After not experiencing success with its new product launches in 2014, Fiat will be launching the Abarth 595 Competizione and the Jeep brand in India this year to act as brand builders.
It has not been smooth sailing for Fiat in India since the beginning. The company has never really been able to cater to mass market car buyers in the country properly, as a result of which Fiat has not been able to be very aggressive in the ever-so competitive Indian car market. The Italian manufacturer is well aware of its shortcomings, but is not really able to make things right straight away. After launching the new Linea and Punto Evo last year, which are its main products in India, Fiat also introduced the Avventura crossover. The company claims to have addressed the problems associated with its after sales and service department and from the second half of this year, Fiat India is ready to go all out in India, yet again.
Fiat will be launching the Abarth 595 Competizione in India next month and the company has started to tease the impending launch on its Indian website. The 2-door hatchback features a 1.4-litre T-Jet engine with a fixed geometry turbocharger. This enables the motor to produce 160 PS of power at 5500 RPM and 230 Nm of torque at 3000 RPM in the Sport mode. The vehicle comes with an AMT unit which will definitely make it ease to drive the car, but will play spoilsport for enthusiasts (a manual option might be made available).
Fiat is also working on the Punto Abarth which will become the most affordable and powerful made in India performance hatchback. Although the power figures haven’t been revealed, the vehicle will boast of excellent handling and performance, making it an excellent alternative to the Volkswagen Polo GT TSI. The vehicle is likely to get cosmetic add-ons to go with the punch offered by the turbocharged mill. Fiat also plans to launch the Jeep brand in India this financial year and will start with the Jeep Grand Cherokee, an SUV which rivals well established and popular offerings from the German trio. The next generation Punto and Linea are around the corner but their India launch isn’t concrete yet.
