The new family car replaces the poor-selling Stilo and Fiat wants the motoring public to see they have total confidence in the new model.

It is crucial that the new car be a sales success for Fiat here, hence the generous warranty, which is not, however, offered to taxi drivers.

It is a bit of a sales catchcall. Fiat marketing people described it as a "one million kilometre warranty" but realistically it is the same as other three-year, 150,000km warranties as very few owners nowadays do more than 50,000km a year.

But Fiat pricing is good.

The entry-level price of their Bravo models is 5%, or about 1,000, less than some competitors and up to 10% cheaper on some higher-specification models, depending on the amount of equipment on board.

The bestseller is expected to be the 1.4-litre T-jet with the Dynamic trim, which is well kitted out for 22,245. The engine puts out 120bhp, has six airbags, a Euro NCAP fivestar passenger-safety rating, air conditioning, 16in alloy wheels, fog lights, remote audio controls on the steering wheel and is wired up for MP3 through the radio speakers. This engine is due in November.

The new five-door enters the largest segment of the car market here, which accounts for 30% of sales.

Within this segment hatchbacks are far more popular than saloons, with three-door hatchbacks accounting for 10% of sales and five-door models such as the Bravo accounting for 53% of segment sales.

There will be eight versions of the Bravo on offer with four engine choices . . . 1.4-litre 90bhp;

1.4-litre T-jet 150bhp; 1.9litre 8v M-jet 120bhp; l.9 litre 16v M-jet 150bhp . . . and four trim levels . . . Active, Dydnamic, Emotion and Sport. Three further versions using the T-jet 120bhp enigine will be launched in November.

Prices start at 19,495 for the 1.4-litre 16v 90bhp petrol unit with the 1.9-litre M-jet diesel range starting at 24,145.

The all new 1.4-litre T-jet 150bhp turbo petrol engine goes into the Bravo. It boasts the fuel economy of a diesel engine but with low noise and vibration levels and very low CO2 emission levels.

The 1.4-litre 120bhp T-jet engine, which is due in November, gives a better performance than a conventionally aspirated 1.6-litre petrol engine but with big fuel savings, according to Fiat. The top speed is 197km, with a claimed fuel consumption of 5.6 litres/100km in outof-town driving.