Fiat chalked out its global plans recently for the future and while its Indian subsidiary will launch 12 new products in the next five years, the list does not include the 500X or the Jeep Renegade for the Indian market. Based on the same platform, the Jeep Renegade and the upcoming 500X are compact SUVs that will go on sale by the end of this year internationally in developed markets.
However for developing markets like India, Fiat announced the Avventura compact SUV will make its Indian launch later this year. Based on the Punto platform, the Avventura was first showcased at the 2014 Auto Expo earlier this year and will compete against the Ford EcoSport, Toyota Etios Cross and the likes in the segment. The Avventura will then get updated with a new global small platform in 2016 and could get a redesign as well that will keep the model fresh for another couple of years.
The Jeep Renegade and the Fiat 500X on the other hand will be restricted to developed markets like Europe, North America, Middle East and Africa. Apart from India, the Avventura has been confirmed for another emerging market, Brazil. The Avventura will share its powertrain with the Punto and is most likely to get 1.4-litre petrol and the 1.3-litre Multijet diesel engines on offer. The Punto too will receive a facelift that is scheduled to launch by the end of this year.
Fiat’s 12 new products for the Indian market include the Punto and Linea facelifts, Avventura crossover, Abarth 500, Abarth Punto, Jeep Wrangler and Grand Cherokee models; new C-segment SUV to launch in 2016, 2017 Grand Sienna, next generation Punto and next generation Wrangler and Cherokee models that will be launched in a span of five years in the domestic market.
