Fiat Avventura – full details and live gallery of the crossover

It is now becoming a trend to launch cross-over’s, as this new breed of automobiles have found great liking and demand among consumers, both in India and in international markets, and after Volkswagen and Toyota launched their cross-over’s in India, Italian automobile manufacturer Fiat too, decided to launch their crossover in India. Here is a detailed report on the Fiat Avventura with a mega picture gallery.

fiat-avventura-frontThe Avventura is not just another crossover like the Etios Cross or the Cross Polo.

Fiat has named their cross-over, the Avventura and I think that they have named it so, in order to make it sound more adventurous, and it is a little more adventurous when compared to the other cross-over’s in India right now, more on that later. One look at the Avventura and, anyone would not hesitate in thinking that the Avventura looks like the new Fiat Punto Evo, and whosoever thinks that way, is absolutely right, because the Avventura really is a Fiat Punto both on the outside and also underneath the skin.

The Avventura shares its chassis, engines, transmission, some of the body panels and a few interior bits with the Punto Evo, and we cannot blame Fiat for it, as it has helped a lot in the R&D process while designing the Avventura and it looks good too. There is also a twist in the design similarities of the Punto Evo and the Avventura. The designers over at Fiat had a different design in mind for the Punto Evo, but then used the design of the Avventura because of the public response to this design. The Avventura was first displayed at the Auto expo in Delhi last year and the boffins at Fiat say that the response to the Avventura was overwhelming and hence they decided to use the exact same design on the Punto Evo too. The Punto Evo was launched earlier than the Avventura and it was received by the consumers with great delight which gave fiat the green signal for the Avventura too.

fiat-avventura-sideThe side profile looks macho with the high ground clearance and cladding.

All the body panels on the Avventura are the same as on the Punto Evo, but have been made to look a little more muscular. Every inch on the exterior of the Avventura has been designed in such a way that it looks more muscular, and the Avventura also boasts of a typical cross-over style lower body plastic cladding and also a rugged looking panel on the front bumper which is fitted with a pseudo skid plate, which looks like it is more aesthetic than functional. The Avventura also boasts of a rear tailgate mounted spare wheel which has now become the norm in all cross-over’s. From the side, one cannot help but notice the flared wheel arches, which are not just aesthetic, but also functional as they help to accommodate the bigger 16-inch wheels that come on the Avventura as standard.

From the ride point of view, it gets a little confusing, as when we looked at the 205mm ground clearance mentioned on the brochure, we could not help but wonder if this was a cross-over or a compact SUV, because the 205mm ground clearance is exactly the same as on the Renault Duster and Nissan Terrano which are both compact SUV’s, and you might now ask, if one can go off-road in the Avventura. I would say, yes! As long as one is cautious about the front overhang, one can do a bit of mild off-roading, as long as they can keep traction, because the Avventura is front wheel drive only.

fiat-avventura-rearWith the very unique rear design, the Avventura is a attention-catcher on our roads.

The engineers at Fiat have used the suspension too from the Punto Evo, and that is a very good thing, as the Punto Evo is one of the best handling hatchbacks out there, but on the Avventura, the engineers have meddled with the suspension a bit, especially on the rear, because of the increase in ride height and also because the Avventura might have to sometimes haul a greater weight than the Punto Evo. At the rear, the Avventura gets an anti-roll bar to help keep the extra height in check while on twisty roads. Ride wise, the Avventura is very good and definitely the best in its class and it gobbles up the bumps and thuds with ease, while providing good handling characteristics.

With the Avventura, on the engine front one can choose between the 1.3 liter Multijet diesel engine and the 1.4 liter FIRE petrol engine which have both been taken straight off from the Fiat Punto Evo. While the diesel engine here is seen only in its 90 PS avatar, the 1.4 petrol has a maximum output of 89 PS. Both the engines are very good and provide optimum performance, but our guess is that the maximum number of orders would be for the 1.3 Multijet diesel because of the torque available on tap, increased driveability and also because of its fuel efficiency, speaking of which, the diesel returns 20.5 kilometers to the liter and the petrol variant returns 14.4 kilometers to the liter.

fiat-avventura-tailgate-mounted-spare-wheelThe tail-gate mounted spare wheel isn’t like what you usually see on SUVs.

The similarities between the Punto Evo and the Avventura do not end at just the exterior and the engines, but extend to the insides of the cross-over too. The dashboard has been taken straight off the Punto Evo with only a few minor changes, in order to make the Avventura look more adventurous, fiat has placed a compass and a tilt meter at the centre of the dashboard, which was earlier seen only on huge off-road built SUV’s like the previous gen Mitsubishi Pajero. While the dashboard and other soft touch parts are all in bathed in grey, the seats are clothed with a dark beige fabric, which makes it quite an odd interior color combination.

The interiors of the Avventura is loaded with features like climate control, rear air-conditioning vents, electric windows etc. it also comes loaded with a multimedia music system which supports CD, MP3 and Aux-In, the brochure also mentions it has Bluetooth, but do not get confused, as the Bluetooth connectivity is only for calling and not for music streaming. The Avventura also comes with ABS, EBD and dual-front airbags. The Avventura has been crash tested to European standards and is pretty safe.

fiat-avventura-insideAvventura-specific dual-tone dashboard with soft touch velvet like grey fabric looks quite upmarket.

We think, fiat has hit the right spot with a cross-over that has unmatched ride quality, decent interiors, funky and rugged exteriors, all at the price of a hatchback. The Avventura was launched in October-2014 and has been clocking the bookings in decent numbers ever since.

 
Prices of Fiat Avventura (Ex-showroom Delhi):

Petrol

  • Fiat Avventura Active: Rs. 5.99 lakh
  • Fiat Avventura Dynamic: Rs. 7.05 lakh

Diesel

  • Fiat Avventura Active: Rs. 6.89 lakh
  • Fiat Avventura Dynamic: Rs. 7.65 lakh
  • Fiat Avventura Emotion: Rs. 8.17 lakh

 
Verdict:

Fiat Avventura is a genuine crossover and is a most promising car from Fiat I’ve seen in a while. It’s not just another crossover like the Etios Cross or the Cross Polo, it does have the strong character to match-up with the real crossovers. The car looks really funky, is built well and has a fair bit of tech in it.

Avventura’s competitive pricing and the fact that it looks a sight better than most other cars on the road should be reason enough for a significant number of people to whip their wallets out and head to the showrooms to buy one.

 
Car Courtesy: HANUMAN CARS, KULOOR, MANGALORE

Suprem Poojary: +91 – 9379919486

 
To read more on Fiat Avventura, Click here

 

Also see – Fiat Avventura launched in India @ Rs. 5.99 lakh

 

See more pictures of the Fiat Avventura Crossover:

fiat-avventura-front-view     fiat-avventura-left-side     fiat-avventura-right-side

fiat-avventura-front-fascia     fiat-avventura-rear-fascia     fiat-avventura-rear-end

fiat-avventura-side-view     fiat-avventura-rear-design     fiat-avventura-boot-release-open

fiat-avventura-dashboard     fiat-avventura-centre-console     fiat-avventura-steering-wheel

fiat-avventura-interior     fiat-avventura-compass     fiat-avventura-speedometer-console

fiat-avventura-mid-instrument-cluster-display     fiat-avventura-automatic-climate-control-ac     fiat-avventura-blue-and-me-technology

fiat-avventura-cabin-lamps     fiat-avventura-rear-ac-vents     fiat-avventura-sunshade

fiat-avventura-power-window     fiat-avventura-rear-view-mirror-ovrm     fiat-avventura-side-cladding

fiat-avventura-spare-tyre     fiat-avventura-tailgate-spare-wheel     fiat-avventura-spare-wheel

fiat-avventura-luggage-space     fiat-avventura-boot-space     fiat-avventura-designed-wheel-cover

 

fiat-avventura-features     fiat-avventura-front-legroom     fiat-avventura-rear-legroom

fiat-avventura-front-design     fiat-avventura-exhaust-tailpipe     fiat-avventura-alloy-wheel