Fiat held a glitzy launch for the convertible version of its super hot supermini at the Whisky Mist in London the other night and swimsuit supermodel Elle Macpherson was the first in the UK to go topless, getting her very own 500C. We're told the Australian-born model and actress received the keys to the latest iteration of the Italian-built model outside her Notting Hill home and was soon overheard telling a friend how cool and sexy she thought it was. Of course, Elle knows all about cool and sexy Fiat 500s, having previously owned the original hard top version.

Other convertible-celebrating celebrities up in da club with Edoardo Agnelli, the nephew of Fiat's co-founder, included Tesla Roadster buyer and Black-Eyed Peas guy will.I.am and Sugababes' Amelle. Feel free to check out the gallery below of Elle's famous friends posing with her new ride. Americans lusting after a topless model for themselves may have to wait until 2011 before they are able to satisfy their desire. Hit the jump for a couple bonus vids of the 500C in action and the official UK launch press release.



[Source: MS&L London]

We've seen some pretty cool advertising in our time, but a new European marketing campaign from Fiat is surely one of the more memorable efforts from an automaker in recent memory. In an effort to underscore the safety of its diminutive 500 – both to its occupants and the animals we share our planet with – the Italian automaker has unleashed a new series of images depicting the retro hatchback in various crash test scenarios.

The interesting part comes from the car's occupants, which includes a panda bear, a walrus (goo goo g'joob) and a couple of penguins. Equally as clever is the tagline, "Engineered for a lower impact on the environment," after which the ad reminds the viewer that Fiat – with 133.7 grams of C02 per kilometer on average – is the brand with the lowest carbon emissions in all of Europe.



[Source: Fubiz.net via Jalopnik]

Four 500s by 2011. That is the latest word out of Italy concerning the adorable Fiat 500. While the Chrysler/Fiat merger chugs along, the tiny 500 is the only model that has been officially greenlighted for American consumption under the Fiat banner. To make up for that dearth of models, Fiat will apparently offer the 500 in four different flavors when it reaches these shores: hatchback, convertible, station wagon and sporty hatchback. There's also an outside chance of a micro-CUV according to this Automotive News piece.

The "sporty hatchback" will be the Abarth, Europe's 2008 Car of the Year. Chrysler/Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne calls it "our iPod." Wonder if it's too late for some co-branding. While it might seem that a sporty wagon and sporty drop-top would be fairly easy to slot into the mix (Abarth Giardiniera SS Corsa, FTW!), we'll have to make due with those four iterations for the time being. The 500 family should be in U.S. dealerships by the first half of 2011. The American-market cars will likely be produced at a Chrysler plant in the United States or in Toluca, Mexico, but there's no official word on U.S. pricing yet.



[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

With the rampant acquisition streak Fiat's embarked on, the Italian automaker has clearly emerged as a power-broker in the global automotive industry. The auto group has always been strongest in its home market, but with the ink on the Chrysler deal still wet and more mergers and acquisitions looming on the horizon, Fiat has reached a new milestone: for the first time in the company's history, it's sold more of one model outside of Italy than within.

The model in question, it should come as no great surprise, is the 500, with 54% of sales currently take place outside its home market. The retro hatchback has been selling like hotcakes in every locale it's been introduced, and is slated to come Stateside within a couple of years.

The announcement of the 500's international sales success came at the market introduction of its convertible version, the 500 C, which goes on sale next month in Italy, France and the UK, with more markets to follow. We've loaded a whole new crop of high-resolution images into the gallery below, and posted a video after the jump to satiate all your quaint Italian cabrio fantasies, so enjoy.

Alfa Romeo has been toying with the idea of returning to America for years, but now that Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne is working from Auburn Hills, the time seems more ripe than ever as details emerge on Fiat/Chrysler's strategy vis-a-vis the North American market. While Marchionne implements management restructuring designed to reduce Chrysler's executive hierarchy and separate its divisions into more independent units, a product strategy is rapidly being put into place to make up for lost time during the bankruptcy procedure and get the company back on track.

With Maserati and Ferrari already present in North America and Lancia offering little to entice North American buyers, the Italian side of the partnership looks poised to enter the market with Fiat and Alfa Romeo models. However, while future Chryslers, Dodges and Jeeps will share underpinnings with their Fiat and Alfa Romeo counterparts – including an Alfa GTX to be based on the new Jeep Grand Cherokee – the Fiat brand itself will have a very limited presence in the North American market, offering only the 500 retro hatchback as a stand-alone model... not unlike BMW's Mini brand. Other Fiat models will carry Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep badges, while Alfa Romeo will take the higher profile on this side of the Atlantic, offering cars under the stoic marque to compete with other European luxury brands. As the Freep points out, Chrysler and Alfa had collaborated in the early '90s to bring Alfas Stateside with limited success, but Marchionne evidently thinks it'll have better luck this time around.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

We've been telling you that Chrysler's PT Cruiser is destined for death for years now, yet the little wagon continues to endure. Inside Line is reporting that the PT has yet again escaped the gallow's pole, and instead the Little Paddy Wagon That Could will soldier on until December 2010.

The move will reportedly keep Chrysler's Toluca, Mexico plant running until the Fiat 500 and Panda arrive to fill the space. Inside Line says the two models will be built at the site beginning summer 2011, and the six or so months between the final demise of the PT and the beginning of the Fiat era will be utilize to retool the facility.

With the PT Cruiser possibly around for another year and a half, we have no choice but to continue to "enjoy" its retro-ness. Heck, with an 11-year-old platform and a design that hasn't changed much since its inception, the little PT is practically a living, breathing classic car in its own right.

[Source: Inside Line]

We sure hope that when Fiat makes it to North America, they bring the Abarth performance brand along. With their Scorpion sub-brand, Fiat has created an intriguing formula that bridges the gap between factory performance models and aftermarket components. Buy a Grande Punto Abarth or 500 Abarth, for example, and you can always upgrade later to the even faster "esse-esse" spec later on with dealer-installable kits available from the factory.

As if we needed another reason to love the Italian hot hatches, Fiat has now inked a deal with their kindred spirits at Sabelt to offer a set of special sport seats. The buckets are crafted on lightweight frames and are available in either a grippy technical fabric or sumptuous Frau leather with Alcantara inserts. Both feature glossy white shells and come in black with red top-stitching, the Abarth name embroidered on the headrest, the Scorpion logo on the tilt knob and slots to accommodate a racing harness. Sure, by themselves a pair of seats are nothing to get all riled up over, but installed in an Abarth hot hatch, they make for a compelling package...and one more reason to anticipate Fiat's return to these shores. Details in the press release after the jump and images in the gallery below.



[Source: Abarth]

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.



[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

When the American Foundation for AIDS Research kicks off its seventeenth annual Cinema Against AIDS Gala later this month at the Cannes Film Festival, they'll be shooting to raise major coin and in the process, hopefully break their record of $7 million taken in at last year's event. Big names like former President Bill Clinton, actress Sharon Stone, movie producer Harvey Weinstein and singer Annie Lennox will be on hand to help the foundation achieve its goals, along with the special one-of-a-kind car you see here.

Melding the best elements from the Fiat 500C unveiled in Geneva this past March and the Fiat 500 Diesel Edition unveiled last fall in Paris, the Fiat 500C by Diesel features a special dark green metallic paint job and special detailing inside and out, topped by the Italian automaker's retro folding fabric roof. The plethora of Diesel logos and special denim interior trim are motivated by Fiat's 100-horsepower 1.4-liter engine in the place of the fixed-roof Diesel Cinquecento's 75hp 1.3-liter unit. Only one example will be made, and the bubble bauble will go home with the highest bidder at the charity event on May 21. Details can be found in the press release after the jump, and a pair of high-resolution photos in the gallery below.



[Source: Fiat]

With all this talk of mergers and acquisitions, it'd be easy to forget that Fiat has its own model lines to update and supplement. So while Sergio Marchionne flies back and forth between Detroit and Turin, a report has emerged suggesting Fiat could be preparing a crossover version of its popular 500 retro-hatch.

Fiat was already set to revive the Giardiniera nameplate used on the original Cinquecento with a longer wagon variant to take on the Mini Clubman, but sources now suggest that the wagon could take a more rugged approach, complete with four-wheel drive. The traction switch would be easy enough considering that the 500 borrows its platform from the Panda, which we already know is offered in lifted all-wheel drive guise. Add to that some contrasting body-cladding, roof rails and presto! You've got a 500 crossover. Roof-rails and a canvas roof like that on the 500C are also tipped to be part of the formula, although the jury's still out on the addition of an extra door or two.

[Source: 4Car]