Hot hatchbacks are now more popular than ever and they are literally getting hotter with every passing launch. Hatchbacks in India have become more premium than ever before and are now a lot more powerful and performance oriented than ever before and this is definitely a good thing, what is even better is the fact that this craze for performance might soon hop one segment across and land in the crossover segment too.
There are a few hatchbacks with performance oriented versions, like the Volkswagen Polo 1.6, Volkswagen Polo GT TDI, Volkswagen Polo GT TSI, Fiat Punto 90 PS, Toyota Etios Liva, Hyundai i20 etc. and these hatchbacks are also available in their Crossover versions too, like the Volkswagen Polo Cross, the Toyota Etios Liva Cross, the Fiat Avventura and the Hyundai i20 Active. The difference under the skin between the Crossovers and their performance oriented hatchbacks is mainly the engine, as the performance engines have not been made available in any of the crossovers yet, but now, it looks like Fiat is trying to be the pioneer here.
Fiat Motors in India, started producing the Avventura the last quarter of 2014 and honestly speaking, the car has not sold all that well really, but this was expected as this segment can almost be called a niche segment. The Avventura is currently powered by an 89 PS, 1.4 liter petrol engine and a 92 PS, 1.3 liter MultiJet Turbo-diesel engine, but this will soon change as the Avventura will be getting a new, upgraded engine with the power output expected to be 135 PS.
Yes, we are talking about the Abarth version.
Abarth is the in house tuning and performance division for Fiat just like AMG is for Mercedes-Benz and M performance is for BMW, and Abarth has been doing a very good job at restyling and making Fiats faster for decades now. There were rumours of Abarth cars being launched in India and the signs just keep coming that Abarth is indeed coming to the Indian market and the 135 BHP Avventura being spotted is yet another sign, as the 135 BHP Turbo-petrol engine is the creation of Abarth.
The Avventura which was spotted on test looked very similar to the normal Avventura, but the difference is in the detail. The Abarth version of the Avventura comes with disc brakes at the rear too and possibly even stiffer springs. The biggest difference though, as it turns out, is under the hood; the Fiat Avventura Abarth spotted on test was powered by the 1.4 liter T-Jet, Turbocharged petrol engine with a maximum power output of 135 BHP while the stock Fiat Avventura is powered by a 90 BHP, naturally aspirated 1.4 liter petrol engine.
The only proof we have of this car bring powered by the 1.4 liter T-Jet engine is the official Fiat testing sticker on the windshield of the car stating a code number, followed by 135 HP and then the chassis number and engine number.
Suspiciously, the Fiat Avventura Abarth looked exactly like the stock Avventura from the outside, without any Abarth badging or decals, which is very strange because Abarth has always been pretty loud with the decals on their cars announcing that it is an Abarth car. The only reasonable conclusion I could find in this is that, Fiat found a new way to test the car without raising any suspicion due to the camouflage on the body. Since the Avventura is a car which has already been launched, Fiat found it easier to just put the Abarth in the stock Avventura’s skin until it was time for the launch.
The Fiat Avventura Abarth will the third Abarth model to come to Indian shores after the 595 Competizione and the Fiat Punto Abarth and we just cannot wait to see these Italian beauties being driven on Indian roads.
To read more on Fiat Cars India, Click here
Also see: Fiat Punto Evo – Details & Mega Gallery
Fiat Avventura – Full Details & Live Gallery of the Crossover
GALLERY: 135 hp Fiat Avventura T-Jet (SpyShots)
Source: MotorBash.com
