About 2011 Fiat 500
Consumer Guide’s Impressions of the 2011 Fiat 500
by Chris Poole
It’s the Italian Mini Cooper: Retro-cute, fun-to-drive small, and super-stingy with gas. And if all goes well, it will be coming to you from a U.S. or Mexican plant, most likely one that currently makes Chrysler products. But will you care that it’s a Fiat?
What We Know About the 2011 Fiat 500
Remember Fiat? Many Americans would just as soon forget the Italian automaker that stumbled along as a U.S.-market also-ran against Volkswagen, Toyota, and other mainstream import cars. Remember the joke about Fiat meaning “Fix It Again, Tony”? That was the American rap on these cars: Mechanical maladies, early rust, poor resale value, and mediocre service from a rag-tag dealer body. Fiat struggled in the U.S. market for the better part of three decades before finally giving up nearly 25 years ago. Fellow countryman Alfa Romeo followed in the early 1990s, leaving only big-bucks Ferrari, Maserati, and Lamborghini to represent Italia.
But times change and so do car companies. Today, Fiat is once again a major player on the world automotive stage and financially healthier than it’s been in years. This dramatic comeback is widely credited to Sergio Marchionne, the Italian-Canadian turnaround specialist who took over in 2004 as CEO of Fiat Auto Group, the vehicle division of the Fiat SpA combine. Wasting no time, Marchionne restructured operations and finances, wrangled a $2 billion payoff from General Motors to end a disappointing joint venture, and got his designers and engineers cracking on more-competitive products, starting with a well-received new compact car, the Grande Punto. More recently, Fiat formed a global strategic alliance with Chrysler. Future product plans have yet to be finalized, but early reports say Fiat products and platforms will play a significant part in future Chrysler offerings.
Now comes a shrewd and timely reincarnation of the petite Fiat 500, the cheap-and-cheerful Cinquecento (say “cheen-kay-CHEN-toh”) that put Italy on wheels after World War II. As with BMW’s revival of the iconic British Mini, the new 500 isn’t a copy of a beloved original (sold from 1957-75) but a thoroughly modern small car with premium engineering and retro-chic styling. And it’s proving to be a Mini-size sales success. Though launched only in July 2007, the reborn 500 has drawn nearly a quarter-million orders to date. That’s about 60,000 more than planned yearly production, which means there’s a waiting list in Europe. Of course, car companies love it when demand exceeds supply, hence reports that Fiat won’t increase production anytime soon for Europe.
But the U.S. is another matter, and the company sees the reborn Cinquecento as a good way to re-enter the world’s richest car market. As Marchionne recently told trade weekly Automotive News, “I am convinced that the 500 with a full range [of body styles] will be a smash [in the U.S.] if we do it right.” Not only that, he promises, “We will be producing cars in North America by 2010.” That’s to get around the weak dollar’s price-crippling, profit-sapping effects, but it’s still a bold move for heretofore Euro-centric Fiat. Of course he said that before the alliance with Chrysler was finalized. Now the latest word is that 500 production will start in North America by early 2011.
There are some interesting parallels between the British-sourced Mini and the expected U.S.-built 2011 Fiat 500. First, both were designed by Frank Stephenson, who joined Fiat after creating the 2002 Mini. (He subsequently moved to head of styling for the Alfa Romeo division, but recently left Fiat’s employ.) And as Marchionne hints, the 500 will emulate Mini by adding convertible and long-wheelbase wagon-type spin-offs of an initial 2-door hatchback. Plans reportedly also include a sportier version of the hatchback, likely the Abarth version that's already on sale in Europe. The wagon may be a reprisal of the classic Fiat 500 Giardinetta; think Mini Cooper Clubman with an Italian accent. Fiat has already confirmed the cabrio for a calendar-2009 debut--the hatch recently launched in Europe as an ’08 model--and says it will have a fabric roof. Other variations, including a demi-SUV, are reportedly under consideration.
But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. As a 2-door hatchback, which will surely be the mainstay seller, the 2011 Fiat 500 is about 5 inches shorter, over an inch slimmer, and 3.2 inches taller than the equivalent Mini Cooper. It’s also lighter by about 300 pounds. Both cars have front-wheel drive, pert retro styling, and seating for four. But where the Mini is built on a purpose-designed platform, the 500 shares underpinnings with Fiat’s entry-level Panda. That means, among other things, a choice of three 4-cylinder engines, including a base 59-horsepower 1.2-liter unit and a 1.3-liter intercooled turbodiesel with 68 horses and a class-respectable 107 pound-feet of torque. We’d guess, however, the U.S. 500 will come only with the top-line 94-horsepower 1.4-liter engine tied to a 6-speed manual transmission. No word yet on an optional automatic, which will be a must here. Fiat will offer one; perhaps a weight- and fuel-saving automated-manual gearbox.
Consumer Guide’s Impressions of the 2011 Fiat 500
by Chris Poole
It’s the Italian Mini Cooper: Retro-cute, fun-to-drive small, and super-stingy with gas. And if all goes well, it will be coming to you from a U.S. or Mexican plant, most likely one that currently makes Chrysler products. But will you care that it’s a Fiat?
What We Know About the 2011 Fiat 500
Remember Fiat? Many Americans would just as soon forget the Italian automaker that stumbled along as a U.S.-market also-ran against Volkswagen, Toyota, and other mainstream import cars. Remember the joke about Fiat meaning “Fix It Again, Tony”? That was the American rap on these cars: Mechanical maladies, early rust, poor resale value, and mediocre service from a rag-tag dealer body. Fiat struggled in the U.S. market for the better part of three decades before finally giving up nearly 25 years ago. Fellow countryman Alfa Romeo followed in the early 1990s, leaving only big-bucks Ferrari, Maserati, and Lamborghini to represent Italia.
But times change and so do car companies. Today, Fiat is once again a major player on the world automotive stage and financially healthier than it’s been in years. This dramatic comeback is widely credited to Sergio Marchionne, the Italian-Canadian turnaround specialist who took over in 2004 as CEO of Fiat Auto Group, the vehicle division of the Fiat SpA combine. Wasting no time, Marchionne restructured operations and finances, wrangled a $2 billion payoff from General Motors to end a disappointing joint venture, and got his designers and engineers cracking on more-competitive products, starting with a well-received new compact car, the Grande Punto. More recently, Fiat formed a global strategic alliance with Chrysler. Future product plans have yet to be finalized, but early reports say Fiat products and platforms will play a significant part in future Chrysler offerings.
Now comes a shrewd and timely reincarnation of the petite Fiat 500, the cheap-and-cheerful Cinquecento (say “cheen-kay-CHEN-toh”) that put Italy on wheels after World War II. As with BMW’s revival of the iconic British Mini, the new 500 isn’t a copy of a beloved original (sold from 1957-75) but a thoroughly modern small car with premium engineering and retro-chic styling. And it’s proving to be a Mini-size sales success. Though launched only in July 2007, the reborn 500 has drawn nearly a quarter-million orders to date. That’s about 60,000 more than planned yearly production, which means there’s a waiting list in Europe. Of course, car companies love it when demand exceeds supply, hence reports that Fiat won’t increase production anytime soon for Europe.
But the U.S. is another matter, and the company sees the reborn Cinquecento as a good way to re-enter the world’s richest car market. As Marchionne recently told trade weekly Automotive News, “I am convinced that the 500 with a full range [of body styles] will be a smash [in the U.S.] if we do it right.” Not only that, he promises, “We will be producing cars in North America by 2010.” That’s to get around the weak dollar’s price-crippling, profit-sapping effects, but it’s still a bold move for heretofore Euro-centric Fiat. Of course he said that before the alliance with Chrysler was finalized. Now the latest word is that 500 production will start in North America by early 2011.
There are some interesting parallels between the British-sourced Mini and the expected U.S.-built 2011 Fiat 500. First, both were designed by Frank Stephenson, who joined Fiat after creating the 2002 Mini. (He subsequently moved to head of styling for the Alfa Romeo division, but recently left Fiat’s employ.) And as Marchionne hints, the 500 will emulate Mini by adding convertible and long-wheelbase wagon-type spin-offs of an initial 2-door hatchback. Plans reportedly also include a sportier version of the hatchback, likely the Abarth version that's already on sale in Europe. The wagon may be a reprisal of the classic Fiat 500 Giardinetta; think Mini Cooper Clubman with an Italian accent. Fiat has already confirmed the cabrio for a calendar-2009 debut--the hatch recently launched in Europe as an ’08 model--and says it will have a fabric roof. Other variations, including a demi-SUV, are reportedly under consideration.
But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. As a 2-door hatchback, which will surely be the mainstay seller, the 2011 Fiat 500 is about 5 inches shorter, over an inch slimmer, and 3.2 inches taller than the equivalent Mini Cooper. It’s also lighter by about 300 pounds. Both cars have front-wheel drive, pert retro styling, and seating for four. But where the Mini is built on a purpose-designed platform, the 500 shares underpinnings with Fiat’s entry-level Panda. That means, among other things, a choice of three 4-cylinder engines, including a base 59-horsepower 1.2-liter unit and a 1.3-liter intercooled turbodiesel with 68 horses and a class-respectable 107 pound-feet of torque. We’d guess, however, the U.S. 500 will come only with the top-line 94-horsepower 1.4-liter engine tied to a 6-speed manual transmission. No word yet on an optional automatic, which will be a must here. Fiat will offer one; perhaps a weight- and fuel-saving automated-manual gearbox.
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