The Fiat Avventura was unveiled for the Indian market at the 2014 Auto Expo and will be officially launched for the India market by the end of this year. It is based on the Punto platform and will share much with it in terms of engine and underpinnings. It is the Italian automaker’s entry into the new hatchback compact crossover category which has been getting a lot of attention from Indian consumers over the last year-and-a-half. The only player in this segment is the VW Cross Polo but it will soon be joined by the Toyota Etios Cross and then by the Avventura.
Exterior
The Fiat Avventura (Italian for the word Adventure) has the same overall shape as the Punto crossover but gets its bulk in the form of a body cladding and what appear to be taller and fatter wheels. The fascia has been modified in the form of sleek headlights that seem to grow out of the side of the hood. It also gets a one piece mesh grill and air intake which have been separated using a grey coloured front bash plate. The plate also has inserts for the fog lamps which are single piece downward extending LEDs units. The front also appears to have visible towing hooks which we believe are more for cosmetic appearance rather than full-strength towing/pulling.
On the side, the Avventura has the same overall design as the Punto but appears larger than life thanks to the body cladding and bigger wheels. There is also moulding on the side which has the words Avventura written on it in a rather prominent font. The alloy wheels on the concept car are expected to be offered with the top-spec variants. We expect that the lower-spec variants will get black coloured steel wheels in a bid to maintain the car’s bulky size.
The rear end of the Avventura concept car has been designed in two parts. The first part comprises the regular hatch door with minimal Fiat badging and the second part comprises a swinging section that has been attached to the bumper and has a mount for the spare wheel. We believe that this will be an optional extra when the car is launched as it requires a modified bumper, something that will have to be fitted separately or at the time of manufacturing. It gets dual exhausts and tail lamp assembly (LEDs) in the bumper itself.
Interiors
The Fiat Avventura has the same interior space as the standard Punto so that means it’s very spacious and has loads of headroom. Given that the entire car has an adventure theme, the interiors too have been modified in this manner. It has been fitted with black leather seats which have been given orange stitching in the front seats. The instrument panel is similar to that of the Punto but the font has been changed to create subtle differences between the cars. The concept gets a large feature list which includes climate control, cruise control, 2-DIN music system and some unique touches like a compass and what appears to be vehicle lean angle indicators. We expect that the lower-spec variants will get similar design but with reduced features and fabric upholstery.
Engines
The Avventura is expected to get the 1.4 T-Jet petrol (112bhp/204Nm) and the 1.3-litre Multijet diesel (92bhp and 209Nm) but in the case of the latter we expect the torque figure to be a little higher. Both will be mated to a six-speed manual gearbox as this is what appears to be in the concept car. If Fiat does introduce a larger version of the Multijet diesel engine then the Avventura may be offered with this engine as a special edition.
Price and competition
The Fiat Avventura is expected to be priced in the range of Rs 5 lakh to Rs 8 lakh for the top- spec diesel version. We expect that Fiat will give the Avventura different names (more rugged) in terms of variants. When launched, it will compete with the Etios Cross and Cross Polo.
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