The Piaggio Porter is a cab-over microvan and pickup that Piaggio has produced and sold since 1992 under its commercial vehicle brand. It was developed in a joint venture with Daihatsu from the Japanese Hijet keivan and gave Piaggio a larger alternative to the three-wheeled Ape.
Piaggio Porter at a glance
| Maker | Piaggio, Pontedera |
|---|---|
| Production | 1992–2020 (first generation) |
| Partners | Piaggio 51 per cent, Daihatsu 49 per cent |
| Based on | Daihatsu Hijet S80 |
| Launched | September 1992, on sale in Europe in 1993 |
| First engines | 1000 cc three-cylinder petrol Daihatsu |
| 1995 diesel | 1200 cc four-cylinder Lombardini |
| 1998 facelift | 1.3 16V petrol, 1.4 diesel |
| Maxxi version | 2002, twin rear wheels, 1100 kg payload |
| Fuel options | petrol, diesel, LPG, methane, electric |
| Euro 5 | 2011, new Piaggio P120 twin-cylinder diesel |
| Replaced by | Porter NP6 in 2020 |
Based on one source: the English Wikipedia article on the Piaggio Porter.
History of the Piaggio Porter
Development with Daihatsu
The Porter came out of a joint venture between Piaggio and Daihatsu with capital of thirty billion lire, 51 per cent held by Piaggio and 49 per cent by the Japanese company. The vans were to be built at Pontedera with an investment of about 150 billion lire, of which 65 billion was to be carried by the joint venture. The plan of 1990 expected 35,000 vehicles a year, 20,000 sold in Europe and North Africa by Piaggio and 15,000 marketed by Daihatsu in the UK and south-east Asia. For Piaggio the Porter was a larger and more capable alternative to the classic Ape.
Launch and first versions
Production began at Pontedera in September 1992 and the van went on sale in Europe in the spring of 1993, both as the Piaggio Porter and as the Daihatsu Hijet in some Asian and British markets. Much of the mechanical content was made by Daihatsu in Japan and assembled in Italy. The Porter was developed from the Hijet S80 with the same frame and sheet metal, but the front section was redesigned and strengthened in reinforced steel for European crash standards, and the interior was new. The first three versions were a panel van, a glazed four-seat van and a pickup, all with a 1000 cc three-cylinder Daihatsu petrol engine; an ambulance version was added for remote Italian villages. In 1995 came a 1200 cc Lombardini diesel, multipoint injection and a catalyst for the petrol engine, a Tipper version and later a four-wheel-drive petrol model and an electric version. The glazed four- and six-seat vans were also sold by Innocenti between 1994 and 1997.
Facelifts and the Maxxi
A major facelift in 1998 brought the 1.3 16V Daihatsu petrol and 1.4 Lombardini diesel. Daihatsu’s European sales ended in 2002 when the joint venture was liquidated, and production continued under Piaggio alone. LPG versions followed in 2003, and in 2002 the Maxxi appeared with twin rear wheels and a payload raised to 1,100 kg, also in four-wheel drive. The Euro 4 petrol version came in 2006 and the diesel was dropped; in 2008 Piaggio launched the Euro 4 LPG Eco Power and an updated Maxxi with a 2,200 kg gross weight. Euro 5 arrived in 2011 with a redesigned dashboard and grille and Piaggio’s own twin-cylinder diesels: the turbocharged 1.2 P120 of 64 hp and 140 Nm, and the naturally aspirated 1.0 P100. A four-wheel-drive version returned in 2013, Euro 6 homologation came in November 2015, and first-generation production ended in 2020, replaced by the Porter NP6 developed with the Chinese manufacturer Foton.
The Indian Porter
From 2013 to 2019 the Porter was also built at Piaggio’s Baramati plant in India, replacing the Ape Mini Truck 500. The Porter 600 had a 511 cc single-cylinder diesel and the Porter 1000 a 1034 cc twin-cylinder, with payloads of 600 and 1000 kg.
Design and features
- Cab-over layout: a compact microvan and pickup with the driver over the front axle.
- Daihatsu base: the Hijet S80 frame and sheet metal, with a strengthened European front.
- Many bodies: panel van, glazed van, pickup, Tipper, ambulance and Maxxi.
- Wide engine choice: petrol, diesel, LPG, methane and electric power over the years.
- Maxxi: twin rear wheels and up to 1,100 kg payload.
Piaggio Porter versions
- Panel van and pickup (1992): the original goods versions.
- Glazed van: four seats, later also six.
- Tipper (1995): pickup with a tipping platform.
- Maxxi (2002): twin rear wheels, heavier payload.
- Eco Power (2008): Euro 4 LPG version.
- Porter 600 and 1000 (2013): Indian-market models.
The Porter was Piaggio’s four-wheeled answer to the three-wheeled Vespa Ape. The scooters of the same company are in the Vespa collection, and the Vespa 400 shows the other end of Piaggio’s car thinking.
Video: Piaggio Vespa Porter Ape ALBERTO NITTI.wmv
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Piaggio Porter, English Wikipedia: joint venture, versions, facelifts, Indian production
