A new report suggests that the Fiat Punto is no longer going to be produced at the FCA Melfi plant in Italy. While Fiat Punto was originally introduced in 1993, this third generation Fiat Punto is 12 years old after being introduced in 2005 and is hence being retired while making way for new premium models. Besides pulling out the Fiat Punto from production, further production of the Alfa Romeo MiTo, produced at the Mirafiori plant is also to be stopped.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) is showing more preference for the growth of Jeep brand and is set to announce a new plan on 1st June 2018 which could include newer models.
Sergio Marchionne, CEO, who retires next year, states that FCA would be paying more attention to the Jeep SUV and Maserati luxury cars while downsizing the Fiat models. The company is also considering ending sales of Fiat cars in North America and China, limiting the Fiat brand to only the Fiat 500 and Fiat Panda in Europe.
Fiat’s existence in India is also reported to be unsure, as per a report last year. But the company continues to maintain that they have plans to continue. This inspite the fact that the current line-up of Fiat India cars – Punto Evo and Fiat Linea do not have any replacement on offer.
Globally, Fiat is shifting focus towards their premium brand Jeep. The two new entry level cars from Jeep, Compass and Renegade have set the sales charts on fire across the globe.
Even in India, Fiat has not announced plans of launching new car, but Jeep has set a clear road map till 2020. This year, Jeep will launch a more premium and tough variant of the Compass – the Trailhawk Edition. Later, they will enter the sub 4 meter compact SUV segment to rival Maruti Brezza and Ford EcoSport.
This baby Jeep will be based on a modified Renegade platform and will be built at the same plant where the Compass is built in Pune. Expect price to be under Rs 10 lakhs.
