Garage Italia Creates Custom Fiat Truck Concept

Garage Italiahas demonstrated time and time again a knack for customizing Fiats, among others. That's typically boiled down toelaborate versions of the Cinquecento, but this time Lapo Elkann and company have applied their talents to something decidedly more utilitarian.

Unveiled at the Hannover commercial vehicle show in Germany this week, thisFiat Fullbackshow truck has been extensively modified to draw attention to the pickup that (even more than the Mazda-based124 Spider) is essentially arebadged Mitsubishi L200. Not the least of its modifications is the two-tone green and bronze livery.

铜屋顶和镜子帽子s and matte-black 17-inch alloys contrast nicely with the metallic green bodywork. And the interior, true to Garage Italia style, has been fully reupholstered – this time in Elmo Vintage brown leather to suit its rough-and-tumble character.

Based as it is on the Fullback Cross, the show truck features a beefed-up off-road suspension, low-range transfer gearcase, Torsen central differential, and a locking mechanical rear diff. Everything you'd need, in short, to venture off the beaten path in a literal sense just as Garage Italia has clearly done here stylistically.

The Fullback concept is just one (but arguably the most intriguing) of the vehicles that Fiat Professional and Ram trucks are exhibiting at the Hannover show. Also on display, show-goers will find examples of the Ducato (known in North America as theRam ProMaster) and Doblo (ProMaster City), the Fiorino (rebadged from the Peugeot Bipper/Citroën Nemo) and Talento (Renault Trafic), and the American-made Ram light- and heavy-duty full-size pickups.