Italian carmaker Fiat has introduced a more affordable version of its Linea saloon. With this new car, the car company is offering a proper mid-size saloon for the price of a sub-four metre one.
The Fiat Linea Classic is powered by the 1.3-litre Multijet diesel motor good for 75bhp. The 90bhp diesel (seen on the Linea) has not made it to the Linea Classic. The lower powered 75bhp gets a FGT (fixed geometry turbo). Fiat has kept costs down with the omission of VGT (seen on the 90bhp verison). The diesel car comes in two versions -- the Classic and the Classic Plus.
The Linea Classic is also being offered in petrol, powered by the same 1.4-litre engine as in the current Linea. It makes the same 88bhp -- no change here.
In terms of equipment, the carmaker has omitted some features like airbags, steering-mounted controls and chrome touches, among other things. Alloy wheels and climate control are available only on the Classic Plus diesel variant.
Fiat is following an aggressive pricing strategy with the Linea Classic.The petrol is priced at Rs 5.99 lakh while the diesel is priced from Rs 6.96 lakh and goes up to Rs 7.49 lakh for the Classic Plus diesel version.
The next-generation Fiat Linea will be developed on the Fiat 500L platform. This all-new car will first make its debut in Italy and then in India sometime in 2015. Before which, Fiat plans to introduce the facelifted Linea, set for launch here soon.