Fiat confirms 500 at Chrysler dealers in about 18 months, other new models to be U.S. specific products
Fiat 500 - Click above for a high-res image gallery
According to Richard Gadeselli, vice president of Fiat communications in Italy, the Fiat 500 will be sold in Chrysler dealerships in the United States in about a year and a half. The small, retro-minded front-wheel drive hatchback will reportedly be the only model in Fiat's current line that will make the jump to America without any major changes. It seems that the other six small or midsize vehicles that Chrysler plans to sell in the near future will be based on the chassis and running gear from the Italian automaker but will not share any sheetmetal with their Fiat siblings. As Gadeselli tells Automotive News:
"There is a misconception out there that Chrysler is going to build the Fiat Bravo, just stick a different badge on it. They will be Chrysler products. They will be specific to Chrysler. The vehicle architectures will be based on our stuff, and there will be some powertrains. The vehicles will be U.S. vehicles, designed for U.S. customers by a U.S. company."Based on the above, we think it's safe to assume the Fiat 500 will easily beat the rest of the automakers products to America. In any case, we're looking forward to finally seeing the diminutive 500 do battle with the Mini Cooper and Smart Fortwo for the affections of small, sporty car aficionados on American roads about 18 months from now.
Gallery: Fiat 500
[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
Sea Urchin 2:07PM (6/01/2009)
Any intelligent guesses on the price?
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Victor 2:18PM (6/01/2009)
"The basic price is €10,500 in Italy; with options €15,000."
I'm guessing 15-21k USD
Mike 2:32PM (6/01/2009)
RECESSION PRICING!!! Take the 15-21k that Victor spoke of, add $4000 to it, and then GIVE A RECESSION DISCOUNT OF $2000 FOR A NEW CAR!!!!! YAY EVERYONE LOSES (except for credit card companies).
Jorge 6:08PM (6/01/2009)
From 1.5 to 2.5 times the price of a Ford KA, even thou they are produced with the same platform and in the same factory in Poland. Just a name and a few HP dont do the trick for me.
friko 8:43PM (6/01/2009)
It's sold here in Mexico at $18,000 - $20,000 usd taxes included. It should be cheaper in the U.S. (and eventually in Mexico too) because the importer is known to inflate the prices a bit.
John 2:08PM (6/01/2009)
I would think Ford owns the rights to the name 500 or Five Hundred as related to cars in the US, so it will be interesting to see if the Fiat must be renamed for sale here.
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Kumar 2:26PM (6/01/2009)
Yes, it will be interesting. But Ford has only used 'Five Hundred', so may have been sidestepping the much longer running 500 by Fiat.
Or...being Fiat, I've seen mention that 500 in Italian isn't spelled or pronounced 'Five Hundred'...conflict solved. ;)
Gary Blomquist 3:56PM (6/01/2009)
If it were the case that the number 500 was Ford's ownership for using as a vehicle name, then how does Dodge and Chevy both use 1500 for their 1/2 ton P.U. trucks?
John 4:15PM (6/01/2009)
Dodge Ram, Chevy Silverado. The 1500 is not the primary trademark name. Remember Lincoln and Lexus had a fight over the LS name some years back. It may be a non-issue, but since Ford is not exactly flush with cash either, and if they do own the rights to variations of 500, they would probably want to pursue some sort of cash payment to relinquish it.
required 4:23PM (6/01/2009)
I'm pretty certain that since it's a Fiat 500 (not Five Hundred) it's okay. Kind of like the Fairlane 500 and Nuova 500.
jgp 6:44PM (6/01/2009)
By US law, numbers can't be trademarked. As long as they don't spell it out, they'll be alright.
stan 8:27PM (6/01/2009)
Wherever possible I've been promoting the idea that this upscale microcompact should be called "Chrysler Metropolitan", with as little Americanization as can possibly be managed. Now, about that Dodge Panda ...
Dane 9:34PM (6/01/2009)
I would guess they (FIAT) have patented the name 50 years ago here...
yournamehere6785 2:09PM (6/01/2009)
No Arbath. No Sale.
the reason the Mini is so successful is because of the wide price and performance range it covers. it appeals to alot of different customers. Only bring over the base model 500 is going to really limit sales.
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lionel.vargas 2:18PM (6/01/2009)
No it won't. No one outside of the readers of AB and viewers of Top Gear knows what Abarth even is.
yournamehere6785 2:24PM (6/01/2009)
no one knew what a Mini Cooper S was either.
Colin Smith 2:30PM (6/01/2009)
In eighteen months there will be a 900 twin with either 80 or 105 bhp in the 500. The current engine range will be gone. The new engine will offer better performance than the current 100, with far better emissions and fuel consumption. There will also be the convertible and maybe the little Guidarino. By then the base Abarth will come with 135 bhp and also better fuel consumption. There may also be a 165 Abarth to cater for maniacs.
I am interested to hear that the rest of the Fiat range won't make it. I expect the lengthened Bravo floorpan used in the Lancia Delta will be used, also maybe the Linea base. Fiat got the current Bravo from initial computer design to market in eighteen months, so new models could arrive that quickly. I hope they look good.
dwaltr 3:08PM (6/01/2009)
But what is Chrysler going to do for 18 months until it arrives? It's not like this little Fiat is going to make the company profitable and get of the Gov. tit.
David 4:23PM (6/01/2009)
Hmmm...
I'm not sure good mechanical underpinnings and dynamics beneath major "ugly" will be enough to sway me to Chrysler.
I think this is a big mistake, but not one that Fiat can't rectify easily enough if demand for their other cars is there.
Then again, seeing Fiat's line-up, they seem to re-use a lot of components, especially the interiors, across the board, so that even if a car is "uniquely American", that doesn't necessarily mean anything. It might actually not differ too much other than the badge and the name, despite the statement, and be easily recognizable for what it truly is. I just don't see Fiat completely re-inventing good designs and existing components just for Chrysler's sake, when it really doesn't have to.
montoym 4:30PM (6/01/2009)
If only the Mini were truly successful.
50K/yr is not a number virtually any other automaker would tout as excellent.
It's expensive(compared to other similar cars), it's only available as a 2dr, it's also small(Fiesta size class), not to mention that it's a hatchback. None of those things bode well for sales success in the US and the Mini's sales figures bear that out.
Mini's percentage increases last year were due to manufacturing limitations that occurred when the new model was being produced and were not really reflective of actual increased demand, just an inability to produce the requested amount of cars the year before. For instance, Mini is down 22% compared to last year in the April '09 figures. They've been down every month this year compared to a 28.6% increase last year, again, due to the situation I mentioned above.
If Chrysler is looking to the Mini and wants the 500 to be as successful, they'd better get used to disappointment. The PT Cruiser, even with 2 wheels in the grave still managed to sell a similar 50k copies in 2008.