Fiat engine plant to separate from Fiat Group

Shanghai, July 10 (Gasgoo.com) Fiat’s sedan engine plant will be negotiating with Fiat Group for withdrawing from Fiat and planning to build an engine joint venture with its partners, said Shen Hui, president of Fiat (China) Powertrain Technologies (FPT), Beijing Youth reported yesterday.

The newspaper said the Fiat engine will not only supply China-produced Fiat models but also provide for both home-grown brands and rival models. “Now 70% of FPT products are sold inside the group and 30% for non-Fiat models around the globe, but the outside sales likely to be extended by some 50% in the future, Shen told the reporters.

Fiat will first produce its 1.4L series engines locally, the best-selling engines in the world, including a 1.4L T-jet engine used in imported Bravo cars in late July.

Fiat is boosting its joint venture in China by powerplant technology advantages. Besides engines, the Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT) is Fiat’s another leading technology. FPT is scheduled to start DCT production globally after 2009 and to produce DCT locally in China in 2011.