[Shantonil]

Originally Posted by Arkesh

We would appreciate if you have a source of reference for the information. There are definitely many takers for linea if they price it right.

Got an official invite from Fiat India.



I do expect Fiat to price the Linea Classic competitively keeping the festive season in mind.

[Arkesh]

Originally Posted by Shantonil

Got an official invite from Fiat India.

I do expect Fiat to price the Linea Classic competitively keeping the festive season in mind.

That's a concrete source of information. Now lets keep fingers crossed for 25th when they launch it.

[hallik9]

One thing I have noticed is that with the new management in place at Fiat,their advertising standards seems to have gone many levels up.
I genuinely wish that Fiat is able to price the Linea classic better.Other area which would keep them in good stead is an aggressive line of good launches.Indian auto market is such a dynamic one that if you don't make the right noises,the chances are that you will remain "out of sight"

[jessie007]

Originally Posted by nskumar

Introducing the new LINEA CLASSIC
tagline:longest car in its price segment

Maybe FIAT realised that the Linea is indeed the longest car in the mid-size sedan segment and in fact it even has the longest wheelbase (except Verito), though the space for passengers is not really commensurate with the long wheelbase. In typical Indian mentality - Bigger is Better. Keeping this in mind, the Linea can be positioned in both the entry (with the 75 BHP variant) and the upper mid-size segment (with the 90 BHP variant - new / current model).

Following is a comparison that I've done - I've tried to compare the specs as well as the price of the base/mid diesel variants (except Honda City) of various cars in the two segments. If the Linea 75 BHP is priced competitively (i.e. starting Rs 6.50 lakhs ex-showroom Delhi), FIAT can rake in some numbers. The only areas where it will lose out, is on mileage and outright passenger space, especially the headroom at the rear seat; in addition to after sales service in non-metro cities. Due to these factors, serving the taxi market is a big question mark.

For the 75 BHP variant, the in-city drivability would be slightly better than the 90 BHP variant, provided some amount of weight is reduced. One simple way of reducing weight is to remove the stabalizer bar from the rear suspension, like they did in Grande Punto manufactured 2011 onwards. In the Punto this resulted in a weight saving of almost 50 kgs.

[julupani]

Originally Posted by jessie007

Maybe FIAT realised that the Linea is indeed the longest car in the mid-size sedan segment and in fact it even has the longest wheelbase (except Verito), though the space for passengers is not really commensurate with the long wheelbase. In typical Indian mentality - Bigger is Better. Keeping this in mind, the Linea can be positioned in both the entry (with the 75 BHP variant) and the upper mid-size segment (with the 90 BHP variant - new / current model).
.........

Thanks for collating the data.

But I would like to add, that in case of the Linea, its design, especially the couple like roof and the rising shoulder line, make it look even longer than what its absolute dimensions would suggest. For example, the Linea feels like its considerably longer than even the likes of City, Vento, Verna etc. In comparision to sedans like the Dzire and the Amaze it will feel humongous. For someone coming from a Honda showroom/Maruti showroom to a FIAT showroom, the size difference they will perceive will be huge.

Hope FIAT's enginerring team have got the product positioned perfectly, and the marketing team do a good job of selling the Classic.

[puchoo]

Originally Posted by julupani

For someone coming from a Honda showroom/Maruti showroom to a FIAT showroom, the size difference they will perceive will be huge.
.

Till they sit in it and then they probably wonder where the space went . Not as efficient as others when it comes to creating space on the inside.

[julupani]

Originally Posted by puchoo

Till they sit in it and then they probably wonder where the space went . Not as efficient as others when it comes to creating space on the inside.

True, but I have a feeling the extra exterior length will work out for FIAT. After all, the prestige of a sedan pushed Indian customers towards the lower-C segment sedans rather than B2 segment hatchbacks. So the extra length of the Linea will just mean a lot more prestige for the money you pay. Effectively the Linea Classic will mean a car which is comparable in external size to most D-segment sedans for the price of some B2-segment hatchbacks.

Also, I dont think the Linea's interior space will be far smaller than the Dzire and the Amaze, except for the rear headroom. The space with respect to the actual length of the car for the Linea is pathetic compared to Amaze.

[puchoo]

I agree and that's a very fair observation i believe , the Linea will match upto the Amaze / Dzire but then the pricing needs to be in the same area as well for that to happen.

Originally Posted by julupani

True, but I have a feeling the extra exterior length will work out for FIAT. After all, the prestige of a sedan pushed Indian customers towards the lower-C segment sedans rather than B2 segment hatchbacks. So the extra length of the Linea will just mean a lot more prestige for the money you pay. Effectively the Linea Classic will mean a car which is comparable in external size to most D-segment sedans for the price of some B2-segment hatchbacks.

Also, I dont think the Linea's interior space will be far smaller than the Dzire and the Amaze, except for the rear headroom. The space with respect to the actual length of the car for the Linea is pathetic compared to Amaze.

[julupani]

Originally Posted by puchoo

I agree and that's a very fair observation i believe , the Linea will match upto the Amaze / Dzire but then the pricing needs to be in the same area as well for that to happen.

Well, if the base diesel Classic is in the 6.5-6.75L range, the Linea Classic has a chance to pull in some decent numbers. And considering where FIAT are in the present situation with respect to sales, if the Linea Classic can rake in close to a 1000units, and help push the total units from the existing 1000units a month to 2000units a month, FIAT will be pretty happy.

But one big thing to keep track of is how many Punto buyers swing to the Linea Classic. FIAT will hope most Linea Classic buyers come from competitors, rather than poaching sales of an in house model.

[vibbs]

Well there may be quite a few punto buyers swaying over to linea classic in case it is priced at those levels. However I do feel that fiat has a fair chance to poach some numbers from the amaze dezire camp too. It's a real sedan after all. All said and done for all their qualities dzire and amaze don't look the part with their truncated design and if linea classic is priced close to these we may see some buyers spilling over to fiat camp. What needs to be seen however is how many would really be willing to bet on fiat A.S.S vis a vis maruti and honda.

[nkrishnap]

The Classic selling in the range of 1000 is really a high expectation. From the current 200 odd numbers that Linea is doing, I can see it inching towards 500. Anything more, even Fiat would be surprised with it

However, I too wish they get their monthly sales around the 2,000 mark to keep themselves relevant in the market from the prospective customer's point of view.

[echo77]

Originally Posted by julupani

For example, the Linea feels like its considerably longer than even the likes of City, Vento, Verna etc. In comparision to sedans like the Dzire and the Amaze it will feel humongous. For someone coming from a Honda showroom/Maruti showroom to a FIAT showroom, the size difference they will perceive will be huge.

The Linea is actually longer than all of those. In fact if I recall correctly, it is 2cm longer than Corolla Altis.

Expecting an Amaze like price for this version.

[julupani]

Originally Posted by nkrishnap

The Classic selling in the range of 1000 is really a high expectation. From the current 200 odd numbers that Linea is doing, I can see it inching towards 500. Anything more, even Fiat would be surprised with it

However, I too wish they get their monthly sales around the 2,000 mark to keep themselves relevant in the market from the prospective customer's point of view.

Yes, a thousand units a month is a lot from FIAT perspective. But lets not forget the lower C-segment sedan market rakes in volumes of about 25 thousand units a month, compared to the upper C-segment sedan which is closer to about 10 thousand a month.

[puchoo]

Only concern is that starting 6.5-6.75 means that the car is towards the middle -top end range of the prices as far as cars such as the Amaze , Dzire ,Sail etc go and whether they would need to price it even more competitively than that to get some numbers rolling , ofcourse also depends on how much they are or are not loading the car with. Guess we will find out tomorrow.

Originally Posted by julupani

Well, if the base diesel Classic is in the 6.5-6.75L range, the Linea Classic has a chance to pull in some decent numbers. And considering where FIAT are in the present situation with respect to sales, if the Linea Classic can rake in close to a 1000units, and help push the total units from the existing 1000units a month to 2000units a month, FIAT will be pretty happy.

But one big thing to keep track of is how many Punto buyers swing to the Linea Classic. FIAT will hope most Linea Classic buyers come from competitors, rather than poaching sales of an in house model.

[skyline gtr r34]

No steering controls, Blue&Me and a lot of other features cut