Tata old Fiat! Hip models arrive

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Mumbai: New investment, hip models and fresh positioning - that's Italian automobile giant Fiat’s turnaround strategy in India.

Fiat's alliance with Tata Motors has given the brand new lease of life in India and now it's working to position itself as a premium brand while trying to avoid conflict of interest with Tatas.

The company will be coming out with several new models like the premium Grande Punto and the Sedan Linea.

“The evolution of the demand will be certainly going in the direction of bigger, more expensive cars. I think we have to match the complimentarity (sic) of the range with the Tatas we sell in the same dealerships. Fiat will be positioned higher than Tata,” says Head, Brand Fiat, Luca De Meo.

In an exclusive interview to CNBC-TV18, De Meo confirmed Linea's launch in India and indicated it would be priced lower than its competition. That includes the likes of the Corolla.

“We will look at this comparison. We'll look in India. Because of many reasons we may want to make it more competitive,” he says.

But even as it plans premium models, Fiat will not abandon the compact car segment, in which the Palio operates.

The Linea and Grande Punto are expected late next year or early 2008 and will roll out from the Ranjangaon plant which is also the manufacturing location for the Tata-Fiat alliance.

Fiat recently got approval to invest Rs 2,000 crore in India and with this new strategy of positioning, funding, and expanding the retail network, Fiat looks scripting a success story.

(With inputs from Renuka Kirpalani)