Fiat is dusting off old model names. The brand pulls the name Ulysse out of the mothballs and also comes with a new Scudo. Still, the announcement may be less interesting than you might initially think.
The Ulysse was Fiat’s version of the so-called Eurovans series that was introduced in the mid-1990s. The Fiat Ulysse was a direct brother of cars such as the Citroën Evasion, Peugeot 806 and Lancia Zeta. Although Citroën, Peugeot and Lancia joined the second generation of Eurovans to give their MPVs different names, successively C8, 807 and Phedra, Fiat simply named its version after the well-known figure from Greek mythology. After the disappearance of the Eurovans, the model name Ulysse was no longer used, but Fiat now reports that the name is returning.
Second generation Fiat Ulysse
To start with the disappointment: Fiat does not dare to come up with a new large MPV of the old stamp. Instead, Fiat sticks the model name Ulysse on the passenger version of a company car that it now has easy access to, now the Groupe PSA is incorporated into Stellantis. Indeed, the Ulysse is in fact nothing more than Fiat’s version of the Citroën SpaceTourer, Peugeot Traveler, Opel Zafira Life and Toyota Proace Verso. Of course there will also be a commercial vehicle version, a car for which Fiat also dusts a well-known model name.
The delivery version of the Fiat Ulysse will be called Scudo. Although Fiat has not used the model name Scudo for a while, we still come across that designation in a more recent past from Fiat. The last Scudo was produced until 2016 when it was a brother of the Citroën Jumpy and Peugeot Expert. The Fiat Talento, Fiat’s version of the previous generation Opel Vivaro and Renault Traffic, succeeded the Scudo but, just like that generation of delivery drivers, is no longer being built. However, the new Scudo, just like the Vivaro, is now again a brother of a company car developed by the former Groupe PSA. So the circle is complete again.
Just like their technical brothers, the new Ulysse and Scudo will also be fully electric versions: the e-Ulysse and e-Scudo. The official reveal will follow shortly. Fiat will open the order books for the new Scudo before the end of the year, the Ulysse will go on sale in the first quarter of next year.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl