Fiat Linea 125S Long Term Review – First Report

Fiat Linea 125S Long Term Review

The Fiat Linea 125S qualifies for a family sedan that can be raced around with

From all the long term cars I had, they were personally classified as a mini-bus, a front-wheel-drive SUV and the last one was a crossover hatchback. All the cars had diesel engines with decent mileage figures and used to go easy on the pocket. The crossover hatch was the Fiat Urban Cross and I really liked it a lot. However, I never really had a sedan to drive. This time I got lucky and got the longest car in the segment, the Fiat Linea. And to make the travel more interesting, it came with a 125 HP turbo petrol engine.

Being a Gujarati, I knew it’s not going to be easy for me to drive around a car like this. But the 1.4-litre engine producing 125 BHP and mighty 210 Nm of torque kept me going. Of all the long termers, the Linea was in the best of its condition and I personally thought that it had the best fit and finish overall, considering this was a media vehicle and not any owner’s car. About 1100 kms underway in the first month itself, I had already spent about Rs. 10,000/- in fuel expenses. With a few trips outside the city the best mileage was 11.1 km/l while the worst in the bad Mumbai traffic came down to 5.4 km/l.

In the day to day routine which includes a little city as well as highway driving, it returned a single digit figure of 9 km/l. There was a downside to the fuel efficiency but on the other hand, the comfort and dynamics were on-point. However with the increased ground clearance it isn’t much of a fun lover but does a great job with bad Mumbai roads. It takes on the worst of potholes and speed-bumps without hitting itself like a boss. Pun intended. Fiat has kept the suspension a little stiff and this becomes a great advantage for maintaining triple digit speeds on the highways.

Being the longest car in the segment gives a premium feel but it becomes an issue for parking in a place like Mumbai. The parking sensors are helpful, but they have a slightly delayed response and it sometimes becomes an issue as it’s not a sub 4-meter hatchback. However the size is an advantage as it gets massive boot and not to forget, good amount of road presence. In a city like Mumbai, it doesn’t really get better because the length of the car concerns the driver a lot while it does drives like a hatch. Adding to it, the massive 16-inch rims with 205-section tyres hold the road well. They are so wide that they come out of the wheel arches too.

With the Linea, it’s more smiles per gallon than miles per gallon

The interiors are however a little deceptive. The seats are very comfortable and the dual-tone finish looks and feels nice. But the steering is too close to the driver. There is not much room for the driver as the distance from the chest to the steering wheel is too less. The height adjustable seat is a great solution for it and the vision at the front is also very nice. The touchscreen infotainment system is also the best of all the Fiat cars as it does not lag much or have any sort of problems. However, the steering mounted buttons don’t feel any useful.

It took almost 3 days to get used to the AC controls. And for the first 10 days, the dual blade wipers were very useful due to the extended October rains. But, I later found out that the Linea 125S was top of the line and it had cruise control. The switch is placed in such a place that my hand would never go to it. The cubby hole in front of the gear lever was barely useful for some change or chocolates. Coming to the rear, the comfort was good while the legroom and headroom was enough to keep my family or co-travelers happy. The beige and black combo kept it premium while the curtain type window shade for the rear windshield also added to the premium car feel.

This car boasted ridiculous amount of boot space and it helped me a lot during this Diwali season. However, the rear doors were an issue as even with the child lock turned-off they wouldn’t open from the inside. Anyone who’s driving the car or sitting ahead had to act like a chauffeur, get out first and then open the door for the rear passengers. It was amusing yet solemn at the same time. Even with the trunk being full and five healthy passengers on-board, it never felt less for the ground clearance. But the dynamics could have been more engaging if it still had lesser ground clearance like the older Linea.

Driving this car has been an expensive affair but it’s the crazy power that the engine produces that keeps the drive interesting. Even though it torque steers a lot, the random first and second gear launches from the signal always add to a little fun. The gearbox however is a complete bust, quick shift and it wouldn’t follow. The brakes lacked a little bite but the car never lost control even under heavy braking, which is quite frequent on the Linea 125S. The Linea for me is like a fox underneath a sheep’s clothing. Smooth and subtle from the outside yet fierce and powerful from the inside. The Fiat Linea 125S is a definite enthusiast’s sedan.

Further Reading –

Fiat Linea 125S Test Drive Review
Fiat Linea MultiJet Long Term Review