Fiat’s partner in India, Premier Automobiles, is back in the Indian passenger vehicle segment with the launch of its SUV named RiO, in the country today. The car was unveiled by Maitreya Doshi, Chairman and the MD of the company.
The comfortable five seater SUV is powered by Premier’s 1498cc turbo diesel engine based on Peugeot technology, pumping about 65 Bhp and claiming a fuel efficiency of about 16 kms to a litre. The engine is mated to a 5-Speed manual gearbox and drives the rear wheels. The engine is mated to a 5-Speed manual gearbox and drives the rear wheels.he vehicle, based on a Daihatsu model, will be sourced from China through a component supply agreement with Zoyte group. Once in India, the RiO will be assembled at the company’s Pune plant and will be sold through its dealers in a phased manner starting with West and South of India. Currently, the number of dealers stands at 30, which is expected to rise up to 100 by next year. The company is offering 3 years warranty on the RiO.
The RiO will come in three variants- EX, DX, LX with a price tag starting from Rs. 5.25 Lakhs to Rs. 5.95 Lakhs for the top end version. All three variants will come equipped with Power steering, front power windows and central locking system. Adding to that, the higher spec variant will also come with MP3 Player, ABS and chunky alloy wheels. The SUV also comes with a non AC variant. The RiO will currently come only in the BS III spec. The company has promised to upgrade it to BS IV before the new emission norms become compulsory in April 2010. Color options for the RiO include- Red, White, Silver, Black and Blue.