If you live anywhere near Eastern Europe, the Middle East or Africa, then you probably know how important compact sedans are in these three markets.

FIAT certainly knows it, which is why they just launched the Aegea – or what they call a well designed and practical three box sedan.

The FIAT Aegea was designed in Italy at the FIAT Chrysler Automobiles Centro Stile and developed in Turkey – a country in which FIAT sold plenty of Linea sedans if you recall.

The Aegea however is currently known as the “FIAT Aegea Project” in honor of the Italian manufacturer’s joint venture with Turkey, which was of course the reason why they chose to debut the car in Istanbul, rather than anywhere else.

Touching on the design and proportions of the car, all we can say is that it’s not bad looking at all. The fact that FIAT chose to build it as a three-volume sedan rather than a hatchback with a boot is quite evident.

In terms of size, the Aegea measures 4.5m (14.7 ft) in length, 1.78m (5.8 ft) in width and 1.48m (4.8 ft) in height with a 2.64m (8.66 ft) wheelbase – or roughly the size of an Audi A3 Sedan. As for luggage space, you get a load capacity of over 510 liters (18 cu.ft).

The front fascia looks pretty good and they did a good job on the taillight design as well. Other nice touches are the sculpted bonnet and the Uconnect infotainment system found inside, which comes with a 5″ color touch screen display.

Speaking of the interior, you can also get hands-free Bluetooth calling (audio streaming), SMS text reader and voice recognition, AUX and USB ports with iPod integration, steering wheel controls and an optional rear parking camera. The cabin certainly doesn’t look bad, and it’s clearly identifiable as a FIAT.

Engine-wise, we’ll be looking at two MultiJet II turbo-diesel units and two petrol units with outputs measuring between 95 HP and 120 HP. You’ll also be able to choose between a manual or an automatic transmission (depending on the engine).

FIAT says that the diesel engines in the Aegea will be very fuel efficient, or “upwards of 70 mpg”, which for most of Europe means 4.0 liters/100 km.

Sales will start this year in November (debuting in Turkey) as the Aegea will then slowly make its way into more than 40 countries from Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

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