Fiat has announced that its all-new SUV will be called the Pulse. The model will go on sale in South America first, followed by other emerging markets. The Italian brand has confirmed that the name Fiat Pulse was chosen by the customers via online voting, which was announced a few days ago.
- Fiat Pulse SUV to come with two petrol engine options
- It is built on a new MLA modular platform
- Fiat Domo and Tuo were the other contenders for the naming
Fiat Pulse SUV: what's new?
The company released a first set of images a few days ago when it announced the voting for its market name. The new SUV from Fiat, initially known as Project 363, will be called Pulse, and will go on sale in South America by October this year. Built on a new modular platform, known internally as MLA, Fiat says the architecture of the Pulse SUV has been designed with the goal of get higher ranking in the LATIN NCAP crash tests and also to meet the ROTA 2030 standards.
Fiat Pulse SUV: how big is it?
As far as dimensions go, Fiat has confirmed that the Pulse will have a 2,532mm long wheelbase. This makes it slightly lesser in size than the Honda WR-V and the Volkswagen Nivus SUVs, which are considered as its key rivals. The Fiat Pulse will also rival lower variants of the Jeep Renegade, Hyundai Creta and the Volkswagen T-Cross (South American version of the India-bound Taigun).
Fiat Pulse SUV: design details
The new Fiat Pulse SUV carries the brand's latest styling theme that is seen on newer models like the Argo and Strada. The SUV features an upright nose with wide wraparound headlamps and a wide grille that has the big Fiat logo in the centre. The bumper features two triangular-shaped fog lamp housings at each end. There is a prominent chin separated from the bumper, with thick black cladding that runs across the body. It also gets a rugged-looking skid plate up front to add to its SUV stance. The Pulse SUV has an upward swooping window line, a strong character line at the side and also has partial cladding at the bottom. Higher variants will have dual-tone paint scheme options as well. At the back, it gets stylish tail-lamps, a sculpted tailgate, and a prominent bumper with a dual-exhaust setup.
Fiat Pulse SUV: engine and powertrain options
The new Fiat SUV will come with a fresh 128hp, 1.0-litre, direct-injection turbo-petrol engine. This powerplant will be mated to an Aisin-sourced CVT gearbox. Additionally, there will be a 1.3-litre turbo-petrol engine available, the same one that powers the South American-spec Jeep Compass and will also be seen in the upcoming three-row Jeep SUV in some markets. There will be a 109hp, 1.3-litre, naturally aspirated petrol engine on offer as well on the base variants.
New Fiat Pulse SUV: will it come to India?
Unfortunately, no. Fiat's parent company Stellantis is currently focusing on the Jeep brand for India, along with the new entrant Citroen. Under Stellantis, three new SUVs are being planned for India, which includes the Jeep three-row SUV, the Citroen CC21 compact SUV, and a derivative of the CC21 that will become the Jeep sub-four-metre SUV for our market.
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