Italy’s finest automobile brand FIAT ready to begin motor business in Sri Lanka

Speed Italia – the authorised distributor of Fiat automobiles – reintroduced the Fiat brand to the Sri Lankan automobile market recently. At a ceremony held in Colombo, Speed Italia showcased its latest, fast selling automobiles which have taken the European car market by storm.

Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force Air Marshal Harsha Abeywickrama attended the event as the Chief Guest whilst Director General Engineering Air Vice Marshal B. L. W. Balasuriya; Director General Logistics Air Vice Marshal K. V. B Jayampathi; Fiat India Head of Overseas Operations Ricky Walter; LOLC Group Chairperson Rohini Nanayakkara; LOLC Group Deputy Chairman Ishara Nanayakkara; LOLC Motors Chairman and LOLC Group Managing Director/CEO Kapila Jayawardena; and LOLC Group Executive Director Kalsha Amarasinghe were among the distinguished guests who attended this landmark ceremony.

Stylishly elegant, incredible in performance, Fiat automobiles are highly renowned for its versatility, speed and manoeuvrability. This has earned wide respect for all Fiat brands often scoring high customer satisfaction ratings from users around the world. Its unblemished reputation and sleek designs have elevated the Fiat brand to the top echelons of the motor world with it being honoured as the seventh largest car manufacturer in the world.

With a strong commitment to reducing its carbon footprint, Fiat’s own innovative ‘Air technologies’ brand has enabled its automobiles to record the lowest level of CO2 emissions out of top motor vehicles sold in Europe for the fourth time in a row last year. This is indicative of Fiat’s conscious efforts to provide value added services to its global automobile users.

With a range of motor vehicles manufactured in Italy and India, popular Fiat models such as Linea, Punto, Fiat 500, Fiat Bravo and a number of others will soon be readily available for Sri Lankan automobile enthusiasts. The first fleet of Fiat Linea is now on display at Speed Italia’s main showroom located at No. 447A, Union Place, Colombo 02. Commenting on the significance of Fiat’s re-launch, Jayawardena said: “The Fiat brand was born more than a century ago, in 1899, and even to this day, Fiat is regarded as one of the fastest moving automobile brands in the world. The brand’s first entry to the Sri Lankan car market took place back in 1909 and earned respect from its users almost instantly. We have brought back this popular brand back to our home ground this year with the objective of providing Sri Lankans the unique opportunity to own its newest and latest models which are more often accessible overseas.” He added: “As an initial step, we have set up the main Speed Italia showroom in Colombo which will showcase Fiat’s latest brands. Moving forward, we will be setting up a number of showrooms in strategic locations around the country making the brand widely available to the public.”

Noting that after sales service is a top priority, Jayawardena said that the required after sales services and maintenance could be easily obtained via the LOLC Group’s automobile services company, LOLC Motors Ltd.

“LOLC Motors Ltd. is a state-of-the-art, eco-friendly automotive workshop located in Gothatuwa, Rajagiriya, with a floor area of 5,600 sq. meters which has a capacity to handle 100 vehicles at a given time. This makes us one of the largest workshops in Colombo uniquely designed to implement eco-friendly vehicle repairing and maintenance services.”

The workshop is well equipped to handle mechanical repairs, preventive maintenance, lubrication service, quick lube service, collision repairs, paint re-finishing or touch-ups, wheel alignment, wheel-balancing unit repairs, etc.

In addition, this facility has a microbiological media system on waste water and rainwater recycling, eco-friendly paint booths and air-condition recovery machines as adjuncts to its air-conditioning to prevent release of refrigerant to the atmosphere. The unique design of the facility is structured to utilise maximum natural light, with plans to install solar panels in the near future. “We have established facilities especially on after-sales services to ensure that maximum care is given to all our customers. We are well equipped to address the individual requirements of our customers quickly and efficiently. We are confident that the introduction of the new brands will offer new and exciting opportunities to Sri Lankan customers,” added Jayawardena.

Fiat India Automobiles Limited (FIAL) is a 50-50 Industrial Joint Venture between Fiat Group Automobiles S. p. A., (Fiat) and Tata Motors Limited (Tata) originally incorporated on 2 January 1997. The company employs 2,367 blue and white collar employees and is located at Ranjangaon in the Pune District of Maharashtra. The definitive agreement of the Joint Venture was signed in 11 October 2007. The board of directors for this company comprises of five nominees each from Fiat and Tata.

The state-of-the-art facility at Ranjangaon, which is owned by FIAL, a joint venture company, is capable of producing 200,000 cars and 300,000 engines, besides 300,000 parts & accessories. Currently manufacturing the Palio Stile, Linea and the Grande Punto. The facility also manufactures Fiat’s successful 1.3 litre Multijet diesel engines and 1.2 & 1.4 litre Fire gasoline engine. Apart from Fiat cars, the facility also produces next generation Tata passenger cars. The investment in this Ranjangaon facility already exceeds € 650 Million. The plant provides direct and indirect employment to more than 4,000 people.

Established in 1899, Fiat is one of the world’s major industrial groups. With operations in over 190 countries, the Group has 203 plants, 118 research centres, 633 companies and more than 198,000 employees. One of the founders of the global automotive industry, right from inception Fiat pursued a two-pronged development strategy: penetration into foreign markets and focus on innovation. This focus on innovation is evidenced by the technical quality of its products and the adoption of cutting-edge industrial and organisational systems.  

The Group’s business is carried out through several operating Sectors: Fiat Group Automobiles (Fiat, Lancia, Alfa Romeo and Abarth brands), Maserati and Ferrari (luxury sports cars), CNH (agricultural and construction equipment), Iveco (trucks and commercial vehicles), Fiat Powertrain Technologies (engines and transmissions), Magneti Marelli (automotive components), Teksid (engine blocks, cylinder heads and other components), Comau (automated production systems) and Itedi (publishing and communications).

Speed Italia is a wholly owned subsidiary of LOLC Motors Ltd., and is the authorised distributor for Fiat motor cars in Sri Lanka. LOLC Motors Ltd is a subsidiary of the LOLC Group.