[nim_peter]

Throwing away the swing arm, moving the spare to the boot and we have a better Punto Evo?

[SchumiFan]

Seems like the problems with the Punto have been carried over to the Avventura :( Why can't they remove the flap type door openers and replace it with the pull type ones? How hard is it to get that Key hole aligned right?

Rubbery gear shifts continue in the new car as well. Why exactly is this car worth a 1 lakh premium over Punto evo? Should have got the T Jet engine in it as well and given ABS/Airbags in Petrol version too.

Really like the paint job though. Hope Fiat tries something new and fresh rather using the existing template.

Opportunity lost I would say.

[rama75]

Definitely a lost opportunity in not bringing the T-Jet engine, especially after the diesel deregulation done now.

[DRIV3R]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

Also I found a switch below the steering column. I don't know if you noticed it...Any idea what it is?
Attachment 1301402

It is not a switch.

Here is a pic from my Bossa Nova White Fiat. It is just a nut screwed on, the thread is painted in the body color, hence it is white in mine and Orange in the pic.



It holds the pedal assembly in place.

[saion666]

Fiat India epitomises what shouldnt be done in the automobile market in India. I remember doing a case study on the pain points of Fiat india during a management training program two years back and guess what I can happily copy-paste that paper still. Years pass by but nothing improves for Fiat.

Who on earth,except an insane Fiat loyalist, would buy this?
Fiat already had examples of the polo cross and the etios cross as warnings, still they went on with this bizarre car launch in India!!

[PVPal]

Originally Posted by nim_peter

Throwing away the swing arm, moving the spare to the boot and we have a better Punto Evo?

Originally Posted by Fiatanic

Makes me wonder if one could somehow get the rear wheel mount removed and place the the spare in its original duct in the boot? The will be still be a looker - minus the odds of boot opening procedure, as seen in this picture:

Originally Posted by SnS_12

For me and lot of potential buyers a sour point would be that rear mounted tyre. Looking at it, I could imagine myself scratching my head figuring out what all I would have to do (or rather not do) to live with that design.

a) Can never park the car in reverse against a wall.

b) Can never open the booth in traffic with other cars so close to me in traffic.

c) Security guys at malls and hotels would have a tough time opening it.

d) Can never load or unload luggage from or on the right hand side as the wheel would block my way. etc etc

Totally agree if there is a rattling noise on the spare wheel. CD makes a point that this car is primarily a highway performer, and not the best option for city drive, especially if security checks are going to take painful time. For a highway performer, the wheel is noted to rattle at high speeds, which means one should expect it to rattle all the while.

I would not want a single rattle for even a second on a brand new car that just cost me almost a million bucks. I guess its good that Fiat has kept the wheel well unused. I would plonk the spare wheel back in its original place and start the adventure. At least I would be able to remove it in less than a minute when needed, and have the rear view mirror completely unoccupied for my safety. Though I may loose on my rear crash guard as noted in the review. I would have spent the money used on the rear wheel arrangement on giving other features to the car, whatever affordable, whatever priority.

Originally Posted by SchumiFan

Rubbery gear shifts continue in the new car as well. Why exactly is this car worth a 1 lakh premium over Punto evo? Should have got the T Jet engine in it as well and given ABS/Airbags in Petrol version too.

Consider what you get for the 1 lakh above the Evo emotion: a car that has a slightly better tuned engine, an almost same gear box with its unresolved issues, a car which is able to move on rougher roads, not the accomplished Punto can't, but not the best to trot along in the city. Its really the ACC, body cladding, slightly bigger wider wheels, the rear mounted spare wheel (not a best thing happening to the car apparently), the roof rails, and fancy dials. Most of these (body cladding, bigger wheels, roof rails) one could get done in a local garage.

No projectors, no DRLs, no bluetooth streaming, no option to have airbags across the variants, especially for an adventure vehicle. Did I miss listing anything? Oh ya, in reality, no petrol option for an adventure vehicle suited for highways, as it misses on the ABS, Airbags, and a decent petrol engine that would inspire confidence on the highways.

Just imagine one single variant added above the Punto Evo Emotion 90 HP called the Punto Evo Adventure, or whatever, and transfer some of the key attributes of the Avventura listed above to that variant. There is no new car really, from this (admittedly skewed) perspective.

Originally Posted by ampere

The T-Jet would have be an icing on this cake and so would be the often dreamt 1.6MJD. I hope they add that sooner than later.

I think its going to miss both. The T-jet to a lesser extent, but the 1.6 MJD to a greater extent, especially since its more suited for long drives as mentioned by CD.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by saion666

Fiat already had examples of the polo cross and the etios cross as warnings, still they went on with this bizarre car launch in India!!

We consider these two competitors as sales duds, but the reality is that the Toyota has about 2-3 months waiting period in cities like bangalore. Dealers are happy that the model has met their sales targets and Toyota has increased the supply of cars recently. Its not so difficult to spot on in Bangalore these days!

Cross Polo is priced too close to the GT TDi to be a success with enthusiasts. And with the masses - it just doesn't stand out as much as they would like it to.

The segment is growing, and growing fast - the next entrant is Hyundai with the Elite i20 crossover. Spy pics are already out! The segment doesn't have major players as of now - so FIAT would be happy with whatever small market share they can acheive. Remember that they dont have anything to lose for now!

[Rubbertramps]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

We consider these two competitors as sales duds, but the reality is that the Toyota has about 2-3 months waiting period in cities like bangalore. Dealers are happy that the model has met their sales targets and Toyota has increased the supply of cars recently. Its not so difficult to spot on in Bangalore these days!

Cross Polo is priced too close to the GT TDi to be a success with enthusiasts. And with the masses - it just doesn't stand out as much as they would like it to.

The segment is growing, and growing fast - the next entrant is Hyundai with the Elite i20 crossover. Spy pics are already out! The segment doesn't have major players as of now - so FIAT would be happy with whatever small market share they can acheive.

Originally Posted by saion666

Fiat India epitomises what shouldnt be done in the automobile market in India. I remember doing a case study on the pain points of Fiat india during a management training program two years back and guess what I can happily copy-paste that paper still. Years pass by but nothing improves for Fiat.

Who on earth,except an insane Fiat loyalist, would buy this?
Fiat already had examples of the polo cross and the etios cross as warnings, still they went on with this bizarre car launch in India!!

Bang on Crazy Driver. You spoke my heart out. Something different done by FIAT should be appreciated in the first place and it has managed to garner the much needed attention. And hell yes, the segment is growing, and Avventura is the real start of it. Cross Polo and Etios are not even on stilts for heavens sake. Seeing Hyundai develop a product similar to the avventura is a good answer to the growing segment. Kudos to FIAT for the effort. Implementation is not at all bad i would say !

And I already witnessed a registered Avventura a couple of hours back on road. !

[extreme_torque]

Originally Posted by saion666

Fiat India epitomises what shouldnt be done in the automobile market in India. I remember doing a case study on the pain points of Fiat india during a management training program two years back and guess what I can happily copy-paste that paper still. Years pass by but nothing improves for Fiat.

Who on earth,except an insane Fiat loyalist, would buy this?
Fiat already had examples of the polo cross and the etios cross as warnings, still they went on with this bizarre car launch in India!!

Well it is easy to tell what not to do, the challenge is tell what to do. Given the resources they had at hand I think it is more than a decent effort. The car looks good, ride and handles well, has the all important spare-wheel-at-the-back look with a decent engine and performance. It is one of the best looking crossover's in the country at the moment and carries that look convincingly and that itself is no mean feat. Its priced well too if you compare it to the now overpriced EcoSport.

[rbp]

@CrazyDriver :- Great review, one of the best reviews off late on TeamBhp. Attention to detail is mind-boggling.

Personally, I hate the dash color, would have preferred black instead, just doesn't gel with the rest of the car.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Samar117

Attaching a picture of my Advy for Nostalgia/ those who do not know what a Fiat Palio Adventure 1.6 was.

Thanks for that! Do you remember the prices for the Adventure? It was the right car for the market, but came at just the wrong time, and with the wrong engine option. The 1.6 was brilliant, but a 1.3 MJD could have brought them numbers.

Originally Posted by vibbs

I believe the thermocol thingy can be removed

Yes. It can be removed.

Originally Posted by Dieselritzer

But you mentioned the tail tire setup rattled in highspeed runs, in the long run, how do you see it holding up in its place firmly?

The mechanism on which it sits is pretty robust. What rattles is the plastic cover on the wheel. You can clearly make out the cover vibrating if you follow an Avventura at triple digit speeds.

There shouldn't be any other issue over time, but the rattle needs to be fixed.

Originally Posted by nkrishnap

The vehicle we drove did have the spare wheel mount shake. But it did not rattle. This rattle could be due the spare wheel cover not being mounted correctly. And it is cumbersome to remove and put the cover back

Tried it with three media vehicles and all of them had the rattle, but only at high speeds.

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

You don't love your iphone or what?

OT: Not much really!

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

Apart from the wide cladding I feel that the indicators added to the mirrors are the reason behind this reduced noise.

Good point about the indicators, but is it reduced in the Evo? I haven't done high speed runs on the Evo to confirm this.

Originally Posted by joommen

Very useful review. Wish I could try to improve the ground clearance of my Punto (90HP) that is badly needed for the 'excellent' Bangalore roads which are rich in craters and shallow lakes (could try for fish farming)

Thanks for any thoughts to improve GC, please..

Which model and year? My Punto 90hp from March 2012 comes with the increased 185mm clearance and Bangalore speed breakers are never an issue. You could get it done at the dealership for approx 10k INR.

Originally Posted by veyron_head

How does the FE compare with the Punto Evo, considering the additional weight of Avventura?

ARAI FE is the same for both cars. I guess the Avventura being easier to drive helps. There is a noticeable difference in tuning compared to the Punto and you dont need to rev it much in the city.

Media cars returned very less FE, but no user will put it through the same way these cars are tested by the media.

Originally Posted by Rubbertramps

And I already witnessed a registered Avventura a couple of hours back on road. !

I have only seen only two Punto Evo cars till date on the road.

[oxymoron]

I believe it is a good offering by Fiat. Success or no success is a different question altogether. Not launching Tjet is fair as there are hardly any buyers, people dont really understand/ appreciate the difference between NA and turbocharged petrol and its all the way gonna be diesel if it sells. I am not sure how many of those complaining about absence of Tjet option would really go and buy one if made available.
Disclaimer: I own myself a Tjet

[1100D]

I guess a lot of negative comments are being made about the swing arm spare wheel arrangement and the hassles relating to it while using it in the City. But lets not forget, this car is Avventure, an out-door car, a car that is built to support your outdoor activities. So this externally placed spare is a superboon, when one is travelling with a boot full of luggage on a weekend trip, on a dirt road and suffers a tyre related issue (where you are most likely to face one), you wont need to unload all your luggage.

If City usage is what your preference is skewed at, one can always buy the regular Punto Evo, where is the problem?! The Punto Evo will happily do whatever the Avventura will do (but you will have to live with the prospect of dropping your luggage on ex-cow-dung)

[rajeev k]

First things first; great review with minutest attention to details, Excellent stuff.
Is the Avventura going to be the real challenger to the Ecosport.

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

Also I found a switch below the steering column. I don't know if you noticed it...Any idea what it is?
Attachment 1301402

Originally Posted by DRIV3R

It is not a switch.

It appears to be the remote Lock/key-less entry indication cum function setting button switch. EDIT Yes I am wrong, it is the hold on bolt end.

[saion666]

Originally Posted by extreme_torque

Well it is easy to tell what not to do, the challenge is tell what to do. Given the resources they had at hand I think it is more than a decent effort. The car looks good, ride and handles well, has the all important spare-wheel-at-the-back look with a decent engine and performance.

In my humble opinion the reasons why will the car not do well in our country:

i> Its a FIAT, FIAT needs to get the basics right to succeed in India. First solve their service woes and then go for the product launch. This very same car(sans that inconvenient spare wheel) launched by a Maruti or a Hyundai would have been a potential chartbuster.

ii> its basically a Punto. If the Punto doesnt sell much how can the more expensive crossover sell. Ask an average Joe if he really cares about that wheel at the back for the butch look over the inconvenience it brings in. Already people in our forum itself are considering how to get that wheel(the supposedly USP of the vehicle) removed.

iii> Fiat needs to get a decent small car or a good sedan to gain market share and then launch these 'experimental' products.


Hope am proved wrong and we see an avventura in every nook and corner.