Fiat Croma test drive since 2005 sedan

Echo of global warming

Previously, German brands entered the Russian market with diesel engines. The French are still refusing us to be such an opportunity. And what are the plans of Italians? On diesel fiat-cromes, Luke of Terror and Vladimir Solovyov traveled.
Fiat Croma
The car made its debut in 2005, in Russia it has been sold since the second half of 2006.
Engines: gasoline 1.8 and 2.2 liters (140 and 147 hp). The turbodiesels are 1.9 and 2.4 liters (120, 150 and 200 hp) are also planned to be delivered to Russia.
Gearboxes: 5-speed mechanical and automatic.
The 200-horsepower diesel is equipped with only a 6-speed automatic.
Complete: Active, Dynamic, Emotion.
Price in Russia: 840 0001 120 000 rub. ($ 32 30046 200).
Test car: 2.4 liter diesel, 6-speed automatic, Emotion equipment, options, price in Europe $ 49,400.

The decision to choose a car and configuration was born by itself, when it became known that the official importer of the Fiats to Russia Severstal-Avo is negotiating the import of diesel machines, and data on diesel engines appeared on the Russian website of the brand. So, Kroma is the largest and most fresh of the fiats supplied to the Russian market in the most powerful configuration with a diesel engine of 200 hp. They planned to go to the mountains, and there, as you know, the power is never excess.

In addition, I wanted to try diesel in the cold, bringing the experiment closer to the conditions of the Russian winter. So they went to the north of Italy, where the snowy peaks and in the summer blind their cold whiteness. We will not hide: one of the authors is an avid snowboarder who gives the hopes of hopes a skier. And in northern Italy there are many places where you can ride. No wonder Turin took the Winter Olympics-2006.

Repatible elegance
Who is dealing with more uncomfortable and severe ammunition and equipment than skiers! Unless fans of surfing. Therefore, checking for Kroma's capacity was the hardest.

I must say, she withstand her with honor. Atelier Italdephazd, which worked on the body, proposed a new product: not a station wagon, not a single -raised and not hatchback. The Fiat Croam marked a completely new category of comfort-wagon. The car marked by the talent of Georgetto Jujaro is distinguished by calm external lines, a sort of design without showing off, but with taste. Simple and elegant classic with a slightly raised roof. But inside Krom is captivated by volume, which seems even greater due to the high landing and an abundance of air.

In the richest configuration with leather upholstery, except, as it seemed to us, only electrical adjustments of the driver’s chair were not enough, and even the handbrake, perhaps, climbed not very conveniently right under the armrest between the seats.

The ignition lock on the central console, as in the Saab or Smart. Not an original, but practical move convenient for long -legged drivers: the keychain does not hit the knee.

At first, the driver may confuse the tachometer marking up to 8000 revolutions on a diesel machine. But you are quickly convinced that above 4000 diesel does not want to spin. Kroma has unified on-board appliances for diesel and gasoline versions to save on something!

But they did not stint on the glazing of the body. One windshield alone is more than 1.3 m2.

When there is no snow
When there is no snow, they are looking for him. But there is still no snow and no. The slopes, where last year they competed in freestyle and other Olympic disciplines, are covered with muddy grass and blackening stains. Even in the sister, the former capital of Slalom, you will not really ride.

Global warming. Europe, and Russia is to seriously think about it. What cold launches of diesel are there when it pours rain at night! We’ve been loading into Kroma and went higher and further. True, when they wound more than three hundred kilometers through mountain serpentines, it became clear that it was necessary to go to France for good snow. There is always an alternative in the Alps: move directly through the tunnel, but for money, or go into a multi -kilometer detour, but for free. Most drivers, if not subject to claustrophobia, prefer tunnels. Our crew for travel through the tunnel Frezhyus gave 32 euros.

In the modern tunnel, it is light and dry. The only thing that is required of the driver is to observe the distance and speed, which constantly resembles luminous signs. If this is neglected, then on the exit from the tunnel a policeman can present an impressive fine.

The chains of the alpine mountains float by, after two hatches in the ceiling into the salon, a blue, handed by light clouds, bursts. And if one of the authors does not have enough clarity in the operation of the navigation system, then the second is annoyed by the lack of cruise control, so convenient on the freeway.

The car holds the trajectory, as if glued to the road. This ensures stability and driving comfort. But on irregularities, the suspension is noisy against the background of an amazingly quiet diesel engine.

The real winter test did not work out, but the thousand kilometers passed that Fiat engineers are able to do not only good compact cars for the city. And despite the fact that Italians position Krom as a comfort-wagon, I still want to call it a universal car.

Fiat Croma is an elegant car of increased capacity, which is equally convenient to travel, make your way in the city hustle and go to an official meeting.
+ A powerful engine, a nimble machine, a large, comfortable interior and a roomy trunk, a sufficient road clearance.
- the lack of electric regulations of the driver's seat, an inconvenient handbrake, there is no window for long -meters in the rear back, complex navigation control.
 
 
 
 

Vladimir Solovyov
 

Source: The magazine "Driving"