The World’s Fastest RV Is Actually a Fiat
When you think about land speed records, RVs probably aren’t the first vehicles that come to mind. And you probably don’t think about Fiats either. After all, the last time a Fiat held a world record was in 1918 with the Beast of Turin. But to everyone’s surprise, the world’s fastest motorhome is a Fiat model you’ve probably never heard of.
The fastest motorhome is a Fiat Doblo
If you’ve never heard of the Fiat Doblo, don’t worry, because the Doblo isn’t on sale in the states. After all, Fiat sales in America are terribly low, while sales in Europe are respectable. The Doblo is Fiat’s van, which can come with an extra 10 inches of headroom, making it the ideal candidate for a camper conversion.
Based in Wrexham, the Creation Campers specializes in modifying the Doblo similar to how many people modify Mercedes Sprinter vans. Though, this conversion company took things a little further to achieve the Guinness World Record for the fastest RV.
How fast is the world’s fastest motorhome?
The Fiat Doblo ran a 141 mph sprint in order to take the record. Though the driver didn’t just get in and step on the gas. That record number is a combination of two runs, of which they took the average speed. The first run was consistently strong, but the second run seemed to be a struggle.
To classify it as a motorhome, all that was needed was a double bed, a kitchen with stove and fridge, and a toilet. There’s no shower inside this conversion, which might not make it a true RV in a sense. But it’s enough of an RV for the Guinness Book of World Records.
However, that’s not the part of the RV that makes the Doblo go fast (other than saving weight by not including a shower/water tank). You may have noticed that the engine inside the Doblo is a 20v turbo engine. It was first featured in the Fiat Coupe (creative name), which had a 0-60 time of 6.3 seconds. Rated at 217 horsepower, this engine, despite being built in 1998, got the Doblo up to that record speed.
More tidbits of information about the Fiat Doblo
Originally, the Fiat Doblo has a 1.4-liter engine that makes 95 horsepower, and bump it up to a 2.0-liter and it’ll make 135 horsepower. But the Doblo specializes in fuel economy, and the 1.3-liter MultiJet II EcoJet engine gets 61 miles per gallon. And with a 15-gallon tank, that’s over 900 miles of range. Obviously, that wouldn’t be enough to get the Doblo up to those record speeds, but there’s no denying its remarkable fuel efficiency.
And it comes at a reasonable price, starting at £16,000 Pounds, or around $19,000 USD. And in just five years, you’ll be able to import a Fiat Doblo from 2001. Or you could just buy the Ram Promaster City, Americas version of the Doblo.
One thing about this world record that I find rather interesting is that it’s from 2014. Creation Campers has held the record for the past 7 years, and part of me doubts that others have tried. In other words, this record might not be terribly hard to beat. So with a bit of effort, and a lot of money, you might be able to stuff a small camper van with a larger engine and take the record. Or you could enjoy the slow life of RV living, take your pick.
