The Fiat Group’s main attraction at this year’s Geneva show isn’t a car at all. Towering over everything else on the stand – in the hall, even – is a house-sized replica of the Fiat 500 supermini, complete with giant-sized front seats, steering wheel and gearstick, as well as a coffee bar, a lift and and myriad TV and video screens within.
In its shadow, however, the Italian outfit hasn’t forgotten the most important ingredient of any Swiss show: must-see metal. From Lancia, there’s the hitherto-unseen Delta; from Alfa Romeo, the gorgeous 8C Spider; from Fiat there’s the squeaky-clean 500 Aria concept and the new Fiorano MPV; and from Abarth, the new Abarth 500
The new Delta compact hatchback, from Fiat’s re-enlivened Lancia brand, was one of the biggest draws in the hall. Everyone was interested in slamming its doors, poking fingers into its nooks and crannies, and finding out exactly how upmarket it really looks and feels. Most of them left looking impressed.
Exhibited were three Deltas, one in black, the others in Lancia’s trademark white with black pillars and roof. All three looked stylish and eye-catching, with shapely headlights, a shield grille, some expensive-looking brightwork and a signature ‘D’ shape in the B-pillar.Inside the Delta feels plush, rich of materials and well screwed together, although all three of the cars exhibited had expensive looking leather and leather-suede upholstery, which are unlikely to come on cheaper models. The ambience is airy, stylish – closer to that of Alfa Romeo than Fiat products. And, thanks to the car’s generous 4.4-metre length, there’s as much legroom in the rear as you’ll find in a 159 too, even if head- and shoulder room is tighter.
It was a quiet Geneva show for the Fiat brand in particular, which is still basking in the glow of its runaway-success 500. Still, there were two debuts on the stand: a concept car called the 500 Aria, and a new mini-MPV called the Fiorino.
Powered by Fiat’s 1.3-litre Multijet diesel engine, and equipped with Magnetti Marelli’s robotised Dualogic gearbox and engine stop-start technology, the Fiat 500 Aria concept emits just 98g/km of CO2. A road-going version will be available from the autumn, with the same powertrain and the same parsimonious exhaust emissions.
The Fiat Fiorino is the brand’s all-new small MPV. Based on the firm’s Punto supermini platform, it’s less than 4.0-metres long and is only a five-seater, yet an upright cabin gives it great cabin space, and sliding rear doors grant easy access to the rear.The best news is that, according to one Fiat spokesperson we asked, the Fiorino will make it to the UK market, and at a price significantly less than the larger Doblo. That means it’s a proper MPV that could cost under £9000.
The £130,000 Alfa 8C Spider took centre stage on the Alfa stand. In the style of a true exotic sports car, it was kept back from the press scrum behind a glass screen. Only the select few were allowed in to take a closer look… and only then one at a time.
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