A market staple for over 45 years, the Iveco Daily’s journey includes first-of-their-kind features, countless revamps, and handfuls of awards. Join us as we explore the roads that have led to the success of this Italian LCV.
When the going gets tough, the tough get going. The Iveco Daily has long been known as one of the most rugged, dependable workhorses on the LCV market — but these days we ask a lot more of our vans than to simply take the hits and keep moving forward.
The Daily’s weakness? Simply put: in the past, this durability has often been thought to come at the expense of comfort or luxury.
But is this still true today? Well, you may be surprised by the innovations and refinements behind the Daily, as we take a trip down Iveco memory lane.
Generation one (1978-1999): An icon is born
Image credit: Iveco
It’s 1978. Argentina have just won the world cup, Grease is in cinemas, Bee Gees are top of the charts, and the Iveco Daily has just entered the van market.
Sat on a truck-derived chassis which drew heavily on classic Italian haulers of the time like the Fiat 616 and 242, the Daily’s base format and boxy exterior rapidly became synonymous with versatility and reliability.
Innovative right from the start, the 17m3 with 2.1m interior height this chassis supported was an industry first, and can still go toe-to-toe with the ‘best-in-class’ cargo capacities of Fiat Ducatos and Mercedes Sprinters today.
Among various internal and external facelifts which brought the Daily closer to the van we recognise today, Iveco began to test the water with several spin-off variants. In 1984 a 4x4 edition arrived to the delight of adventurous campervan converters, and in 1985 the ‘TurboDaily’ became a pioneer as the first LCV to introduce turbodiesel technology, churning out a whole 92 hp (hold on, these numbers get boosted). Finally, in another LCV first, the ECODaily was released in 1998 with a Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) engine — a relatively niche sustainability option which still remains within the Iveco range.
Jump forward to 1999, and the second generation of Daily romped onto the scene with a complete design overhaul. This refinement is when the award tour set off, swiftly scooping up a van of the year award.
Facelifts were applied thick and fast, with the angular edges slowly being rounded off, before legendary designer Giorgetto Giugiaro (yes, think the futuristic DMC DeLorean, VW Golf Mk1, and BMW M1 to name a few) devised a full revamp in 2006. This is likely the classic Iveco you picture when you think ‘Daily’ — no surprise as this model saw the van hit 2,000,000 units sold.
Under the bonnet, modernised engines joined the range. Stand-outs included the diesel common rail direct injection variant, yet another industry first, and the addition of a 3.0-litre turbodiesel engine capable of a handy 176 hp.
Although the Daily’s stripped back, hardy reputation was maintained, modern tech became ever more present around this time. 2006 saw a sign of things to come with the introduction of comprehensive steering and braking assist systems, before the innovative Daily Electric was launched in 2009 — an increasingly standard concept now, but ahead of its time in the noughties.