The Fiat 500 Past and Present
Over the past couple of decades, retro-themed cars have become quite popular, particularly in the United States. Such cars tend to stir feelings of nostalgia and, perhaps best of all, they do so without the headaches of yesterday's mechanics and technology. Rather, they take styling cues from the past and combine timeless, classic designs with amenities that drivers of the 21st century have come to expect. One of the latest cars to fall into this category is the Fiat 500.
This model was resurrected in July of 2007 in Italy after a 32-year hiatus and was first unveiled in the US in 2010 as a 2012 model. The current version, built by Chrysler, is often compared to the likewise-resurrected Mini Cooper, but the original Fiat 500s, which were produced from 1957-1975, were actually more like Volkswagen's iconic Beetle.
Theoriginal Fiat 500was designed by Dante Giacosa and was first built in Turin, Italy in 1957. This tiny car had a 479 cc rear-mounted air-cooled engine that provided 13 horsepower. This rather modest powerplant only propelled the 500 to a top speed of 85 kilometers per hour. For US readers, that's about 52 miles per hour, so it wasn't exactly what one would call fast. The car also had suicide doors and a canvas sunroof that folded back. To beef up these lackluster specs a bit, an engineer named Carlo Abarth offered bolt-on aftermarket parts and accessories, much like suppliers today do for those who like to modify their cars. Later 1957 models were increased to 15 horsepower and hand-crank windows became standard equipment.
From 1958 -1960, a Sport version with 21 horsepower and a one-piece roof was available. By 1965, the 500F was increased to 19 horsepower, whick boosted the car's top speed to 95 kilometers per hour ( 59 mph) and the suicide doors were dropped in favor of standard hinged doors. A Lux (luxury) version was added to the lineup from 1969-1975 featuring full carpeting and updated plastic dashboard material. When production of the original Fiat 500 came to an end in 1975, some 3.6 million units had been built over a period of 18 years. While popular in Europe and often referred to as the first "City Car," the original Fiat 500 enjoyed excellent fuel economy and its small size made parking in cramped spaces virtually effortless and provided easy navigation through Europe's typically narrow streets. However, the original Fiat 500 never made it to American shores. This in itself serves as a bit of an irony because at the time this model was discontinued, smaller cars in the US had gained popularity in light of energy-conserving efforts and skyrocketing gas prices.
By the late 1990s, however, something happened in America. A segment of discriminating drivers began to long for car designs of the past. Volkswagen gave new life to the legendary Beetle in 1998. A little while later, the retro-themed Chrysler PT Cruiser became a hit. By the middle 2000s, the Mini Cooper was reborn through BMW and also remains very popular. So Fiat jumped onto the bandwagon and resumed production of the Fiat 500 in 2007 in Poland, while US models are being built in Mexico and sold at select Chrysler dealerships.
It goes without saying that themodern versionsof the Fiat 500 are larger, faster, better equipped, and far safer than their original predecessors. Like the Mini Cooper and VW Beetle, the modern-day version of the Fiat 500 serves as a niche car and is not really intended to compete against mainstream economy models such as the Toyota Yaris, Hyundai Accent, or Ford Fiesta. Instead, it's a lifestyle choice and fun to boot. At this writing, sales of the Fiat 500 have started off rather sluggishly in the US, and part of this is likely attributed to the fact that the original model was never available on this side of the Pond, but a bigger version with more interior room is on its way for 2014.
In the meantime, sales are gaining momentum as more people are becoming aware of this unique car, so stay tuned.
