In what is likely to be an
automotive novelty, the Chrysler-badged Lancia Delta has arrived in the UK – one
of just two European markets where the American brand name is being retained –
with a range that kicks off at £16,695 on the road for the 1.4 120 CV T-Jet.
Lancia’s Delta – reported to
be brand CEO Olivier François’ personal car – was in fact shown off as a
‘concept’ at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit last year,
featuring some hastily-added Chrysler badging but otherwise identical to a
standard production Delta. This was always a curious notion, since there was
never any chance the Delta would ever make it to the North American market,
reflecting American preferences for three-box saloons over hatchbacks, the
Delta’s lack of homologation for the U.S. market, and its clear Lancia family
feel not fitting with Chrysler’s brash and unsophisticated ‘all-American’ image.
But while the Delta isn’t
heading Stateside, the U.S. carmaker is nevertheless attempting to sell the
large 5-door hatchback on two European markets: the UK and Republic of Ireland,
with the rest of Chrysler’s mainland network having now been absorbed by Lancia.
Chrysler UK faces a tough
challenge to entice customers with the Delta, while Fiat management’s somewhat
ham-fisted attempts to cut costs at the expense of product – notably by giving
the Delta a generic front grille for use by both brands, which debuted on
Lancia’s MY2011 version at March’s Geneva Motor Show – have helped finally tip
the Delta’s sales off the edge in Italy, where it is no longer a regular fixture
in the C-segment top-ten. Chrysler UK also has to overcome, essentially
accurate, perceptions that this is a three-year-old car (it launched at the 2008
Geneva Motor Show) without any changes apart from badging and re-engineering for
right-hand-drive. Indeed, the costly right-hand-drive re-engineering work, and
initial production of RHD componentry, was completed in 2008 when Lancia was
planning to return to the UK, and was quietly gathering dust before the tie-up
with the post-Chapter 11 Chrysler Group changed the landscape.
The Delta, which is largely a
reskinned Fiat Bravo, promised much, but the final finish failed to live up to
management’s mistaken ‘premium’ positioning, and too-high pricing meant that,
despite unique styling and some very interesting ideas and innovations, it
couldn’t get anywhere near its sales targets in Italy and flopped elsewhere.
With the official UK launch of
the C-segment hatchback still a couple of weeks away, Chrysler UK has announced
the pricing and specifications of the Delta in the UK, along with releasing a TV
ad campaign and several photoshopped pictures of Lancia’s Delta to generate
interest. The Delta has been added to Chrysler UK’s website, although it still
needs much work and has a very amateurish appearance. The pricing comes via a
PDF file while the absent configurator will doubtless appear when the car is
officially launched.
The Lancia version’s four
specification levels are carried over to the Chrysler-badged model but are
renamed, such that the base Steel becomes the ‘S’, Silver ‘SE’, Gold ‘SR’ and
Platinum the ‘Limited’. This latter variant comes quite well-equipped, but
heated front seats, Bose audio system, panoramic sunroof, lane departure
control, xenon headlamps, ‘Magic’ parking and 18-inch alloy wheels all remain
optional extras – and, priced at a somewhat optimistic £25,695, this spec level
is highly unlikely to trouble the Italian assembly line staff. Three engines are
available, with the others including the petrol 1.4 140 CV MultiAir and two
turbodiesels, the 1.6 M-Jet (120 CV) and 2.0 M-Jet (165 CV). Unfortunately for
UK buyers, Chrysler hasn’t carried over the Lancia version’s two innovative,
range-topping motors, the 190 CV Twin Turbo 1.9 MultiJet and the 200 CV 1.8 Di
TurboJet (a direct injection petrol engine paired with a 6-speed automatic
gearbox).
The Chrysler Delta range kicks
off with the turbocharged 1.4-litre ‘T-Jet’ petrol engine. The entry-level
model, the 120 CV 1.4 T-Jet 120 S, is priced at a relatively competitive £16,695
on-the-road and is the only Delta to be offered in this basic specification
level, which admittedly fails to offer much in the way of standard equipment.
Next up is the 140 CV 1.4 MultiAir 140 SE, but at £18,495, this means a
near-£2,000 price hike over the ‘S’ version. It offers a satellite-navigation
package option for £1,000 extra. The 1.4 MultiAir 140 SR weighs in at £20,495,
with navigation again an optional £1,000 extra.
The diesel range, meanwhile,
starts with the manual 120 CV 1.6 M-Jet 120 SE at £19,195 and the Selectronic
(robotised manual) 1.6 M-Jet 120 Auto (Selectronic) SE at £19,695, while the
higher-specification SR lists at £21,195. All three have satellite-navigation
versions available for £1,000 extra. Finally, the range-topper, the 2.0 M-Jet
165 Limited, closes out the range at £25,695.
Optional extras include cruise
control (SE) £275, rear parking sensors (S, SE and SR) £275, dual-zone climate
control (SE) £375, Blue&Me with USB, auxiliary input and steering wheel controls
(SE) £550, 17-inch alloy wheels (SE) £500, 18-inch alloy wheels (SR and Limited)
£650, leather package (SE and SR) £1,350, leather seats (SE and SR) £850,
two-tone paint (SE and SR) £1,250, sensor pack (dusk sensors and auto-dimming
mirror) (SE and SR) £175, heated front seats (SE, SR and Limited) £250, Bose
audio system (SE, SR and Limited) £820, powered panoramic sunroof (SE, SR and
Limited) £950, lane departure control (SE, SR and Limited) £400, Magic Parking
(SE, SR and Limited) £520, and xenon headlamps with washers (SR and Limited)
£800.
