Fiat India will soon be launching a new version of its oldest existing hatchback in the country, the Fiat Palio. The 1.1 litre and 1.6 litre petrol engines of the car will either be upgraded to meet Bharat Stage IV emission norms, or be replaced by the engines that power the Grande Punto. Its 1.3 litre diesel engine already meets the BS IV norms. The new Palio may also get a new grille and a redesigned dashboard, very similar to the design changes in the recently launched, facelifted version of the car in Brazil. The Palio currently sells an average of 250-300 units a month. Fiat hopes to improve this figure with the car’s new version.
The company is also planning to showcase a more powerful version of the Linea at the 2010 Auto Expo. The Linea is currently powered by 1.3 litre diesel and 1.4 litre petrol engines. Its new version is expected to feature a more powerful diesel engine, to further consolidate its position in the C segment, which is dominated by the Honda City. In spite of competition, the Linea has sold a decent 10,000 units since its launch in January 2009. Fiat India is looking to export 10 per cent of its total production within the next one year. The company has already exported 250 units of the Linea to South Africa. Its exports target for the following year also included 10,000 engines.
