Fiat Linea

Fiat Linea

Manufacturer	Fiat
Production	2007–present
Assembly	Betim, Minas Gerais, Brazil (Fiat) Bursa, Turkey (Tofaş A.S.) Ranjangaon, Pune, India (Fiat India) Naberezhnye Chelny, Russia (Sollers)
Predecessor	Fiat Marea
Class	Small family car
Body style	4-door sedan
Layout	FF layout
Platform	Fiat Small platform
Engine	1.4L Fire I4 petrol 1.4L Fire Turbojet I4 petrol 1.8L E-Torq I4 Flexfuel 1.9L Torque I4 Flexfuel 1.3L Multijet I4 diesel 1.6L Multijet I4 diesel
Transmission	5-speed manual 6-speed manual 5-speed semi-auto
Wheelbase	2,603 mm (102.5 in)
Length	4,560 mm (179.5 in)
Width	1,730 mm (68.1 in)
Height	1,494 mm (58.8 in)
Curb weight	1,160 to 1,185 kg (2,557 to 2,612 lb)
Related	Alfa Romeo MiTo Fiat Grande Punto Fiat Punto Evo Fiat Fiorino III Fiat Qubo Opel Corsa D Opel Meriva B Citroën Nemo Peugeot Bipper
Designer	Fiat Centro Stile

The Fiat Linea is a small family car released on March 26, 2007 at Tofaş plant in Bursa, Turkey, by the Italian automaker Fiat as a world car in developing countries. It replaced the aging Marea as the largest saloon in the Fiat range. It is based on the current Fiat Grande Punto platform. The Linea was designed by Fiat Style Centre and co-developed by Tofaş (Joint venture between Fiat Group and Koc Holding) and Fiat do Brasil.

History

Linea's size is similar to saloon versions of small family cars, like the Ford Focus, Mazda 3 and Vauxhall/Opel Astra. Its wheelbase is 2,603 mm (102.5 in), i.e. 100 mm (3.9 in) longer than its sister models, and its total length is 4,560 mm (179.5 in) or 500 mm (19.7 in) longer.

The first launch, in Turkey in 2007, was initially available with a 1.4 Fire gasoline engine and 1.3 Multijet diesel engine. Then the 1.4 TurboJet engine with 120 PS and 1.6 diesel with 105 PS made available to the market. The production at Tofaş plant is mostly aimed for local Turkish, whereas CBUs are shippsed to EU market and CKD components are shipped to Tatarstan plant of Fiat joint venture in Russia.

Launched in September 2008 in Brazil, Linea was available with a 1.9 L 16v "Torque" engine with 132 PS (97 kW; 130 hp), flexible for the Brazilian market (capable of using petrol or ethanol). Also in Brazil Linea is available with a 1.4 L 16v T-Jet engine with 152 PS (112 kW; 150 hp), the same engine used in Fiat Grande Punto Abarth in Europe, capable of using only petrol, as this engine is imported.

In 2010 (2011 model) Fiat replaced the Torque engine (1.9 16v Flex) with a new 1.8 16v E.TorQ, derived from old 1.6 16v SOHC Tritec engines used in Mini Cooper and Chrysler PT Cruiser. Fiat Powertrain Technologies changed the displacement from 1598 cc to 1747 cc and made it a flex fuel engine (etanol/petrol). Max power output was the same (compared with old Torque engine), but it would come earlier, and torque has increased from 183 N·m (135 lb·ft) to 185 N·m (136 lb·ft). Car performance was not so different, this was more a strategic decision for Fiat (using only E-Torq engines in Latin America).

Launched in January 2009 in India, the Linea is available with a 1.4 L Fire petrol engine 90 PS (66 kW; 89 hp), 1.3 L Multijet diesel engine and 93 PS (68 kW; 92 hp). Another variant of the Fiat Linea, which includes the much acclaimed 1.4 L T-JET Engine pumping out 114 PS (84 kW; 112 hp), was released on 8 October 2010 in India.^{[citation needed]}

Fiat Linea runs in a different segment and has different competition in Brazil and India. In Brazil it is positioned against Honda Civic, Chevrolet Vectra (Opel Astra), Toyota Corolla, Citroën C4 Pallas, Nissan Sentra and Ford Focus^{[citation needed]} whereas in India it is positioned in the upper C segment and goes against cars like Ford Fiesta, Honda City and Hyundai Accent/Verna.^{[citation needed]}

This positioning has been done to gain a foothold in the Indian market and to achieve the reduced price several features such as the TS and ESC are optional.

Car systems

Linea is equipped with the Blue&Me hands-free system, a Microsoft Windows Mobile-based system with multilanguage voice recognition and speech functions. The system allows one to browse the mobile's phonebook, read SMSes aloud and display them on the MID, and controls the audio system. A USB stick with music files on it can be plugged into the built-in USB port and music can be played via Blue&Me's built-in Microsoft Windows Media Player.

In Brazil the Linea, can be equipped optionally with a Blue&Me Nav system, an enhanced Blue&Me system that has a GPS system integrated. This GPS system doesn't show maps in a touch screen, but it has a regular display that shows some arrows and directions and you are also guided by voice instructions. You can either enter addresses that you want to go and other instructions by voice instructions just like the regular Blue&Me system or using the controls on the steering wheel. The Linea is the first car in Brazil that has an integrated GPS system.

The Fiat Linea was launched in South Africa in September 2009.

Engines

Model	Engine	Displacement	Power	Torque	0–100 km/h,s	Top speed
1.4 - 8v	I4	1368 cc	77 PS (57 kW) @ 6000 rpm	115 N·m (85 lb·ft) @3000 rpm	14.6	165 km/h (103 mph)
1.4 - 16v	I4	1368 cc	90 PS (66 kW) @ 6000 rpm	115 N·m (85 lb·ft) @4500 rpm	13.6	182 km/h (113 mph)
1.3 Multijet 16v	I4	1248 cc	90 PS (66 kW) @ 4000 rpm	200 N·m (148 lb·ft) @1750 rpm	13.8	170 km/h (106 mph)
1.6 Multijet 16v	I4	1598 cc	105 PS (77 kW) @ 4000 rpm	290 N·m (214 lb·ft) @1500 rpm	11.0	190 km/h (118 mph)
1.4 16v T-Jet	I4	1368 cc	120 PS (88 kW) @ 5000 rpm	206 N·m (152 lb·ft) @1750 rpm	9.2	195 km/h (121 mph)
1.4 16v T-Jet	I4	1368 cc	152 PS (112 kW) @ 5500 rpm	207 N·m (153 lb·ft) @2250 rpm	8.5	203 km/h (126 mph)
1.9 16v Flex (*)	I4	1839 cc	132 PS (97 kW) @ 5750 rpm	183 N·m (135 lb·ft) @4500 rpm	10.5	188 km/h (117 mph)
1.8 16v E-Torq Flex	I4	1747 cc	132 PS (97 kW) @ 5250 rpm	185 N·m (136 lb·ft) @4500 rpm	9.9	192 km/h (119 mph)

(*) Discontinued

Fiat Linea in India

Fiat Linea T Jet in India

Presently, four different variants of Fiat Linea available are Active, Dynamic, Emotion and Emotion Pack. A Linea Dynamic pack was also available earlier but has been discontinued since April 2010. All these variants are available with both petrol (1.4 L FIRE) and diesel (1.3 L MultiJet) engine option. These versions are decided on the basis of price to content ratio in these vehicles.

Some Standard features of Fiat Linea include: automatic climate control, Blue&Me with steering mounted controls, speed sensitive front wipers and volume control, dual rear AC vents, Advanced Driver Information System (DIS) not found in many other cars.

Fiat Linea that marked the comeback of Fiat in the Indian market has now come up with Fiat Linea T Jet that will be launched at the 2010 Auto Expo in New Delhi. The all new Fiat Linea T Jet is equipped with a 1.4L turbo charged petrol engine and shells out 114 PS (84 kW; 112 hp) at 5000 rpm and a striking torque of 207 N·m (153 lb·ft) at 2200 rpm. Acceleration and pick up impresses too, with Fiat Linea T Jet zooming from 0–100 km/h in 10.2 seconds and reaching to a top speed of 200 km/h (124 mph). Some additional features of Linea T-Jet (Indian version) include: 16-inch alloy wheels with 205/55 R16 tires having disc brakes on all four tires, Italian leather seats, increased ground clearance of 161 mm (6.3 in), improved quality of interiors.

Fiat Linea models

Fiat Linea Active	It is the base variant that comes with most of the safety, comfort and convenience features like Rear AC vents, All four power windows with Auto up/down feature, Theater dimming front cockpit lights with spotlight function, Hydraulic power steering, Speed sensitive front wipers and AC adjusted for tropical climate but lacks two important features- ABS and dual Airbags as they are not mandatory in India.
Fiat Linea Dynamic	It comes with few more features like Driver Seat height adjust, electrically adjustable outside rear-view mirror (ORVMs), Programmable Speed Limit Warning System, additional Rear cabin lights, front fog lamps, night panel in roof lights, rear roof light, and foldable desmodronic remote key.
Fiat Linea Emotion	The addition feature that this variant offers are – Automatic Climate Control with dual Rear AC Vents, 15-inch alloys, ABS with EBD CD player with 6 speakers, Front seat arm rest with glove box, double folding rear back seat, collapsible rear sun curtain, sun glass holder, leather-wrapped steering wheel and gear knob, Electric boot opening from remote folable key, front seat back pockets.
Fiat Linea Emotion Pack	It is the top end variant of Fiat Linea that offers few additional features in comparison to its lower variants. These features are – Blue&Me system with Windows Media player and voice interaction and commands, Dual front airbags, Front seat belts pre-tensioners & load limiter, steering mounted audio and Blue&Me controls, vanity mirror on both side.

L'Unico Club

In Brazil, Fiat is aiming the Linea towards the Japanese cars, such as Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla, the market leaders for its class. As such, Fiat has launched the L'Unico Club, that offers VIP services for Linea owners, such as special exclusive lines and exclusive attendants for Linea owners, invitations for special events (concerts, theater plays, expositions, etc.), get and deliver service for maintenance and 3 years warranty, the biggest warranty for Fiat cars in Brazil.

Fiat First

In India, the Linea along with the Grande Punto are part of the special service from Fiat, namely Fiat First, launched on 15 October 2009,- which caters to 24x7 Road Assistance for punctures, common spares, accident repairs and towing. Fiat provides free 24x7 Roadside Assistance package for 50 months with 2+2 years extended warranty to all Fiat customers. This service is exclusive to Fiat India only. The Fiat Linea competes with subcompact sedans like the Honda City, Ford Fiesta 1.6S, Hyundai Verna and the Maruti Suzuki SX4.^{[citation needed]} Fiat boasts of an extensive and growing sales network in India with its partnership with TATA Motors. Tata-Fiat showrooms have on display cars from both manufacturers. The car is manufactured at Fiat's state of the art Ranjangaon facility in Pune, Maharashtra.

Gallery

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  2007 Fiat Linea front

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  2007 Fiat Linea rear

External links

• Fiat Linea India Official Site