DEJA VU?

Looks identical to the Avventura but does it feel any different?

- Aditya Chatterjee

Fiat started the year with the preview of the Urban Cross concept at the 2016 Auto Expo in Delhi. From the look of it, the Urban Cross had a similar design as the Punto Evo apart from all-LED head lamps, unique alloys and a wild looking bright red cabin. It did generate some level of excitement, and I was curious to see the final production version.

And just to do that, we drove to Fiat’s office in Pune where we were handed the keys of two brand-new Avventura Urban Cross cars. The production version, as expected, did get a host of changes. How good or bad are they? Read on.

I reached the location in our long-termer Fiat Avventura Abarth. On seeing the Urban Cross for the first time, I was confused and even called Fiat to con- firm whether they had given us the right cars. This is because the Avventura Urban Cross looks almost identical to the Avventura. Subtle changes come in the slightly updated front grille with a glossy finish while the bumper design has been tweaked with a new aluminium-finished skid plate.

The side again looks similar to the Avventura but with the matte cladding and brighter roof rails. The petrol gets 16-inch Scorpion alloys, whereas the diesel retains the same wheel design as seen on the Punto Evo with a slight colour revision. The red shade of Urban Cross Abarth looks more appealing with its contrast black detailing, whereas the grey shade doesn’t stand out and looks similar to the regular hatchback.

On the Avventura Urban Cross, Fiat has given the rear-mounted spare wheel a miss and the effect it interesting. Not that the spare wheel on the Avventura is an eyesore, but with the cleaner rear profile the muscular bits on the design are highlighted more evidently. The handsome looks of the Urban Cross will definitely strike a chord with its target audience. The rear wheel mechanism was a pain to operate anyway, so won’t be missed.