Ready, Set, Vrooom! With that motto in mind, Fiat India flagged off a drive of epic proportions called ‘Fiat Diesel Drives India’ today. ‘Fiat Diesel Drives India’ will be taking Fiat’s 4 multijet diesel offerings- the Linea, Grande Punto, Palio and Fiat 500 through testing Indian terrains over a period of a month and a half. This one-of-a-kind journey will traverse through diverse terrains within 16 states in India, clocking over 10,000 kilometers in total. The drive has been aimed at generating awareness about Fiat’s rich history in connection with diesel technology as well as their longstanding success in rolling out endurance driven, yet stylish and classy automobiles.

The drive will involve auto journalists from India’s top auto magazines, namely, Zigwheels, Car India, Overdrive, Auto India, BS Motoring, Autocar India, AutoBild, Top Gear, Auto Exchange, Automotive Product Finder and a special team of auto experts. In addition to this, the drive will also involve electronic channels like ET Now, NDTV 24X7, CNBC TV 18, NDTV India, Zee Business, UTVi, Aaj Tak, IBN7, Times Now, online portals such as Carwale.com, teambhp.com and publications such as New Indian Express. Through the course of the drive, these esteemed experts will take Fiat’s diesel engines to the extreme by taking the 4 cars through a stern test of power, performance and engine finesse. With this drive, Fiat, the inventor and pioneer of the high tech Multijet diesel engines, aims to stamp its authority on the diesel scenario in India as well as create further awareness about their engine’s presence in majority of the cars in India.

Speaking at the flag off, Mr. Rajeev Kapoor, President & CEO, FIAL, said, “Fiat’s diesel inventions and technology constitute a landmark position in global automobile history. Our state of the art 1.3 multijet engines have revolutionized the diesel movement and achieved unparalleled success abroad. The engines have always performed admirably and with excellent finesse in all kinds of diverse climates and terrains across the world. Fiat’s success story in India has also been somewhat similar. In India, though the dynamic climate and unpredictable terrains in particular has been a challenging test for our engines, we have overcome the test with flying colors. The ‘Fiat Diesel Drives India’ drive is Fiat’s way of showing that our engines have passed the Great Indian test and are at the highest level of competency and reliability as technology today can provide.”

Through the extensive drive, Fiat will also look to reinforce the presence of their strong and ever growing network across India. Today, the Tata-Fiat network constitutes 99 dealerships and 6 point of sales spanning across 77 cities in the country. All these dealerships have a separate identity for Fiat and offer an international ownership experience for customers.

‘Fiat Diesel Drives India’ promises to be an exhilarating and novel drive that experiences India and all its cultural flavours

Mr. Rajeev Kapoor, CEO Fiat India, at the launch of Fiat First - a comprehensive service program

Mr. Rajeev Kapoor , CEO Fiat India at the launch of Fiat First - a comprehensive customer service program

Mr Rajeev Kapoor, CEO Fiat,Mr. Vikram Sinha, VP Customer Service Tata Motors and Mr. Ravi Bhatia, VP Commercial, Fiat India at the launch of Fiat First - a comprehensive customer service program

With the festive season just setting in, Fiat India has decided to provide its customers with further cheer by introducing ‘Fiat First’. The programme is a testimony of Fiat’s unrelenting commitment to customers and to the enhancement of ‘owner experience’ for Fiat cars. ‘Fiat First’ will deliver satisfaction for existing and potential Fiat car owners through a holistic approach towards service.

‘Fiat First’ includes:

* Robust and growing Tata-Fiat dealer network
* World class roadside assistance program
* Industry leading warranty coverage
* Benchmark reliability(interval between services)
* Ease of availability of competitively priced genuine spare parts

The programme marks an important milestone in the evolution of Fiat in India. Fiat now boasts of a strong network of 99 dealerships and 6 point of sales spanning across 77 cities in the country. All these dealerships have a separate identity for Fiat and offer an international ownership experience for customers. To ensure consistent delivery of this world-class experience from the time of purchase to after sales, the Tata-Fiat network has employed 800 sales & service personnel dedicated completely to Fiat.

Another, noteworthy initiative is the industry leading ‘24X7 Fiat assistance’ for Fiat car owners. 24X7 Fiat Assistance service can be accessed by calling a national toll free number 1800- 209- 3428 at any time of the day or night. A Fiat car owner can use any of the services on offer if the vehicle is within a 100 km radius of a Tata-Fiat dealership or service station. Services under this initiative include assistance for replacement or repair of a damaged part or flat tyre, fuel support (up to 5 litres) for fuel problems, key support in the event of key loss or a lockout and battery jump start in case of engine failure. In addition to this, owners will also be offered onward journey assistance up to 50 kms, towing services within a 100 km radius of a Tata-Fiat dealership or service station. The service is currently available to Linea & Punto customers on charge basis with an industry leading coverage of 50 months. Exiting FIAT brand owners can also access the RSA as per call charge.

Fiat also announces the launch of industry leading “extended warranty” package for its Linea & Punto customers under “Fiat First”. The comprehensive “extended warranty” product can be purchased at all TATA FIAT dealerships.

To mark the introduction of ‘Fiat First’, Mr. Rajeev Kapoor, CEO, Fiat India Automobiles Limited said, “Deepawali season is very auspicious for Indians and it marks the beginning of the festive season. With most families looking to purchase products such as cars during this shubh or auspicious period of the year, we thought this was the best time to introduce ‘Fiat First’ which is unique in its approach towards service to our target audience. It has always been our intent to offer Indian customers world class service as per Fiat International standards and with ‘Fiat First’ we hope to achieve unprecedented high levels of service and support for customers. In short with this programme we intend to make Fiat the brand of choice for a large section of existing and potential car owners.”

‘Fiat First’ will also come with a promise of availability of genuine spare parts at prices benchmarked with competition. These mentioned initiatives within the programme are indicative and not exhaustive of what ‘Fiat First’ has to offer.

‘Fiat First’ is yet another step towards providing Fiat customers a true world class ownership experience. Now every time customers think of cars, they will think of ‘Fiat First’.

‘Fiat’, known for its stylish cars and legacy, holds a special place in the hearts of many Indians. Many people in the country remember Fiat as their first car and a now a whole new generation of Indians are discovering the Fiat of their time and age. The year 2009 has been a revival of sorts for one of the country’s most endeared car brands. For the past few years Fiat has been preparing for this new phase in the Indian market and the efforts have met with tremendous response. The beginning of the year saw the launch of its stylish and elegant sedan, Linea which is at the core of Fiat’s success in recent times.

Linea within nine months of its launch has crossed the milestone of clocking more than 10,000 units. This figure becomes even more important considering that Fiat sold a total of 3550 cars in the corresponding period last year from January to September. Also, the Grande Punto has sold more than 5000 units within three months of its introduction.

Speaking about the milestone, Mr. Rajeev Kapoor, CEO, Fiat India Automobiles Ltd said, “Fiat is a brand which has been deeply rooted in the Indian psyche for many decades now. Our dream is to see a lot many Fiat vehicles plying on Indian roads. The milestone achieved by Linea is a testimony that we are inching closer towards this goal. Now, we are confident that the Grande Punto will emulate if not exceed this success.”

Fiat India is targeting sales of 50,000 units in the next financial year apart from planning a few variants of both its model—Grande Punto and Linea—within the next two years.

“We hope to sell 50,000 units in 2010-11. We are also planning a few variants of the Grande Punto and Linea,” said Fiat India president and CEO Rajeev Kapoor in New Delhi.

Sales of the company’s small car Grande Punto, launched a couple of months back, is picking up, Kapoor said.

“We are currently selling 1,800 units of Grande Punto every month and hope this number will reach 2,000 by Diwali,” Kapoor said. “More variants of Punto and Linea are lined up in the next one to two years.”

He, however, declined to give the specifics of the variants, the company plans to launch.

Linea is currently selling around 1,000 units every month.

Asked about phasing out its hatchback Palio Stile, the company’s bread and butter model once, Kapoor said, decision in this regard would be taken after two years

Courtesy: LiveMint

Fiat India Automobiles Ltd today entered a new chapter in India with the launch of the Linea which is expected to raise the bar for sedans available in the country. Fiat expects to redefine customer expectations through the car which rides on its success across multiple markets in the world. The numerous awards won by the car are a testimony to the satisfaction it has delivered to multitude of customers. The car designed by the Fiat Style centre in Turin will go on to become Fiat’s flagship product in India. The company announced that both the diesel & petrol version of the car are being launched.

The Linea represents a quantum leap as far as quality, safety and engineering are concerned. The car is expected to create a new sub-segment between the mid-sized cars and the luxury cars segment due to its unique design, comfortability, performance and features. Linea was first launched in Turkey & is presently sold in more than 50 countries across Europe, Asia, Central & South America and Africa. Besides Turkey, the Linea is produced in Brazil and now in India. It will also be manufactured in Russia in the near future. The launch of the Linea marks a big leap forward for Fiat in India, and embodies the company’s new philosophy in India, aimed at bringing its activities and services up to the maximum levels of performance. The recognitions for Linea include ‘AUTOBEST 2008’ in Europe which confirms the excellent welcome that it has received in that part of the world and “The Most interesting Car” at the Auto Motor Show in Katowice, Poland.

Speaking on the occasion Mr. Rajeev Kapoor, CEO, Fiat India Automobiles Ltd said, “Fiat has kept its promise of making this an exciting year for its customers. Launch of the Linea is first in the line of three launches that Fiat will undertake this year, the other two being Bravo and Grande Punto. With this car which is equipped with Fiat’s world-renowned multijet and the fire engine we hope to make inroads in the C+ segment. We have also ensured that the Linea appeals to a wide range of customers with its petrol and diesel variants and the various options available under each of them. The car has met with strong success across the world and although Linea has been designed with a strong Italian style, we have also taken into consideration local Indian taste and requirements and have incorporated this into the Indian Linea. ”

The FIRE (Fully Integrated Robotized Engine) will power the petrol version of the Linea, and the diesel version will be equipped with the Advanced New Generation MULTIJET engine. This sedan stands out in terms of original style, functionality and drivability, in addition to offering a very competitive price/content ratio. To begin with, the car will be retailed through a select 70 Tata-Fiat dealer outlets spread across the country.

The new generation multijet engine also boasts of higher peak performance with unparalleled power and torque outputs. This enables a fine balance of performance, refinement & fuel economy. Both the variants will be further supported with two option packs, one each on petrol & diesel top end variants mainly comprising of Dual Front Airbags and Blue & Me feature as standard. Blue & Me is the voice interactive device developed by Fiat along with Microsoft that offers an additional voice interface for the on board music system and can be linked to a personal mobile for communicating through the car’s audio unit & speakers.

The car will be manufactured at the Ranjangaon plant near Pune and is the first major launch after the company introduced the Palio Stile Multijet last year. The car is being launched across India through an aggressive communication campaign through Print & Television.

The three basic versions would be known as Active, Dynamic & Emotion with similar set of features for both variants. The Linea will be available in 4 colors at the time of the launch, Flamenco Red, Minimal Grey, Perla Champagne and Hip Hop Black.

The car will be competitively priced at:

The Tata-Fiat dealer network will ensure easy availability of the car and satisfactory after-sales service for its owners. The car will be retailed by Tata-Fiat dealer network providing 100 sales outlets & workshop across the country by mid-2009. Eventually, this number will be more than 125 by year end, which will provide an even stronger geographical reach for the car.

Style:

Fiat Linea bears a strong European character with an Italian lineage. Certain visible design cues like the long sloping hood merging into a protruding front grill, escorted by prominent yet stylish headlamps are normally seen only in high end sports cars. The exceptional design expertise offers Fiat Linea the most stylish exteriors that make it compete with the cars from the higher segment for being the best-looking set of wheels.

Comfort & Safety:

The great design capabilities go beyond the impressive exteriors and equip the car with a luxurious cabin designed to offer maximum comfort for the front & rear passengers. Comfortable seating with ample amount of legroom, rear hat trey with collapsible sunscreen & exclusive features like the rear knee level & foot level AC vents are some design features that makes the car an object of desire. Further, the emotion variant comes with safety features including ABS with EBD and Dual front airbags with pretensioners & load limiters on front seatbelts.

Engineering:

Fiat has had a long tradition of engineering variety of cars for all diverse automotive needs. Beginning from most popular city cars like the Uno and the Palio, to the high end sports cars like Maserati, Alfa Romeo and the professional racing champion like Ferrari, Fiat has made it all. At Fiat, we engineer the cars to meet customer expectations. With the same thought Fiat is bringing to India two of its most successful engine – 1.4 16V FIRE petrol engine & the 1.3 16V Advanced Multijet diesel. The fiat power-train manufacturing facility in Ranjangaon is at par with the best of the plants fiat has globally. With an installed capacity of over 200,000 engines & 300,000 cars it is a state of the art manufacturing facility adhering to international standards of production of cars & engines.

Fiat India Automobiles Ltd, one of country’s leading car makers, today commenced the production of Linea at its Ranjangaon plant located near Pune in Maharashtra. Linea, the much-awaited sedan from Fiat’s stable will grace the Indian roads shortly. The start of production of the flagship car also signifies the progress of Fiat’s facility which is an industrial Joint Venture with Tata Motors Ltd. The 200 acre facility now has a completely equipped body shop, assembly line, a paint shop which is to be commissioned shortly and the Powertrain Plant.

Linea is a C plus segment sedan which was launched internationally in May 2007 in Istanbul, after which it met with great success in all markets where it is present. An elegantly functional car, with a strong Italian imprint, it will be equipped with features found in higher segment cars. The launch of Linea will be followed by the Grande Punto, a successful hatchback from Fiat’s stable, which will also be manufactured from the Ranjangaon facility. The Grande Punto is a top seller in Europe and has an annual sales of about 3, 50,000.

The company, Fiat India Automobiles Ltd, recently signed a MoU with the Government of Maharashtra to enhance the capacities at the plant. Apart from manufacturing of Fiat and Tata cars, the facility will also produce powertrain engines. The plant, which falls in taluka Shirur, district Pune, in its full capacity will produce up to 2, 00,000 cars, 3, 00,000 engines and 3, 00,000 parts & accessories.

Mr. Rajeev Kapoor, CEO, Fiat India Automobiles Ltd added, “The start of production of Linea is an important milestone for us and is a significant step in fulfilling the promise we had made to at the Auto Expo in New Delhi earlier this year. The plant has made progress as planned and all the facilities are set to move into top gear from hereon. We have also commenced export activity from the plant and would continue to do so to utilise the capacities at the plant.” Exports of the 1.2 Palio petrol both the AC and non-AC variants have commenced. The 1.2 Palio petrol is being exported to South Africa and the company will look at prospective right hand drive markets for export of other products. The products exported from the Ranjangaon plant will include versions of the Palio, Linea and Grande Punto. FIAL also supplies automobile components to other Fiat facilities.

Update on facilities at the plant:

Body Shop:

All variants of Linea and Grande Punto are planned to be manufactured from the body shop.  The facility uses roller skid mechanism for body transfer and has 19 robots in all. While two of these robots are Nachi make, the rest are ABB.

The 19 robots are utilized for:

o Hemming- 6 robots
o Spot welding- 10 robots
o Tucker pin welding – 2 robots
o Body handling- 1 robots

The plant is also equipped with a suspension shop adjoining to the body shop. Suspension shop has 18 robots, all of which are ABB make.

These 18 robots are utilized for:

* Spot welding- 1 robot
* Arc welding- 17 robots

The shop has a WBS (white body storage) with a capacity of 96 bodies. PLC (which uses Ethernet) is used in a master-slave arrangement for effective implementation of the manufacturing process. Engines and transmissions are coupled in the trimming plant, vehicle specific components are fitted and complete powertrains are delivered on JIT basis to the customers.

Assembly Shop:

The assembly shop is designed to assemble Linea, Grande Punto and Tata X1 sedan. The assembly line is installed by Genix Automation from Korea. Painted bodies are received on Skid Conveyors from paint shop and assembled on slat and power & free conveyors. Front and rear suspensions are supplied through conveyor and marriage to car is done on the decking conveyor. Doors are dismantled and assembled on P&F conveyors. Sub-Assemblies like front suspension, rear suspension, dashboards, bumpers; etc are done separately and assembled on to the cars. Glass sealant application is by ABB robots. Seats and tyres are supplied to the main line on conveyors. Manipulators are used for assembling dashboard, seats, tyres and fuel tanks. End of line machines include BEP make Wheel alignment machine, Brake & roller machine and DSA make Electrical Diagnosis machine. The cars are also checked for water leakage.

Powertrain Division:

The powertrain division has the capacity to produce FPT – Fiat Powertrain Technologies products. The products from the plant will include engines SDE (Diesel 1248 cc 16 V), FIRE 8V (Petrol 1172 cc / 1368 cc), FIRE 16V (Petrol 1368 cc) and C510 transmission (5 speed 210 Nm)

The key features of powertrain plant are:

* Flexibility in product and in volume. The deep usage of CNC machinery (~ 100%) and the specific design of the layout and building of the facility were focused to ensure possible future production increases.

* Automation of all operations that have direct impact on quality and ergonomics.

Powertrain division includes engines, transmissions and trimming plants.

Engine quality is ensured by automatic in process verification stations, by leak test benches and final cold/hot test cells. The technology of cold test allows verifying in an environmentally friendly way (the engine is put in rotation by an electrical motor) the characteristics that influence engine performance as intake and exhaust pressure, timing and electrical connections, fuel pressure, frictions and many others.

Transmission plant has machining of shafts and gears with a facility for the heat treatment. Assembly line has in process controls with automatic stations and sophisticated noise test equipment.

Fiat India Automobiles Pvt Ltd, today unveiled its proposed offerings for the Indian market, at the Auto Expo 2008, in New Delhi. The range of internationally successful models includes Linea, Grande Punto, Fiat 500 and Bravo. Linea, one of Fiat’s recent launches led the line-up of other cars with the Fiat Palio, which was introduced with the much-awaited, world-class, 1.3 multijet diesel engine. These cars will be marketed through joint Tata-Fiat dealers spread across the country.

Fiat India Automobiles Pvt Ltd, a Joint Venture between Fiat and Tata Motors, will manufacture Linea and Grande Punto at its Ranjangaon plant in India, while the Fiat 500(Cinquecento) and the Bravo is being considered to be imported as completely built units (CBUs).The year 2008 will see Fiat commence the build-up of the re-establishment of the brand in India.

Linea, the C three box saloon, made its debut at the Istanbul Motor Show a little over a year ago, after which it has met with great success in all the markets where it has been introduced. An elegantly functional car, with a strong Italian imprint, it will be equipped with features found in higher segment cars. The launch of the Linea and other new cars will be supported with the augmentation of the Tata-Fiat dealership network from its current total of 65 outlets to more than 100 eventually.

Speaking on the occasion Mr. Sergio Marchionne, CEO, Fiat Group Automobiles, said, “Fiat, as a company has undergone a transformation and revitalized itself in the past few years. The change in the logo is in line with this transformation, that is being implemented globally and now in India as well. The Joint Venture with Tata Motors and the building of a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant at Ranjangaon in Maharashtra are important steps in this process. Moving forward Fiat will introduce its internationally successful cars in India constituting a product mix of cars manufactured locally in India and imported CBUs whenever feasible. Our commitment to India will continue and we would want to be a part of India’s growth story. The Indian market offers a large opportunity and we believe there is immense potential for our products. We aim to develop India into one of our leading markets in sync with Fiat’s international image- as a leading maker of premium and stylish cars.”

The Ranjangaon plant, the Industrial Joint Venture between Fiat and Tata Motors, will see a combined investment of Rs. 4000 crores( €650 million) from both partners. The Ranjangaon facilities are expected to exceed an overall output of 100,000 cars and 200,000 engines and transmissions. Apart from Fiat branded cars, the plant will also manufacture next generation Tata cars. Both, the Linea and the Grande Punto will be rolled out from this plant later this year, while the plant is currently producing Palio.

Mr. Rajeev Kapoor, the President and CEO, FIAPL, added while unveiling the Linea that, “Linea was recently launched in the European market and has received great response. The car is the winner of the ‘AUTOBEST 2008′ award, which has representatives from 15 European countries. This car will spearhead Fiat’s entry into India and will be manufactured with a high percentage of localization. It will be launched in the third quarter of FY08-09.”

On display from Fiat:

* Fiat 500(Cinquecento).
Fiat 500, a neo-retro car, recently won the title ‘Car of the Year 2008’ in Europe. It is a classic example of Italian design and, in Europe, has already become a best-seller.
* Fiat Bravo
A sporty and stylish 5-door hatchback, Bravo, is powered with a 1.9 multijet engine developing 150hp. Both the Bravo and 500 are planned to be made available in India as CBUs.
* Grande Punto
Planned for manufacture in India, the car won the title ‘Carro Do Anno 2008” (car of the year) in Brazil in November 2007 and is amongst the European bestsellers in its class.
* 1.3 Multijet Engine Palio
1.3 Multijet version of the Fiat Palio, manufactured at the Ranjangaon plant, will be launched in the first quarter.

Fiat’s new logo is designed to convey Fiat’s ongoing change, a sign of the past re-written in a modern key, which is particularly representative of Fiat today, a brand which is focused towards the challenges of the future, but also proud of its historical identity. The new ruby red underlines Fiat’s aggressive spirit.