Ford was having a not-so-good, not-so-bad run in India till some time back. Then entered the EcoSport, Ford’s compact SUV, that turned the tides and made the cash registers at Ford ring faster than its own 0-100 timings. While Ford is thoroughly enjoying the success of the EcoSport, the company also has to worry about upcoming as well as present rivals. While the Renault Duster and Nissan Terrano are already giving the EcoSport some competition, Ford needs to watch out for new products from Hyundai, Maruti, SsangYong and Fiat. Yes Fiat! Fiat will be launching the Avventura soon and it will be pitted bang against the EcoSport.
The Fiat Avventura is based on the Grande Punto with styling changes being done to make sure it looks like an SUV. Yes this is the catch, it ‘looks’ like an SUV but it isn’t. Actually, same is the case with the EcoSport too which just looks like an SUV and doesn’t really posses any SUV capabilities except the tall height. But the market doesn’t seem to care. These days anything that looks or feels like an SUV and priced properly, sells! SUVs are loved by most and the EcoSport sells well because it provides the SUV experience along with good engines and equipment at an attractive price. So, while the EcoSport turned the tides for Ford, will the Avventura be able to do the same for Fiat?
The Fiat Avventura comes with a host of changes over the Grande Punto. Body cladding, roof rails, rear-mounted spare wheel, etc. make this mini-crossover look and feel very distinct. Fiat has put in way more efforts than what Volkswagen and Skoda did with the CrossPolo and Fabia Scout respectively. The Avventura is powered by a 1.3-litre Multijet engine that produces 90 PS of power and 209 Nm of torque. While the EcoSport is preferred by buyers across all age groups, the Avventura we feel will cater to only select age groups since the excessive styling may not be to everyone’s taste.
So, the big question is – Will Avventura do an EcoSport for Fiat? We feel that while the Avventura may bring in decent sales for Fiat, it may not be a hot seller like the EcoSport. Eventually, things also depend on the pricing of the vehicle and we are really expecting Fiat to price it slightly below the EcoSport if at all they want buyers to consider the Avventura.
