[v.anand]

^^ As illogical as it may seem, Honda can sell any decent car at a hefty premium in this country and that is due to the huge goodwill it has built over the years. The measure of its success is intangible and thus any similar car with a different badge can't repeat this feat. They have done their mistakes too in the past (first gen Accord and Jazz to a lesser extent) but considering the macro aspect, they have been successful up until now.

If I try to analyse the Fiat strategy at present, the only VFM offerings are the base Punto 1.2 petrol and 1.3 diesels. The profitability in premium offerings of both Punto and Linea is a lot higher which explains why the sales have deteriorated gradually since they are not VFM anymore. When launched, all the premium models were priced a lot lower and hence attracted the sales surge.

IMO, the price of Linea T-Jet is a lakh a half too expensive at Bangalore prices to make it a runaway success.

[AutoIndian]

Originally Posted by vinay_ss

Now at Rs 11.9 lacs on road bangalore, the Tjet is just below the ANHC top end (Manual) pricing from what i understand. That being the case, when the Honda is selling such huge numbers, why cant the T Jet with a much more driveable engine, sexier design and much better equipped car with almost the same or marginally low fuel efficiency command better market share ? Why would one think that this is only an enthusiasts car and not a car which would bring in numbers for Fiat ?

Any comments ?

The forcasted numbers are more to do with the legacy that these two badges Honda & Fiat carry in India.

Honda = Reliability, Fuel efficiency, Good Resale Value, Better brand perception etc

Fiat = Fuel guzzlers, Niggling issues, Poor resale value etc

Though as a product T-Jet would surpass ANHC (my personal view), the package as a whole would still tilt the balance in Honda's favour. Fiat still has a lot of groundwork to do & going by the post launch experience, it seems FIAT are taking the right steps. Lets wait & watch for at least next 6 months for the numbers to unfold.

[S.I.N.G.H]

being a linea multijet owner, i would like to share my view on the topic. neither would i be supporting anyone, nor contradicting anyone's view. It would just be a personal opinion

According to my experiences, FIAT has really improved ther services. As of now, i didnt face any major issues with my vehicle. all the small problems were very well taken care of by the FIAT ***. i get calls when my service is due, most of the parts which i wanted were available then and there, the car was given back to me on time after the service and of all, the price of the parts was nominal. The tail light costed me less than that of SX4. And even one of the door lock was replaced free of cost as it was under warrenty.

a few years back, i even owned a fiat uno. And if we compare the services now, its really efficient.

the price of honda parts is on a higher side as compared to most of the other companies.

So to sum it up, i am a very satisfied customer.

[vbraju]

Is this 11.9 lacs or should it be 10.9 lacs? From the Fiat website Linea T-Jet Plus the ex showroom price is Rs. 9.11 lacs so even if we add 20% for insurance and life tax it would be Rs. 10.93 lacs so 11.9 lacs sounds a bit high. I could be wrong though as I am not aware of the life tax rates in Karnataka.

Originally Posted by vinay_ss

I had a very fundamental question on the pricing and the positioning of the Linea TJet and a number of comments in relation to the ANHC. I have read a number of posts which state that the Tjet with its pricing and power would not get good numbers for Fiat and it would only be an enthusiast's car. Many have commented that it would not be a mass market car.

Now at Rs 11.9 lacs on road bangalore, the Tjet is just below the ANHC top end (Manual) pricing from what i understand. That being the case, when the Honda is selling such huge numbers, why cant the T Jet with a much more driveable engine, sexier design and much better equipped car with almost the same or marginally low fuel efficiency command better market share ? Why would one think that this is only an enthusiasts car and not a car which would bring in numbers for Fiat ?

Any comments ?

Cheers
Vinay

[swathyd]

There is really some improvement . After seeing an ad contacted fiat dealership which is just opposite to my home . Till date there have been 4 phone calls , including the last one offering a test drive . Which is quite good considering that I never got a TD of a punto even after asking 3 times ,of which the last being written . Never even got a phone call from them regarding punto .

[Sathya_sc]

The Chennai Concorde Guindy Garage has a T-Jet+ now (Color-SBB).. Those 16 inch alloys look definitely mean and gives a purposeful stance for the car.. I saw the car in detail and felt the plastic quality has improved considerably.. esp the key area and the dashboard plastic quality (had finer grains in the TJet, there was a MJD parked immediately after the T-Jet so was able to compare).. its definitely better and feels upmarket with the generous chrome treatment.

now waiting for a test drive which they have assured on Monday.

Regards,
sathya

[vinay_ss]

Originally Posted by vbraju

Is this 11.9 lacs or should it be 10.9 lacs? From the Fiat website Linea T-Jet Plus the ex showroom price is Rs. 9.11 lacs so even if we add 20% for insurance and life tax it would be Rs. 10.93 lacs so 11.9 lacs sounds a bit high. I could be wrong though as I am not aware of the life tax rates in Karnataka.

Raju, thanks for pointing out. Yes, i meant 10.90 lacs and not 11.90 which was a typo.

cheers
vinay

[bnzjon]

Originally Posted by Sathya_sc

The Chennai Concorde Guindy Garage has a T-Jet+ now (Color-SBB).. Those 16 inch alloys look definitely mean and gives a purposeful stance for the car.. I saw the car in detail and felt the plastic quality has improved considerably.. esp the key area and the dashboard plastic quality (had finer grains in the TJet, there was a MJD parked immediately after the T-Jet so was able to compare).. its definitely better and feels upmarket with the generous chrome treatment.

now waiting for a test drive which they have assured on Monday.

Regards,
sathya

Was there a considerable quality difference in plastic between the Tjet and a brand new 2010 MJD ?

I was under the impression that the Tjet plastic quality is being introduced in all the models.

[Sathya_sc]

Originally Posted by bnzjon

Was there a considerable quality difference in plastic between the Tjet and a brand new 2010 MJD ?

I was under the impression that the Tjet plastic quality is being introduced in all the models.

In my observation,there was a marked difference..so i think its not same across all Lineas..

[venkateshkm]

I had called the Fiat Showrooms a few times during the past several weeks to enquire about the launch dates for the Linea TJet in Bangalore. I got prompt reverts when i left my mobile number for them to call back. I even got two calls from the Fiat call center thanking me for my interest in Linea and telling me that the launch dates will be in the first week of Nov. This monday i got a call from their Concorde dealer informing me that that TJet will be in showrooms by afternoon. This is really a refreshing change from any Automobile company. In 2008 when i was on the lookout to buy a Rs 10Lakh Sedan, no one even bothered to return calls or followup. They seemed to have no database of people who walked into their showrooms. Mitsubishi did not even offer a test drive for their Cedia.

Today i took a test drive of the TJet from Prerana Motors. A short drive i must say but enough to note that the car is effortless to drive. The only irritants i noticed were the driver arm rest is awkwardly placed and interferes with gear shifting, the accelerator pedal seems to be set high. At low speeds the car did not seem heavy and glided on the slightly crowded roads. The gear shifts were smooth too. I am expecting a longer test drive tomorrow on the NICE road. Hopefully can pick up more aspects of the car.

[swathyd]

The otr is 10.49 lkhs as per the dealership . They told me earlier that the ex showroom price is inr 9.15 lkhs . I don t know how it became 10.49 otr .As a diesel linea costs about 880000 inr ex showroom and about 9.3 lkhs on road .

Originally Posted by GTO

The T-Jet proves you don't need to spend a lot of money to have a whole lot of fun. Looking for a petrol driver’s machine under 10 lakh rupees? Your search ends here.

Overdrive thinks Fiat 1.4 T-Jet Plus is pricey! In their road test article in November 2010 issue, Overdrive cites 'pricey' as T-Jet's only negative! Overdrive deserves award for their best joke of the year.

[PaddleShifter]

OT:
@ J Ravi Sir- Was it reviewed by Bertrand DSouza from Overdrive?
He is Anti-Fiat as I've seen him on TV. He would be neutral to some, anti to others.

He is loyal to one brand only and shows fanboyism which is not good for an auto journalist.

Sirish Chandran, on the other hand, is a lot wiser.

@PaddleShifter: The Overdrive road test article titled 'Power Plush' was penned by Vijayendra Vikram.

[DrunkenMonk]

Originally Posted by J.Ravi

...cites 'pricey' as T-Jet's only negative! Overdrive deserves award for their best joke of the year.

It isn't. If one looked at it as just a 115 bhp car, it is pricey. It costs 18% more than the Emotion pack petrol version. The turbo is just another nuisance from the reliability point of view, though it is a huge USP to draw the performance crowd. They could have put in a 1.8 or 2.0 liter NA engine with a revised gearbox for similar (or better) performance. Besides, it really is small on the inside, never mind the large turning radius and big bonnet and boot. The Honda City is considered pricey too, and it too is around 10 lakhs and has similar power.

.