Autoblog

Click to view the '66 Fiat 500 Giannini Tony Stewart

What would Luigi make of this? The little Fiat 500 from Pixar's Cars said he only follows Ferrari, but then his cousin shows up, decked out in NASCAR livery.

This original 1966 Fiat 500 has been tuned by Italian racing garage Giannini, with a tiny 700cc two-cylinder engine capable of taking the quaint little Italian up to 100 mph and return a staggering 60+ mpg. To set it apart from ordinary Cinquecentos, this example has been decked out in decals mimicking Tony Stewart's NASCAR racer, ready to cheer from the sidelines at the Piston Cup. The car was listed in excellent condition with no rust, and recently sold on eBay for just $7,700. Check out the images in the gallery below.

[Source: eBay Motors via CarScoop]

Click image for high-res gallery of pics of the first Fiat 500 in the States

Jim Magill's little Fiat 500 made a stop in SoCal this weekend and we were among the lucky few who got some seat time in it. As we recently blogged, Jim shipped his microcar to the States all the way from Belfast, Northern Ireland to help raise some cash for the Northern Ireland Children's Hospice, and to meet with some fellow Fiat tifosi along the way. As part of the plan the Cinquecento is being driven to some high profile events to show it off and help spread the word about his cause. In the OC this past Saturday morning, the car attracted a ton of attention at a weekly car show, even sitting in the shadow of a few Zagato-bodied Lancias and Alfas. While the nearby Isettas made it seem positively huge, the tiny Fiat was still appreciated for its frugality and miniscule footprint. After the show we went for a spin and stopped to take a few pics of the car next to a handy Smart ForTwo. Follow the jump to see what we thought of it.

Fiat has confirmed it will be producing a convertible version of the 500 and although a launch date has yet to be announced, Fiat brand styling director Roberto Giolito revealed that the model is on its way... at some point.

Giolito also announced that the 500 cabrio will feature a fabric roof, and not a retractable hard-top, citing improvements in materials that remove many of the drawbacks associated with cloth roofs. The entire Fiat group does not include any hard-top convertibles, although several have been reported to be in the works, including the upcoming Ferrari California. However, the more expensive MINI convertible, which the 500 cabrio will invariably target in the marketplace, also uses a fabric top.

[Source: just-auto.com - sub. req'd]