Posted on Wednesday 19 September 2007
With its financial troubles now clearly behind it, Fiat is intent on expanding its lineup with a range of stylish new models that were previewed recently at last week’s Frankfurt Motor Show. The first of these will be a new B-segment compact car positioned below the current Grande Punto that will arrive in 2009. This will be followed soon after by a C-segment five-door crossover based on the Bravo hatch.
The new compact car will likely be called the Uno and will be offered in two different bodystyles according to reports. The new crossover, meanwhile, will be styled similarly to an SUV and will be available in both FWD and RWD layouts. Its 4.5m length means there should be plenty of space for five as well as their gear.
Also on display was a new version of Fiat’s 1.4L T-JET turbocharged petrol engine, which will be offered in both the new cars. Click here to see a possible rendering of the new crossover model and read up on all the details in our previous story.
The Palio is around 3.80 metres long and the wagon (Palio Weekend) and sedan (Siena/Albea) around 4.20 metres. The new Uno shouldn’t be much smaller than the current Palio/Siena family.
A 1.4-litre engine in a 4.50 metre off-roader is a great jump for humanity. But I’d be surprised if the new low-cost model actually gets a current-gen 120 hp turbocharged gasoline engine. And very glad too!
To the editors: is there any new information on the 1.6 and 1.9-litre twin-turbo Multijet units? They were expected to produce more than 90 hp/litre, weren’t they?
I think that this is either the Ford Ka (being built in conjunction with Fiat)
or it’s the new B-segment Fiat undergoing testing in Germany very recently.
http://www.worldcarfans.com/9070914.005/new-ford-ka-spy-photos