After a long delay since an agreement was signed with the Pars Industrial Development Foundation three years ago, production of the Siena will get underway in Iran this autumn, the first of five Fiat models set to go into production in the country.

After a long delay since an agreement was signed with the Pars Industrial Development Foundation three years ago it is been announced that initial production of the Siena (sedan) will get underway in Iran this autumn, it being the first of four Fiat models based on the 178 platform set to go into production in the country. Initially the Siena will be assembled locally from CKD kits shipped to Iran from the Tofas factory at Bursa (Turkey).

The original agreement with Pars Industrial Development Foundation (PIDF) was signed by then Fiat Auto boss Herbert Demel in 2005, and called for a raft of Fiat passenger cars and light commercial vehicle models models to be built in Iran, with the country also becoming Fiat's global hub for the production of CNG powered vehicles.

PIDF was set up in 2003 in Tehran with the target of becoming Fiat’s sole agent in the country for the purpose of producing and selling a number of models both domestically and for export. Initial annual production volume will be targeted at 50,000 units and these cars will be sold through PIDF's Top Co. division. Ambitious plans aim to exceed annual output of 250,000 units with in next two years.

Sadeq Bairami, the Managing Director of PIDF told the Fars News Agency earlier this week that production of the Siena would commence during the autumn and that plans to build the full range of models based on the 178 'World Car' platform were in the pipeline, with the Palio (hatchback), Palio Weekend (Estate) and Strada (pick up) set to follow. The Fiat Idea is also set to join the line-up.

However it is the Siena that will start the ball rolling in Iran and they will be well specified for the local market, with features set to include ABS brake system, driver and passenger front airbags, hydraulic wheel drive, anti-theft alarm, lateral window and mirror, rear seatbelts, trip computer, remote control opening for car’s trunk and petrol tank, door lateral protective bars, driver’s seat regulation system, CD player, and a trunk with 515 litres of capacity.

The new Fiat factory is located in the City of Saveh and will boast and advanced assembly lines and paint shop from which the first model of Fiat (Siena), equipped with a 77 bhp 1.4-litre, 4-cyl engine compliant with Euro 4 regulations, will be manufactured. An automatic gearbox option will also be available.