As the small turbocharger whistled cleanly through the pure, early morning, mountainous Panchghani air, the Fiat Avventura mauled the twisty sections with a kind of aplomb that can be solely be attributed to its Punto roots. Yeah, I was having some unbridled fun.
It all started with the Fiat guys arranging a blast from Mumbai to Panchghani in their brand new, glistening Fiat Avventura cars, something that Fiat likes to call a Contemporary Urban Vehicle (CUV) – an India specific product for now, but will be lined up for exports later in the day.
The Avventura has risen forth from pent up demand for a vehicle that young, nuclear families could have a little fun in – more of a quiet, yet involving weekend away from the urban sprawls, with the kids and a couple of bikes in tow. Heavily based on the Punto Evo, The Avventura is Fiat’s take on something on the lines of Ford Ecosport. But is it merely one more hatchback that aspires to be a SUV? Or even a soft-roader? We find out!
Styling
The Avventura does grab a few inquisitive eyeballs, what with its lustrous new paint work- especially in Bronzo Tan, beefy cladding, slightly raised ride height and that rear mounted spare wheel. Strictly from a visual standpoint, it’s a Punto Evo on stilts. Quite a generic statement that, but all those adventurous exterior embellishments give it a distinctive character- something that stands out in this day of cars styled with washing machines as benchmarks.
The bumpers get a little aggressive and the front one ends in a pseudo rugged flourish with a skid plate and side moldings which encompass the fog lamps. Even the rear one sports similar moldings, but also bears the beefy hinge of the external spare wheel mount. The sides benefit from some cleanly put together cladding work as well, replete with Avventura lettering stamped on them. The raised ride height does pack a mild visual punch, especially when complimented with the new, brawny set of five-spoke, gunmetal finished 16” alloys and a pair of bolted, fully functional roof rails above.
The rest of the bodywork is typical Punto Evo fare, starting with the new chrome lipped trapezoidal grille upfront with mesh inserts and those sexy, swept back headlamps bearing extended brows. The side profile continues to be the same, and has already melted tons of hearts, but the rear now offers something new in the form of a full sized, independently mounted spare wheel- which also comes with attractively sculpted cover with the Fiat logo in the middle. Those pretty, clear lens tail lamps from the Punto Evo are carried over as well.
Step, or rather climb in and you’ll be greeted with familiar vibes here as well. The beautifully designed and put together dashboard and center console from the Punto Evo smacks you in the face but is now topped off with something unique. In a bid to capture its wanderlust, the Fiat guys have thrown in a set of three dials perched above the center console that display information like pitch, yaw and a even a compass – pointless, maybe, but looks cool, so might as well. The dashboard also sports a soft touch suede element running across its entire length – a brilliant little visual touch, we’d say. The rest stays similar to the Punto Evo, along with the center console with its glossy black finish and a set of dummy buttons. The seats are trimmed in chocolate brown, similar to the door mounted arm rests and feature prominent Avventura lettering. Red ambient lighting in the top variant freshens things up inside as well.
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