South Africa developed a strong ute market. Called ‘bakkies’ over there (from the local Afrikaans), the car-based unitary-body utes (as opposed to cab chassis-style pickups) followed the lead Australia set in the 1930s, with a diverse range available in the post-war era, including models from Opel, Peugeot, Leyland and Mercedes-Benz never seen here.
Aussie-made utes were sold in South Africa, too, but given local touches and new model names, so the Holden Belmont ute became the Chevrolet El Camino, the Falcon ute was rebadged as the Ranchero and Valiant utes were sold as the Rustler.
The demand for bakkies in South Africa was never huge by global standards, but strong enough to see several models developed and built primarily for use in that country and its immediate neighbors. These include Ford one-ton utes based on the Mk III and Mk IV Cortina (TC/TD and TE/TF Cortina to us), and smaller half-ton units based on the Escort.
That half-ton category became a market within a market in South Africa, too, with the likes of Datsun, Toyota and Ford offering models to meet demand. Odd little half-tonners, like the Leyland Marina, VW Caddy and Hillman Hunter-based Dodge Husky, were also marketed in South Africa.
In the 1970s, Fiat decided to have a crack at the half-ton bakkie market, too.
A bakkie version of the Fiat 128 didn’t seem an obvious choice when that model was first released in 1969, but the 128 had a couple of features that made such a conversion relatively easy.
Firstly, it was front-wheel drive – a Fiat first – which meant packaging of a ute rear end didn’t have to accommodate a driveshaft and diff.
Secondly, that FWD layout allowed for fully-independent suspension: something of a novelty back in the early 1970s and virtually unheard of on a compact utility.
Finally, Fiat had already built a ‘Fiorano’ panel van version of their similar 127 model in 1975, so had the basics in place in terms of what would be required for a utility version.
But perhaps the main driver behind a 128 bakkie was the growth of the half-ton ute market in South Africa. Half-tonners had accounted for 11.8 per cent of the country’s commercial vehicle market in 1975, growing to 18.6 per cent in 1977 and 21.9 per cent in 1978, according to South Africa’s CAR magazine.
While those figures accounted for annual sales of only around 20,000 vehicles in actual numbers, they couldn’t be ignored. Fiat, already selling tractors and large trucks in South Africa with some success, was feeling confident in its ability to push into a market segment then dominated by the Ford Bantam, Nissan 1400 and Opel Corsa.
Designed in Italy, but with South African input on features and specifications, the Fiat 128 ‘Pick-Up’ (also known as the 1300 Pick-Up) was launched in June, 1978.
To Capitalize on the growing “Bakkie” (Ute) market in South Africa during the 1970s, Fiat converted its best selling sedan into a small truck. The “Fiat 128 Pick-Up”
