Fiat India to launch 'Baby Fiat'

20 February 2008

Mumbai: Fiat India is all set to launch the New Fiat 500, also called Baby Fiat a two-door five-seater car in India at a starting price of Rs13 lakh.

The Baby Fiat re entered the European market after a gap of 33 years in July last year and has since then become a big seller.

Fiat India plans to launch both Fiat 500 and the Fiat Bravo (a large and stylish hatchback) in an image building exercise in India and hopes that the cars will set the way for future launches like the Fiat Linea sedan and the Grande Punto hatchback due at dealer showrooms in September and December 2008 respectively company officials said.

The Fiat 500 comes in a choice of three engines two of which are petrol engines while the third is an advanced turbo-diesel. The diesel variant is claimed to offer a great mileage of almost 25km / litre. The petrol 1.2-litre version will sport a 69bhp engine while the 1.4- litre variant has a peppier 100bhp powerhouse under the bonnet.

Unlike the Baby Fiat of 33 years ago, which was a basic car much like the M800 or Nano, the base 1.2-litre model of the current Fiat 500 will have ABS brakes, air conditioning, power windows, locks and steering, as well as a six-speaker MP3 capable audio system and seven airbags.

With a length of 355cm Baby has extensive safety features like seven airbags including a knee-bag. Apart from this all Baby Fiat models feature the electronic stability programme - yet another luxury car feature.