Fiat

Italian carmaker Fiat will produce two models at the Bertone plant near Turin, a trade union source said on Thursday, citing a meeting with a company executive.

When production lines are fully operative Fiat will manufacture 50,000 cars per year at the factory, the source cited Fiat Powertrain Technologies chief executive Alfredo Altavilla as saying during a meeting in Turin.
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A joint venture between Tata Motors and Fiat is likely to launch a number of Chrysler models in India, including the iconic Jeep Cherokee, from a factory in Ranjangaon near Pune as it seeks to expand its presence in one of the world’s fastest growing passenger car market. Sources close to the development, who did not wish to be identified, said that Tata-Fiat alliance will initially start retailing the Cherokee and follow up with other products.
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The world’s biggest carmaker by sales, Toyota Motor Corp, is developing a 10 per cent more fuel-efficient small car for launch in India by early 2011, to beat market leaders Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai.

“For our upcoming small car we have set the benchmark with Maruti’s Swift and Hyundai’s i20. [click to continue...]

Passenger car leader Maruti Suzuki India has stopped manufacturing its most expensive car SX4, the mid-sized sedan, reinforcing the widely-held belief that the small car leader does not have the expertise to make and market big cars.

Maruti will relaunch SX4 within a fortnight with a new 1.6-litre engine which will have a much higher pick-up. It will be more expensive than the current top-end Zxi variant, which comes at Rs 7.5 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

Maruti will also rope in Bollywood star John Abraham as the new brand ambassador for the sporty model to arrest falling sales.
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Fiat India has unveiled its latest offering in the premium hatchback segment – the Grande Punto, derived from the FIRE (Fully Integrated Robotized Engine) and MULTIJET engines which combine superb performance with low fuel consumption. To add to it, these engines are also environment friendly and Euro 4 ready. To be rolled out at its Ranjangaon plant near Pune, the super-hatch will be available in India with two petrol engines (1.2 and 1.4 FIRE) and one diesel (1.3 multijet).
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Following the huge success of Abarth’s re-launch last year, the Fiat Group’s performance division has now created the ultimate sporting expression of the Fiat 500.

As befits a car with its roots firmly ensconced in motorsport, all versions of the new small Fiat 500 Abarth feature a zesty 1.4-litre turbocharged engine, which has been designed to be responsive throughout its entire rev range as well as being economical and gentle on the environment.

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Critics of Detroit’s carmakers could play a real game of gotcha with Chrysler. News reports say the company will build the Fiat 500 subcompact at Chrysler’s plant in Toluca, Mexico, which builds the Chrysler PT Cruiser and Dodge Journey. Since Fiat owns 20% of Chrysler, the Italians can call the shots. Critics of the auto industry bailout and the government’s 8% ownership stake in Chrysler might say that we spent a few billion dollars to save Chrysler and guarantee Mexican jobs. But build that car here and the same critics could say that the government and the United Auto Workers, which owns 55% of Chrysler, swayed management to keep the jobs in the U.S.

Forget all of that. Building the 500 in Mexico makes good business sense. First of all, it’s tough to make a buck on compacts and tiny cars like the 500. With the exception of BMW’s Mini brand, those cars just don’t fetch fat sticker prices. So margins are usually thin. Mexican wages can help.

There’s another good reason to build in Mexico, especially a car that has international appeal like the 500. Mexico has some nice trade agreements with the European Union, Brazil and Asian countries like Thailand that keep import taxes low for cars, says Michael Robinet, vice president of CSM Worldwide. If you want to build cars in one plant and have access to the U.S., Mexico, Brazil and some Asian markets, going south of the border is sensible. Fiat-Chrysler can sell more of those cars globally and stand a better chance of making money if they can max out the plant with sales around the globe.