Get Autoblog in your Google feed
Fiat Chairman Umberto Agnelli died of cancer late Thursday, 15 months after taking
over the company’s top spot from his highly-visible brother Giovanni, who died in January 2003. Agnelli had
been helping Fiat recover from severe financial problems, and now his sudden departure has many wondering about
the automaker’s future. The company has long been a family dynasty, but Umberto Agnelli’s two grandsons, who were
lined up for eventual positions at Fiat, are being called too young to handle such incredible responsibility,
especially during a time of fiscal crisis.