With two consecutive positive months of sales increase behind it the Fiat Linea sedan is finally starting to establish itself on the Brazilian market following a sluggish start to its life. Launched in Brazil last September, the Linea is targeted into the mid-size sedan segment where it faces tough competition from offers from Toyota and Honda as it seeks to establish itself.

Now in "Model Year 2010" specification, the changes to the range include the addition of two new entry-level versions (the LX 1.9 16V and LX 1.9 16V Dualogic, both fitted with the FlexFuel engine producing 127 CV), as well as detailed interior trim upgrades including new carpets and colours, a digital dashboard instrument readout option, new hi-fi option and new pattern alloy wheels.

The Linea registered a 12.4 percent sales growth in July after 1,487 units of the stylish 3-box sedan found buyers across Brazil, despite a 5.6 percent fall in the market. This was the second consecutive month of sales for the Linea after an impressive surge of 42.8 percent in June, when 1,323 units were sold, a rise that was well above the overall market which climbed by 9.3 percent.

The Linea was first launched by Fiat in May 2007, developed and built by its joint venture partner Tofas in Turkey with input from Fiat Centro Stile in Turin as well as Fiat Automóveis in Brazil. Fiat Automóveis launched the Linea onto the Brazilian market last autumn, pushing the sedan upmarket as it chased new territory. The Brazilian-built Linea is fitted with two engines for the local market: a new 1.9-litre 16v four-cylinder "flexfuel" (petrol/alcohol) unit based on the discontinued European "Torque" engine and the 1.4-litre 16v four-cylinder T-Jet (150 bhp) turbo engine which is imported from Europe and comes in petrol specification only. The focus in Brazil has been to refine the Linea's specifications with higher standards of safety, security and comfort. Equipment available includes the Dualogic transmission, Blue& Me (as well as Blue&Me NAV, with additional GPS navigation) the infotelematic package developed by Fiat in collaboration with Microsoft, parking sensors, rain sensors, up to six airbags and digital automatic climate control, as well as a 3-year warranty and a comprehensive owner support back-up package known as "Clube L’único".

The Linea is now sold in Brazil in "Model Year 2010" specification, and the expanded range kicks off with the new entry-level Linea LX 16V priced at R$53,990. The rest of the range comprises of the second new version, the Linea LX 1.9 16V Dualogic (R$56,800), followed by the Linea HLX 1.9 16V (R$56,550), Linea HLX 1.9 16V Dualogic (R$59,350), Linea Absolute Dualogic (R$64,850) and the Linea T-Jet (R$68,850). The "Absolute" version is the most popular option with buyers and accounts for 35 percent of all sales in Brazil, emphasising that consumers see the Linea as having upmarket pretentions.