FIAT Officially Announces A New Midsize Pickup Truck For Brazil!

Over the past couple of years, the FIAT brand has dominated the ever-growing Brazilian pickup market with over 50% of the sales in the segment. 

The brand currently offers the country’s best-selling vehicle, the B-segment (subcompact) Fiat Strada pickup, and its C-segment (compact) Toro pickup. But despite selling a majority of the trucks in the country, FIAT currently does not offer a D-segment (midsize) pickup, a quickly growing part of the Brazilian pickup truck market. Well, that is about to change.

Earlier today, Stellantis announced that FIAT will indeed be bringing a new midsized pickup to market in Brazil during the second half of 2023.

Recently, our friends at the Brazilian publication Autos Segredos (Auto Secrets) have posted photos of several lightly camouflaged Peugeot Landtrek pickups testing out of the Stellantis Engineering Technical Center at the Automotive Complex in Betim (MG). 

With the Landtrek pickup, Peugeot has been trying to get its foot into the ever-popular midsized pickup truck market. But instead of building a new truck completely from the ground up, the French brand instead uses a modified version of the Kaicene F70 from Chinese state-owned Chang’an Automotive.

And instead of competing with the likes of Ford, Toyota, and Nissan on a global scale, Landtrek is being marketed at the Latin American and Saharan-African markets. That means that French customers aren’t even able to purchase the truck from the French brand, as it is not available in Europe anyhow.

Available in either a Single Cab or Double Cab configuration, the Landtrek does have one of the roomiest interiors in its class.

On the Double Cab models, the rear bench seat is unique to the segment with a 60/40 or 100% folding configuration. When folded down the rear seat can support a load of 220 lbs. In addition, there are two ISOFIX fasteners that ensure safety when securing child seats. Customers can choose between two front-row seating configurations. One features two bucket seats with a center console or a three-seater Multiflex bench seat. The Multiflex offers a foldable armrest/work table allowing for the ability to load bulky objects up to 165 lbs.

Under the hood, the Landtrek offers two powertrain options. The first is a 1.9-liter turbodiesel making 150 horsepower and 350Nm (258 ft.-lb.) of torque. The diesel is mated to a 6-speed Getrag manual or a 6-speed automatic transmission with chain distribution to optimize reliability and maintenance costs.

The second powertrain is a 2.4-liter turbocharged gasoline four-cylinder delivering 210 horsepower and 320 Nm (236 ft.-lb.) of torque. The gasoline option comes with a standard 6-speed Getrag manual transmission or an optional 6-speed Punch automatic transmission featuring Manual, Sport, and Eco modes.

Now, we can’t confirm which powertrain (if not both) will make its way to the Brazilian market. But Stellantis has been pushing away from small displacement diesel engines across global markets.

The Landtrek offers a payload that can exceed 2,000 lbs. depending on its configuration, as well as a tow rating of up to 7,000 lbs. Which puts it right in the middle of the midsize pickup segment.

Of course, customers can choose their Landtrek with either two-wheel-drive (4×2) or an optional four-wheel-drive (4×4) system. For those who choose a 4×4 configuration, the rear differential is fitted with an eLocker (electronic rear differential lock) with automatic disengagement and provides additional traction when a wheel slips. 

For those who plan on taking the Landtrek off-road, the midsize pickup lays down some impressive numbers for clearance. 

• Water Fording – 600 mm (23.6 inches).
• Angle of Approach – 29 ° or 30 ° (depending on the version).
• Angle of Departure – 27 ° or 26 ° (depending on the version).
• Central Angle – 25 °
• Ground Clearance – 214 mm (8.4 inches) on models equipped with 16-inch wheels, 235 mm (9.25 inches) on models equipped with 17-inch or 18-inch wheels.

Currently, the Landtrek is produced at two plants. The first is a joint venture with STAFIM in the North American country of Tunisia, with the Latin American models will be built by another joint venture with Nordex in Uruguay.