehicle for wheelchair-accessible Dailys, and also offered in non-accessible examples.
On the demonstrator, the mid-saloon step is not lined in high-visibility yellow, but it is understood that this can be added very simply.
The demonstrator has simple grey flooring, but, like the Sprinter conversions it offers, Fishwick can supply the Daily fitted with Flotex carpet. Flotex can be printed in an almost unlimited number of patterns, including wood-effect or carrying the operator’s logo. It is a hard-wearing, easily-cleaned material.
On the road
The opportunity was taken to put the Daily through its paces on a short drive from Colne to Keighley and back, which included a climb towards the Yorkshire border followed by a sprint along a section of dual-carriageway.
Like other minicoaches of its size, it has a cab environment and driving experience that is more akin to a car than bigger coaches. Access is easy via either door, although the dash-mounted gearstick surround can make contact with taller drivers’ left knee.
Also car-like is its performance, and the engine’s delivery of power. It will happily rev to over 3,000rpm, and the tachometer’s green band extends that far, although even when accelerating briskly up an incline there was sufficient grunt at much lower engine speeds to make excellent progress.
The slick gearbox and its closely-spaced ratios mean that it is easy to keep engine speed below 2,500rpm while still keeping up with other traffic, which will benefit fuel consumption.
Ride quality is excellent. While the slight whine from the driveline that has always been a Daily characteristic remains, saloon noise is otherwise very low, and the engine is remarkably quiet. Under normal driving it is not at all intrusive, not something that can be said of all front-engine coaches.
The chassis’ handling is highly composed, and it took some poorly-surfaced roads in its stride at 50mph. The combination of dash heater and auxiliary unit works well, and the interior temperature rose to an indicated 23oC reasonably quickly.
Standard equipment in the cab includes electrically-adjusted mirrors, electric windows, a tachograph unit and a radio/CD player.
Pleasant surprise
Barring the driveline whine, there is very little reason to fault the Daily from a driver’s position. It is a highly competent minicoach.
Its passenger environment is also perfectly acceptable for its size, and the lack of engine noise will be appreciated by all aboard.
Although on spring suspension, the chassis is suitable for passenger-carrying work, and if correctly specified internally, the Daily has potential as a long-distance cruiser. Thanks to its 3,500kg towing capacity, it will also be at home on luggage-heavy airport transfer work if a tow bar is fitted.
David Fishwick is able to offer the Daily in a variety of formats, and as tested its retail price is just shy of 50,000. There is also potential for a shorter variant than the two models already offered, should a customer require.
The Daily brings an additional option to the minicoach market, and one which – while never likely to rival the Sprinter in volume terms – is likely to appeal to some operators who want a cost-effective addition to their fleet. Chassis back-up is from Iveco’s network of dealers and it has a three-year manufacturer’s warranty, complemented by three years’ coverage of the conversion through Fishwick.
“We believe that the Daily will appeal to operators, and in many cases it will come as a surprise to them just how good it now is. Iveco has worked hard to develop the product and the quality of the conversion is good. There is definitely a market for it,” says Mark. It may lack the Sprinter’s three-pointed star, but the Daily definitely has potential.
