Fiat Uno: Gone But Not Forgotten

“Maruti Udyog must be biting their nails.” That’s the very first line from the Fiat Uno preview in Auto India magazine, September 1995. It was a time when four out of every five cars sold in India were Marutis and so, when Fiat, in partnership with Premier Automobiles, announced plans to launch their best-selling car in India, my grandpa joined 2.9 lakh other hopefuls in putting down a deposit.

Never mind that the Uno was a boxy-looking 12-year-old car that had ceased production in Europe after clocking 7 million units. Back then India only got hand-me-downs and Giugiaro’s masterpiece – ranked among his greatest hits alongside the Mk 1 Golf and Lotus Esprit – had more space, a bigger boot, more compliant suspension and a more robust body than anything Maruti was making. So much so, that Auto India’s editor was compelled to proclaim, “The Uno appears to be the one car to have if you can afford only one car.” It was also more fuel efficient than the Zen, a big plus in the days when ‘kitna deti hai’ took precedence over everything else. Or so we thought.

The Uno had FIRE emblazoned on the flanks, but it was no fire breather. The Fully Integrated Robotised Engine put out 43bhp and was no match for the Zen’s 50bhp. Plus, the Zen weighed just 752kg to the Uno’s 835kg, shaving 5 seconds off the Uno’s 20-second 0-100kmph sprint. The other problem was the (relatively) sophisticated (robotised) construction meant the engine was the last bit of the Uno to be localised. In fact, the Uno started off with CKD kits, like how a Mercedes S-Class is made today.

As for the handling, Auto India’s editors complained that it was not for wannabe Schumachers. Testers complained about pronounced body roll due to the lack of a front anti-roll bar, wooly steering, and a refusal to be hustled through corners. I’d like to think these were the reasons why grandpa cancelled the Uno booking and bought us a Zen. But the real reason was PAL’s workers doing Maruti a solid.

Soon after launch a five-and-a-half-month-long labour strike crippled production at the Kurla plant and in 1996 just 617 cars were sold – out of the 2.9 lakh bookings! Cue mass cancellations, except buyers didn’t get their refunds in one of the biggest automotive scandals of the time. Then there was the air-con that couldn’t cope with the Indian heat. Europe’s bestselling car for most of the 80s and early 90s was never conceived to run an AC and sorting that out took the better part of a year.

But Fiat had an ace up its sleeve. The Uno D that came in June 1998 was India’s first small diesel car, the 57bhp 1.7-litre indirect injection diesel having so much mid-range punch it was faster than a petrol Zen through the gears. The Uno D also had wider tracks, bigger brakes, a much-needed front anti-roll bar, and an air-con that worked, giving birth to Mumbai’s blue-and-white Cool Cabs when Fiat dumped the last of Uno stocks along with their erstwhile partner PAL and re-focussed energies on making Maruti bite their nails with their second coming. The Palio. And we all know how that panned out.