PARIS MOTOR SHOW: Fiat 500 X marks the spot

Fiat Australia may be labelling the new 500X mini-crossover as “strongly under consideration” for Oz, but the reality is the car is a “must have” for the brand’s fortunes Down Under.

Unveiled at the Paris motor show just minutes ago, the new compact SUV is a potential best-seller for the Italian marque in Australia. Sized and priced to compete with the likes of Holden’s Trax and Ford EcoSport, insiders admit the 500X is due Down Under in early 2016.

It joins the 500 hatch and its Abarth derivatives, Panda and the relatively unloved Punto, which together this year (August YTD) have accounted for around 4000 sales — on track for an annual total of close to 6000 units.

Such is the momentum of the small SUV segment, however, that even a modest five per cent share won by the 500X through 2016 would net Fiat Australia a 50 per cent growth in total volume.

Yes, it’s that important.

The 500X shares a name only with 500L people-mover, which is still an unlikely addition to the Australian Fiat line-up. Instead, the X shares its platform and key structure with Jeep Renegade. It will be built alongside its Jeep counterpart at the SATA plant in Melfi (Potenza) in southern Italy.

Like the Renegade, the 500X will be offered with a range of turbocharged petrol and diesel engines and a choice of manual, automatic and twin-clutch automatic transmissions.

Drivetrain options for the ‘world’ models include front-wheel drive, four-wheel drive or front-wheel drive with Traction Plus configurations.

Australia will get a subset of the full model line-up, which has been designed to be sold in more than 100 countries worldwide — including the United States. Expect a predominance of front-drive versions, we’d suggest. Down Under the heavy lifting will be done by the Renegade.

Fiat revealed two version of the 500X in Paris — one more “metropolitan” and the other “ideal for leisure”.

Fiat says both are defined by “distinctively Italian design” and characterised by “flexibility, rationality and quality firmly embedded in its compact dimensions”. So there…

Personalisation will be a key part of the vehicle’s appeal, says the company, with a wide variety of internal finishes from which to choose, as well as the twin external themes.

The ‘tough’ version of the X gets butch bumpers and an off-road look.

Fiat says customers will be able to choose from “12 different liveries that emphasise the sensual form of the Fiat 500X, further enhanced by the eight different designs for the 16-, 17- and 18-inch alloy wheels”.

Like the Renegade, the top petrol powerplant on paper will be a 137kW naturally-aspirated 2.4-litre petrol four. Perhaps more fitting for the Fiat brand Down Under, however, will be the 127kW 1.4-litre Turbo MultiAir II.

Both versions are matched to a ZF-sourced nine-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive.

Diesel options may be limited Down Under due to the lack of diesel-auto configurations from the factory.